Bliss by Kaylee Ryan Page 0,6

and he’s willing. I’m here, and this is all I’ve ever wanted. I know there is so much we need to discuss. There is still so much I need to figure out. I need time to process all of this.

After tonight.

Tonight, for the first time in my life, I’m taking what I want. What my heart really wants. And that’s Cooper. I know it’s wrong, but I can’t seem to find it in me to care. My life has been flipped upside down in the last twenty-four hours. I’ve always wanted him, and even though he’s here under the guise that our lives are now entwined, I know better. However, I’m still taking this moment. I’ll need it to carry me through the heartbreak and the tears once he realizes he was wrong. That he was just jealous of my time with Hunter, the time he was no longer getting.

This time, I’m not going to hide the hurt. I’m not going to sugarcoat it to spare his feelings. I need to put me first, and that includes being honest with how he broke me. I don’t know what we will be after tonight. I don’t know if I’m tossing away years of friendship for one night of being consumed by him, but it’s a risk I’m willing to take. After this moment, after his confession of love, things have already changed. I know they’ll never be the same.

I’m taking what I can get.

Cooper pulls out of the kiss, and we’re both panting as we try and catch our breath. He smiles down at me, tucking my hair behind my ear. He’s being sweet and affectionate, which is how I always imagined this moment would go. The only problem is, if I let this night continue down that path, my heart will never recover. The odds are against me as it is. My heart is so entwined with him that I know the scars of the past will always remain.

“You’re beautiful,” he says softly. His brown eyes are hooded as he takes in my naked body.

I’d love to stand here and let him tell me all the sweet things he thinks he needs to say, but again, I know my heart and know I can’t take it. Placing my hands flat on his chest, I allow them to roam over the peaks and valleys he calls abs. Not able to handle the intensity of his stare, I allow my eyes to follow the path of my hands until I reach the waistband of his boxer briefs. His hard cock is peeking out the top. Gently, I trace the tip with my thumb, causing him to groan. With one hand held tightly to my hip, the other slides behind my neck as he leans down and presses his forehead to mine.

“Reese,” he croaks. “Baby, as much as I love you touching me, we can’t go there. Not right now. This can’t be over before it starts.”

Ignoring his words, I drop to my knees, pulling his boxer briefs down with me.

“Fuck,” he mutters.

Wrapping my hand around him, I stroke him a couple of times, causing his legs to shake. I know he’s about to stop me, so I lean in and take him into my mouth.

“Motherfucker,” he pants. His hands bury in my hair, and I take as much of him as I can. He’s long and thick, which makes it more difficult. When I pull back to get a better angle, he steps back. “No more,” he rasps. “Not this time.”

Glancing up at him, I see his chest rapidly rising and falling, the intensity of his breathing matching my own. I watch in fascination as he grips his hard length and tugs, much harder and faster than I was just moments before. “Get on the bed, Reese.” It’s not a request. It’s a command.

A thrill races through me. Finally. After years of imagining being with him like this, it’s going to happen. I push the possible consequences of my actions to the back of my mind. I want this. I want him, and now is the time. It’s time to live in the moment and make up for the regrets of my past. I should have been more assertive that night. I should have told him what I wanted, but I shied away with his rejection.

I don’t want to be that girl. I don’t want to settle. Not anymore. Not this time.

“I wanted to take my time with you,” he says, staring