on Rafe’s part. Nothing left hiding between us. All the things we should’ve done or said didn’t matter anymore. Only this mattered. Right here and now, when it was just the two of us finally giving in to what we’d both wanted our entire lives.
Our bodies fused together, and still, I couldn’t get close enough. The warmth of his skin seared my palms. My magic flowed out of me in a twisting swirl of bright blue stardust. Fairy lights blinked overhead, bathing us in a soft glow.
He cupped my face, pulling back from our frenzied kiss to catch his breath. His ice-blue eyes had darkened to the shade of a midnight ocean. His thumbs traced my jawline as his brows lowered in concentration, as if he was memorizing the exact contours of my face.
“You’re so beautiful.” His warm breath from his softly spoken confession fluttered over me. “Why couldn’t I say that to you before?”
I circled his wrists with my glowing palms. “Maybe it wasn’t our time yet.”
The truth of that settled between us, erasing whatever lingering regret threatened to steal this moment from us. The past was an anchor, but we’d always had the power to cut the chain. Magic, curses, legends had nothing to do with the stripped down truth of us. We’d been meant for each other, written into the stars long before there had ever been an island.
“Are you as tired as I am of waiting for this?” he asked.
I pressed myself firmly against him, letting all the soft parts of me mold to the hard parts of him, sinking into him completely. “God, yes.”
This time when he kissed me, there was certainty. An urgency. Neither of us needed to tear into each other like illusions that might disappear when one of us came to our senses, but it wasn’t soft or slow either. Underneath those firm, sure kisses was the undercurrent of having waited long enough.
Like both Lizzo and Kenna said, it was about damn time.
He tilted my head, angling me to take the kiss deeper. Groaning against my lips like I was the only thing on earth that could sate his appetite. His aggressive demands on my mouth only urged me on, begging him to take more.
We crashed against each other like stormy waves against the shore. A wild, reckless tangle of lips and fingers and moans and need. It was a little sloppy and a lot desperate and absolutely perfect. His mouth moved against mine, and I had no choice but to cling to him and hang on as he fed on me, driving my pleasure past anything I’d ever experienced before.
I knew all about how he’d picked his name. Owned several editions of the book that featured the man he’d wanted to be when he was just a boy. I’d seen the loyal, fierce, protective side of Captain Rafe, but this was my first time seeing the toe-curling side of the pirate who knew exactly how to make his woman come undone.
And I wanted more.
Our tongues stroked against each other, like we were in some kind of competition to see if we could make the other come with our mouths alone. For the record, he was winning. I arched against him, clawing at his neck, wanting to leave my mark. Wanting there to be no mistake that he was mine and this was it for both of us.
His fingers dug into my ass hard enough to dent my skin, and I scrambled up his tall, lean frame. He dragged me against the erection that was barely concealed by the thin material of his sweatpants. Bless the man who invented gray sweats.
Tiny tremors tickled my toes. Even with a layer of clothes between us, I was close. Just from dry humping. It was like being a teenager all over again. But better, because there was no curfew or lingering awkwardness about the things aroused bodies could do.
He rotated his hips firmly against my center. Gripping my hips, he pumped me hard against his pulsing cock, like he was about two seconds away from tearing through the fabric and impaling me here in his brother’s yard. I kissed him harder, wanting to swallow him whole.
The sound of applause and a loud whistle that could only be Kenna had the two of us breaking apart like kids caught looking at dirty magazines.
I’d kind of forgotten that we had an audience.
“Don’t stop on our account,” Kenna hollered. “This is the best show we’ve gotten since we lost internet on the island.”
“I’ve got some dollar bills I’m not doing anything with if you want to keep it going,” Finn yelled. Thora swatted his arm and he gave her a sheepish grin.
Galen just stood there with his arms crossed like this whole thing pained him.
“Can we…?” I pointed to the forest. “We don’t have to go far, not enough to be in danger, but I really don’t want to go inside right now.”
It was still early, probably, and there was so much more I wanted to explore with him. So much more my body needed from him. And I didn’t want to do it in a two-bedroom cabin where his brothers could hear me scream.
Rafe let out a long-winded sigh. “Hold on. I’ll be right back.”
Instead of saying something about everyone minding their own damn business, he crossed the lawn to Brooke’s back porch and knocked on her door. She answered and the two of them talked briefly. Brooke’s light and airy laughter stretched across the yard, but I couldn’t pick up on what they were saying. I could’ve sworn she gave me a knowing smile before Rafe turned away from her and jogged back to me. Everyone else who was at her house spilled out to the porch to see what was going on. Because we were all small-towners at heart, and nosing into other people’s business was as much a part of our DNA as magic.
Rafe took my hand. “Come on, let’s go.”
“Finally.” Not wanting to wait a second longer to be alone with him, I hurried along with him as he led me under the cover of the trees.
Glancing back, I caught sight of Kenna’s worried expression, but I waved my hand to let her know it was fine. Rafe wouldn’t put me in danger. Of that, I was a hundred percent certain.
As soon as the forest line swallowed us, the smoke moved in. But we were still close enough to the edge of Kenna and Galen’s property that it didn’t get too close. Just hovered at the edge, waiting to see if we wanted to come farther into the forest to play.
We could still hear everyone else on the back porch, but they could no longer see us. We moved like shadows through the bushes and large pines that camouflaged us in the never-ending dark. Kenna crossed the yard to talk to Violet, who sat on Brooke’s back porch with the Lathams and the rest of the water signs.
“Where are we going?” I eyed the smoke as it got braver and curled closer to the path we cut through the underbrush. “No one can see us anymore.”
Rafe stopped and faced me, cupping my neck and brushing his fingers lightly over the curve of my shoulder. “I’m not going to let our first time be in the dirt, and I’m sure as shit not making love to you within catcalling distance of your cousin and my idiot brother.”
“Then where—?”
“It’s a surprise.” He raised an eyebrow. “Do you trust me?”
While he’d been the source of every bit of turmoil and heartache for me for most of my life, there was no one I trusted more than this man. Even if he hadn’t been mine due to the way fate had aligned the stars, Rafe wasn’t a liar and he didn’t play with people’s emotions for sport. He asked me if I trusted him because he knew I had a damn good reason to say yes.
I squeezed his hand, pushing every bit of my truth through my magic. “I do.”
He gave me a heartbreaking grin that reminded me so much of those rare times I’d catch him smiling when we were kids. Usually when he was staring at his feet. Back then, I would’ve given anything to know what he’d been thinking, what had put that kind of smile on his face. It wasn’t until right now that I understood he used to stare at his feet because he’d had to quickly avert his gaze from what he’d really been looking at. Me.
My heart bounced in my chest, carefree and light, as I threaded my fingers through his and let him lead me through the trees until we reached the back end of Brooke’s property. She had a little more acreage than Galen because her yard curved to the south. A thick line of saplings that guarded a row of silent beehives blocked us from view.
There was a single greenhouse back here. The enclosure stood silent and imposing, with tangled vines just visible through the tinted glass. Like the conservatory of a gothic home built for solving murders. Tree branches that hung low from the weight of their leaves created a canopy that blocked out what little light the moon offered.
I couldn’t imagine a worse place for a greenhouse.
At my questioning look, Rafe squeezed my hand. “Brooke uses this to test out plants that thrive in the shade. She keeps an air mattress out here for the nights when she needs to keep a careful eye on her bees. It’s about as much privacy as we’re going to get right now.”
I raised an eyebrow. “And Brooke is cool with us defiling her personal space?”
“Don’t worry, Miss Manners.” He kissed my nose. “I asked her first.”
My cheeks heated at the thought of Rafe asking Brooke if it was okay for us to use her greenhouse as a temporary Sex Shack. I didn’t have a problem with Brooke—as a newcomer to the island she was less influenced by gossip than most—but I still didn’t know her that well. Now everyone was going to know what Rafe and I were doing out here.
“Don’t overthink it,” he said, reading both my mind and expression. “Despite our jackass family members doing what they do best, no one is going to care what we’re doing. But if you’re uncomfortable here, we can wait.”
Wait for what? I’d wanted him before I knew what all those desperate, aching feelings inside me meant. Before I understood the depths of longing and love and sacrifice. “I’ve waited long enough, don’t you think?”
He released a deep breath. “Thank fucking God.”
Laughing, the two of us stumbled into the greenhouse and let the metal door swing shut behind us. Immediately, I was overwhelmed with how fresh and green the space smelled. Night-blooming jasmine spilled out of brightly colored pots. Moonflowers dotted the shelves between leafy purple plants with pointed, waxy leaves. Dark vines climbed the trellises attached to the crisscross of white metal window panes.
It was gorgeous and felt safe in a way I couldn’t explain. We were well out of view and off Kenna and Galen’s property, and still, the curse didn’t come near. As if the light Brooke radiated lingered and kept this place protected from harm.
A single-layer air mattress covered with a soft forest-green blanket sat against the back wall behind a row of cereus and chocolate daisies. I stopped short at the sight of it, my breath quickening in anticipation. Rafe tilted my chin up and kissed me. Any stubborn fear or insecurity melted away when his lips caressed mine in a slow, seductive dance.
He kissed like he wanted to memorize the exact shape of my lips. Like he was savoring the taste of me. His tongue swept over mine, unhurried and completely consuming. My wildly beating heart slowed as I relaxed into his rhythm.
This was the kind of kissing that understood the difference between patience and waiting. The kind of kissing that demanded you take your time because it was all you’d ever wanted and you damn well weren’t going to rush it. The kind of kissing you saved for your forever person.
My fingers wound through his hair, the silky strands like water. He had one arm around my waist, holding me against him, while his free hand cupped my face. He took his time, and I was content to drift away on the sensation of every part of him wanting to explore every part of me. He took cues from my responses, adjusted the graze of his fingers, the press of his hand, the stroke of his tongue to every one of my breathy sighs.
He pulled back; his icy-blue gaze held me captive. My forever Something Blue. I hadn’t taken off a stitch of clothing, but I still felt naked. As if he had stripped down all my remaining layers and saw the whole of me.
“It’s just us,” he said. “This night, it’s only about you and me. Not what should’ve or could’ve been, I don’t give a damn about that anymore. All I care about is right now.”
“Same.” I traced his lips with my fingers and he sucked one into his mouth, gently biting down on the pad and sending a rush of heat through me.
My legs trembled and ached to wrap around his trim waist. His mouth covered mine, and a powerful punch of liquid heat that had nothing to do with my magic threatened to burn through me. Neither of our hands were glowing. It really was just us out here.
I let my finger roam over his chest and stomach, slowly dragging over each ridge in his abs, tracing the V-muscles at his hips, wanting to sink my teeth into every inch of him. He claimed my lips with a stronger sense of urgency, tangling his tongue against mine like he wanted its submission. My core pulsed and my breasts became tight and heavy. Unable to stand it anymore, I pulled my shirt over my head and tossed it to the side. While I was a big fan of seduction, my nipples desperately wanted attention.
His eyes darkened as he took in my plain white cotton bra. I couldn’t possibly be wearing anything less sexy. All of my undergarments were more for comfort than looks, since wearing cute underwear no one was going to see just depressed me. But he looked at me as if I was a wet daydream. A girl could get used to being looked at like that.
My nipples stood upright and waiting, and he took the hint. Brushing his fingers over the peaks, he smiled when a low moan purred from the back of my throat. Dipping his head, he took one of my nipples into his mouth, wetting it through the thin cotton, then lightly nipping it. My entire body bucked against him and he chuckled.
“So responsive,” he said.
He hoisted me up, and I wrapped my legs around his waist as he laid me down on the squeaky mattress. Our bodies dipped on the uneven surface, but that didn’t break our stride. He kissed my neck, and his unshaven jaw left a pleasant, trailing burn as he moved south.
I reached behind me to unhook my bra and tossed that somewhere in the vicinity of my shirt. Only my tiny shorts remained, but he didn’t make a beeline in that direction. He was more than content to suckle and nibble on my nipples until I was writhing beneath him.
My entire body strained for any kind of friction I could get. “Please.”
His icy eyes met mine. “Please, what?”
I leaned up on my elbows. “Do I really need to spell it out for you?”
“Yes.” He kissed my chest. “In fact, I want to hear everything you want me to do to you.” He kissed my neck. “In great detail.” He nipped my ear.
Oh, he thought he was being cute. “Fine. I want you to rip off my shorts and suck on my clit until I’m screaming your name and have forgotten my own.”
“Jesus Christ.” He ground his cock against me as he sucked in a quick breath. “I fucking love that brutal Sagittarius honesty.”
His hips moved in a circle against me, the pressure building to a breaking point. My breath came out in short little gasps. “You feel… Oh, God.”
“I don’t think this is what you asked for.” His voice held a low growl, like he was barely keeping himself contained. “Make no mistake, I have every intention of working my way down to feast on your gorgeous pussy. I’m just building up to it.”
“I don’t care what I asked for before.” I dug my nails into the back of his head. “I just want to come. Make me come. Please.”
He dropped down and tore my shorts off like one of those magicians that can remove a tablecloth without disturbing the glassware. Tossing my shorts somewhere behind him, he lifted my legs over his shoulders and spread me wide.
He ran his nose up and down my slit as he breathed me in. “Beautiful.”
Finally, he licked me clean up my center, humming his appreciation before fully diving in. While all his earlier kissing had been slow and sweet, this was a whole different story. Done with the buildup, he fucked me hard and fast with his mouth. I cried out, gripping his hair and mashing his face into my pussy as he licked and sucked on my clit.
He slid a finger inside of me, and my inner walls hugged him, quivering against the sensation that was just this side of too much. “Damn, buttercup. If you clamp down on my cock like that, I’m going to lose it and embarrass the fuck out of myself.”
“That’s…” He added another finger. “Oh, fuck.” He curled them inside me as he continued to swirl his tongue around my clit. “Fuck me.”
I gripped the blanket beneath me as he tilted my ass to get a better angle. His fingers hit that spot that had me seeing stars as he bit my clit before gently sucking it into his mouth. Tingling that started in my toes traveled upward at breakneck speed. I clenched one last time and released in an explosion of cries and whimpers and his name on my lips. His fingers and tongue continued to work me over, wringing every last bit of pleasure from my body.
When I finally came back down, I leaned up on my elbows and took in his hard body, the cocky, satisfied grin as he licked me off his lips, the glint in his eyes that said he wasn’t close to finished. “Now what are you going to do with me?”
He crept over my body, planting kisses on his way back up. “I’d rather show you.”
The weight of him pressing me into the mattress made my stomach tight and my core pulse with fresh need. Just like that, I was ready to go again. “Do your worst.”
He kissed me, nipping my bottom lip to acknowledge my smartass comment. But my smug confidence was blown the moment my fingers shook against his skin as I rushed to push his sweatpants down. A little too eager. He stood, helping me take them the rest of the way off, and fuck me sideways. He had the most gorgeous cock I’d ever seen. It was long and sleek and looked like it would be silky and smooth against my tongue.
I got up on my knees, running my fingers down his stomach. As my touch moved lower, his cock twitched, as if to hurry things along. Fortunately for him, I was also impatient. I took him in my mouth, rolling the head around my tongue before I opened my throat and swallowed him all the way down.
He sucked in a sharp breath and tangled his hands in my hair. “Fuck. How do you feel this good?” His hips began to thrust, but he held himself back and pulled out. “I have to stop.”
My brow scrunched. “Stop?”
He trailed his fingers over my jaw, tilting my face up as he leaned down and placed a soft kiss on my lips. “I want to be deep inside your pussy when I come.”
I had a sassy reply on the tip of my tongue, but then my eyes strayed to his cock, wet and glistening from my mouth, and I lost the ability to speak. I just wanted him inside me. No more delays or seductions or buildup. I needed him right the fuck now.
Leaning back on the mattress to make room for him, I bent my knees, giving him a full view of how badly I ached for him. He crawled over me and settled between my legs. Kissing me sweetly, he ran his hand down my stomach and flicked his thumb over my clit. My entire body lit up, hungry and needy for what only he could give me.
He lifted his thumb to his mouth, closing his eyes and groaning as he sucked on it. “I can’t get over the taste of you. I’m going to need more of that before this night is done.” He stroked his cock in his big hand and guided it toward my entrance, then paused, resting his forehead against mine. “Fuck. No condom.”
“We don’t need one. I’ve been tested and I have an IUD.” I sent a silent thanks to the gods for blessing me with irregular cycles that required birth control to even them out.
“I’ve been tested too. I’m good to go.”
As he entered me, I wrapped my arms around his shoulders and pulled him closer to me. He felt more amazing than even my most graphic fantasies. Once he was fully seated, he let my body adjust to his size. I wiggled my hips, urging him to move and give me the friction I needed before I lost my mind. Finally, once he got his labored breathing under control, he pulled back before slamming into me again. It was so good.
“Harder.” I dug my nails into him. “Fuck me harder, Rafe.”
“Hang on.” He held still and breathed evenly. “You feel too fucking good. I had no idea it was going to be this good. I think I might be fucked here.”
I laughed and hugged him tighter, not caring one bit. I was close anyway. He gave himself another second then began fucking me with absolute precision. As if his cock had been designed to bring me, and only me, to a high I’d never seen coming. He understood my body and gave me exactly what I needed before I could voice it.
He gripped my ass, going deeper and hitting that spot. “Come for me.” He thrust harder as my body tightened around him. “Let me feel you come apart, buttercup.”
At the sound of that familiar nickname, I cried out, every nerve went off like fireworks bursting inside me. A release in every sense of the word. With two more thrusts, he followed me, groaning in my ear as his body shuddered. He kissed my neck, where his face was buried.
I trailed my hands up and down his sweaty back, smiling when I felt his cock stir against my thigh. It took next to nothing to make me want him again. Leaning up on his side, he propped his head up on his hand as he stared down at me. His expression brimmed with utter contentment as his fingers skimmed my stomach.
The softness in his eyes looked a lot like something neither of us had the courage to name yet. I wanted to say something to mark this moment. Something meaningful. But I didn’t want anything real I might’ve said to be mistaken for post-sex afterglow ramblings.
So instead of spilling my most vulnerable self all over him, I brushed away a lock of hair that had fallen over his forehead and gave him my sauciest smile. “Not bad. For round one.”
