Without pulling my mouth off of Savannah’s, I shift my sweatpants down and slide into her. She gasps and wraps her legs around my hips, pulling me closer.

Savannah’s body welcomes me, soothes my pain, offers me the comfort I crave. When I pick up the speed of my thrusts, I feel her shudder again, the notification I need that she’s closer to her climax and I thrust harder, losing myself in her pleasure.

When her nails dig into my back, I know she’s in the throes of her orgasm, and I lose myself too. Our bodies seize as one, keeping our voices down, panting in each other’s ear.

I don’t want to leave this spot. Savannah’s body is my home. But when I lift up to look at her face, I notice the hesitation there. Her eyes are closed and her lips are pressed together in a way that tells me she’s avoiding my stare.

“Are you okay?” I ask in a gruff voice.

She nods her head. “I’m good,” she answers, but I can tell she’s hiding something. Settling my weight against her body, a sudden realization hits. I came here in such a rush, desperate to fuck my cares away that I was careless and didn’t wrap it up when I should have.

I’m such a fucking hypocrite.

Chapter 12

“I promise, I’m on the pill.”

He gives me a pointed stare as he comes out of the shower.

“The point is it was stupid. Sloppy. I don’t make mistakes like that.” His voice still sounds so heavy. I wonder if he hears it—all the pain and worry hidden in that deep growl.

“It’s fine. I trust you.”

“Why would you do that?” It’s a harsh statement, and I flinch at the accusation.

This thing between us was inevitable, a force we both had no power against. And I can admit it’s just sex. I have to focus on keeping myself safe, not getting attached. But his flippant disregard still stings.

“Beats me,” I answer, leaving him in his room and escaping down the hallway to the living room.

Put another wall up.

Keep him at a distance.

The house has a little more life today. Ruby is up and moving around, although she still looks a little like a zombie while she does it.

Lucy is sitting at the dining room table cutting paper and coloring. In my limited experience with children, I’m actually surprised to see how quiet this girl is. It’s like she can read the mood of the room and keeps her mood the same.

“Coffee?” Ruby asks without looking at me. She’s mindlessly washing the dishes. I want to hug her, show her some comfort, but her current expression is somewhere between fuck off and fuck the hell off.