"You feel," he whispered, pulling back and pushing forward again, "you feel incredible, Joss. You're so perfect."
His hips picked up speed, then the pace would lessen, and beads of sweat coated my forehead at the slow, slow build of pressure in my core. We stayed wrapped tight like that, his arms clutching me tight as his back curved up over me with each movement. I never wanted to leave. Never wanted it to end.
His muscles bunched under my hands as I moved them greedily over his damp skin.
As he moved faster, my body tensed tight at the surprising build of another explosion that simmered dangerously under the surface, waiting, waiting, waiting for something to release it.
With three words, he pulled the pin.
"I love you," he breathed against my mouth.
Boom.
It was sharp and hot and excruciating and perfect.
I cried out again, and he thrust forward with a loud groan, sinking slowly against me as he tried to catch his breath.
Tightly, so tightly, I held him to me, two tears rolling down my temples into my hair.
He loved me. I was loved by him.
Maybe it hadn't been according to his plan, but it was perfect.
Chapter 23 Levi
"Did you want more corn?" I asked Joss.
That was what came out of my mouth, at least. Across the table on my parents' deck, my eyes were saying something completely different. I might have been holding out the plate of bright yellow corn on the cob, but she smirked because she could read between the lines just fine.
"Not at the moment, thank you," she answered politely. Her eyes bugged out in warning.
I sighed quietly, and my mom cleared her throat.
My dad winked at me, giving me a nod because I guess I wasn't very good at being subtle. But after four days of being able to do whatever I wanted with Joss—and we'd done that whatever every single day—I was feeling a touch out of control.
Any moment of privacy was urgent, almost frantic, especially after our first time. Joss unleashed was my new favorite kind of Joss. A close second was the way she laid her head on my chest and stroked her fingers idly over my chest and stomach when we lay in bed, talking about our days in the same way we used to.
"Joss, I'm going to need to pick your brain," my mom said.
"What about?"
"Well, I signed up to bring a dessert to the Fourth of July party at the community center, and I feel like I bring the same tired thing every year."
"Lemon ice cream cake," Joss and I said in unison, then grinned at each other when my mom rolled her eyes.
"See? I need something new."
"What's wrong with it?" Joss asked. "Everyone loves it. Remember last year, you caught Jackson James trying to take four pieces."
"I like your cake, honey," my dad said, patting his stomach.
My mom eyed it. "I know you do. I'm going to stop making so many sweets at home if you keep needing me to let out your pants."
He mumbled something into a glass of water. I couldn't hear him, but Joss covered her mouth and laughed. My dad winked at her.
Contentment spread warm and sweet in my veins. Everything was the same, but it wasn't. It was better.
As I stared at Joss across the table, the light growing dusky and blue around us as we talked and laughed through the meal, I knew I'd marry her tomorrow if she'd say yes. Only a handful of days earlier, I told my mom that I'd been stuck.
But that was the wrong word, I could see now.
Waiting and stuck weren't the same thing. Stuck implied no choice. No action. No forethought or planning.
But waiting, that fit better in my head. I'd been waiting for Joss as sure as the Earth spun around the sun. And waiting was just fine when you held firm to the belief that it was the right course of action.
She was right for me. I was right for her.
And I think she felt it too, when I caught her sending a small smile my way.
During our first time, I told her I loved her because I did. And I wanted her to know it when we shared something so big and precious together. She hadn't said it back, but strangely, I was okay with that. Joss loved me, of that I had no doubt. She'd loved me for years.
But to make the switch to in love, I'd give her time because time was what I had in my years of waiting.
My mom stood from the table, patting Nero's head when he popped up from his spot next to Joss' chair on the deck. "You little beggar." Grabbing a half-finished roll from her plate, she slipped it to him. "Y'all done with your plates?"
"Let me help," Joss said, taking her empty plate and setting it in her lap. I handed her mine, and she stacked it on top of hers, then grabbed my mom and dad's.
"Thanks, sweetie. I'll get the glasses." My mom eyed me. "And then my youngest son and the light of my life will grab the rest."
I saluted. "Come on, old man, you going to be the only one not helping?"
"Oh, I best stay out here and make sure Nero doesn't feel lonely."
My mom rolled her eyes, Joss laughed, and I shook my head while I gathered the silverware and balled-up napkins.
The dog to which he referred trotted into the house behind Joss' chair. I gave Dad a look, but he'd already leaned his head back and closed his eyes. His hands rested over his stomach as he sighed contentedly.
Once the kitchen was cleaned up, my mom went back out onto the deck to wake my snoring dad.
Bracing my hands on the back of Joss' chair, I tipped her backward so I could smack a kiss on her lips. "You coming
