She kissed me as she came apart, her nails digging into the flesh of my shoulders as she found her release. I slid a hand up to her nape, fisting her hair, losing myself in her, coming right behind her. Pleasure spiked and overflowed as I grabbed her hips, pulling her down harder and thrusting into her. The moment intense, profound, consuming.

In sync, we slowed, kissing softly as the wave faded out.

Bailey dropped her forehead to my shoulder for a beat, sighing. Then she lifted her chin and peeked at me through her dark lashes. “Wow.”

I kissed her cheek. “Can say that again.”

Wrapping my arms around her torso, I held her still for another moment, our hearts thundering and our breaths slowly returning to normal.

After cleaning up quickly, we readjusted ourselves in her bed, snuggling beneath the covers. As she nestled against me, her hair tickling my bare chest, my brain worked overtime to process everything that had happened.

In the span of a few hours, I’d gone from fearing we might be over to being more fully invested than ever. Despite the blip on the radar, I knew, deep down, that we were on solid ground. And maybe the sex had helped reassure me, but it was deeper than that. It was in the way she looked at me tonight, in a combination of awe and adoration. In the way she touched me. In the way everything clicked when we lay here like we were right now, not saying a thing, knowing our world was right again.

She yawned, burrowing against my shoulder. “Oh my gosh, I’m tired.”

“Me too.” My heart picked up speed as I pulled her close. I wanted to say more, but I didn’t know how to put my thoughts into words.

* * *

BAILEY

I woke up with a heavy, muscular arm draped around my waist and a big, warm body pressed up against me.

Oh no. I fumbled for my phone and frantically checked the time, squinting to read the display. It was almost six.

I elbowed Chase gently. “Hey.”

“Hmph?” he mumbled sleepily. He squeezed me tighter, nuzzling against my neck before falling quiet again.

If only I could give in to the cozy lure of going back to sleep wrapped up in him in my warm bed. It was incredibly tempting. But he had training.

“It’s morning,” I said, nudging him again. “We must have fallen asleep before I set my alarm. What time is your dryland today?” He’d told me, but my brain wasn’t exactly functional at that point.

He let out a low groan, rolling onto his back. “Uh…not until eight. What time is it?”

“Almost six. Is that enough time to go back to sleep if I set my alarm?”