out. He must be deep in thought to not have heard me approach, so I turn to head back, feeling now that I might be overstepping. Whatever this lake means to him, he obviously doesn’t want me involved.
I take a step back and a branch cracks loudly under my foot. Cade turns to face me, no expression on his face. He returns his full attention to the lake and I decide to take that as an invitation that he’s okay having me here. Maybe he wants to open up. I know his mom’s birthday is coming up and it’s a big deal for the family. Maybe we’re going to bridge that gap from friends with benefits to something more.
I wrap my arms around his stomach, pressing my cheek to his back. He stiffens for a second, but then relaxes and rests his hands over mine.
“Are you okay?” I whisper.
“Yeah, I was about to come up,” he says. “I just decided to clear my head for a second.”
He swivels in my hold, and his knuckles run down my face as his gaze fixes to mine. I ruined whatever this moment was for him.
“I can wait back at the apartment.”
He shakes his head. “Don’t be silly. We’ve been waiting for this moment for too long to waste any more time.”
He puts his arm around my shoulders, and we walk away from the lake. I wish he’d trust me enough to tell me what’s bothering him. Instead of barraging him with questions, I let us pretend we’re like two teenagers who’ve waited for their parents to be gone for the night so we can have sex. Maybe that’s what he needs right now. He takes my hand and leads me into my apartment, locking the door behind us.
“I can’t wait to have you,” he says before he kisses me and urges me to step backward toward the bed.
I thought this moment would be different. That I’d be hoisted up on some surface and my clothes would be torn off, but Cade surprises me by kissing me so slow and seductive that I’m unsure of exactly what is about to happen. His fingers float up my ribcage and wind around me, but he doesn’t unclasp my bra. Instead, he pulls me closer to him. His warm hands run a searing path up and down my back as his tongue glides with mine.
I wind my arms around his neck and fist his hair. He’s a great kisser and this sensual, slow thing he’s got going on right now is driving me insane with want.
He backs me up and I feel the mattress behind my legs. The kiss comes to an end and he moves just enough of his weight forward for me to fall back onto the mattress. I stare at him, his eyes filled with a smolder that stirs a hunger inside me. This is a very different Cade than I’ve been with before.
He pulls off his shirt, and our gazes meet until he crawls up the bed and I scoot back. Soon the delicious weight of his body is on me, and I close my eyes, taking in the heat and hardness of him. One of his thighs slides between mine and he grinds his hard length into my hip.
Our mouths search out one another’s again and he wraps a hand around my neck as he nips and sucks my bottom lip. His lips travel down my jawline to my throat.
“God, you’re beautiful,” he whispers, his hands sliding under my shirt and lifting it while his lips caress my body, stirring awake all my nerves.
My fingers thread through his hair, unable to not touch him in some way. He slides down my body, situating himself between my thighs, and this time when he reaches back, he unlatches my bra.
With my help, we take off my shirt and bra, and he wastes no time in palming my breast while his lips clamp on to mine again. Our bodies slide together, unable to get close enough. All I want is to be naked and have our silky warm skin coast along the other’s. But that doesn’t seem to be in Cade’s playbook. Although I crave the release I know is coming, this is a welcome change.
He rests his weight on his elbows and looks down at me. “How did we get so lucky?”
I blink and my finger runs down his abs, hooking in the waistband of his jeans. “We don’t know how lucky we are