Thrust.

She throws her head back, breaking the kiss for a guttural moan, and I kiss a trail down her neck, over her breasts, pulling a nipple between my lips.

Thrust.

“So responsive for me,” I murmur, giving it a flick of my tongue before shifting, pushing myself up for better leverage, fucking her harder, just like she wanted. Her moans turn into those whiny, incoherent whimpers that have burned themselves into my brain and I can’t help but smile.

“Come for me, baby,” I whisper, continuing to drive myself into her, harder and faster.

She looks at me through thick eyelashes with glassy eyes, determination washing over her face as she trails a hand down her body, between her legs, to get her right there.

“That’s it, beautiful,” I growl against her breast, lifting myself back up to watch her touch herself. “Take what you need.”

I palm her breast and give it a rough squeeze, feeling myself get closer to my release as well. Her eyebrows crease, cheeks flushing red and her mouth falls open.

“Almost there,” she breathes, fingernails of her free hand digging into my upper arm. “Reed… fuck…”

“I’m right there with you,” I grunt, voice low and raw, pounding into her hard, chasing my own climax.

She comes apart, her whole body trembling, squeezing me inside her as she moans my name, the sound pushing me over the edge, whispering her name over and over as I finish inside her, fucking her until we’re both breathless and sweaty messes.

“Fuck, babe,” I whisper, collapsing on top of her, burying her completely beneath me and pressing a kiss against her forehead, noting the small smile playing at her lips.

“Sorry for ambushing you like that,” she whispers after she’s caught her breath, but I chuckle and look at her amusedly.

“Babe,” I say, tilting her chin until her eyes meet mine, “just know, I will never,neverbe mad about a surprise like that.”

“That’s good to know,” she mumbles, a cheeky grin tugging on her lips, and I lean in kiss her again.

As we lie there, wrapped up in each other, a quiet certainty settles deep in my chest: we’re going to be just fine.

Sure, there are logistics to figure out, like visas, and my jobs, but if being with her means jumping through hoops of paperwork and bureaucracy, then I’ll jump. Happily.

Because this, holding her in my arms, just like now, is what matters most.

Hearing her talk about her day, her dreams, the cute little café she stumbled across. Telling her about my brothers and their subsequent drama. Letting her into my world, and getting to be part of hers.

I might’ve been the last brother to get coupled up, as Zoey would say—but waiting for Abby? Completely worth it.

And whatever the future holds, I know we’ll face it together. And I honestly can’t wait.

Abby

“Wastheblindfoldreallynecessary?” I ask Reed with a pout and exhale an annoyed sigh. My finger slips under the fabric, to rub my eyes, prompting a soft ‘hey!’ from him and I feel his fingers snake around my wrist. “The corner of my eye itches,” I tell him and he lets my hand go again.

"Yes, it is necessary," Reed chuckles, his hand landing on my thigh and giving it a quick squeeze. "It would spoil the surprise otherwise."

"I'm already surprised enough as is," I point out and roll my eyes, even though he can't see it through the thick black fabric.

I knew he had something planned for the long weekend. He was so secretive about it from the moment I’d told him my two additional vacation days were granted.

What I didn’t expect was for him to throw me, along with two suitcases, into his car and start driving without telling me where we’d be going. Things got even weirder when we rolled onto a train - the kind that takes cars through the tunnel under the English Channel from England to France.

It can’t be Paris, right?

I'm about 80% sure he wouldn’t have bothered driving six hours if we could’ve just taken a train and gotten there in half the time. If there’s one thing I’ve learned in the year and a half we’ve been together, it’s that he only drives when he absolutely has to.

Probably because he’s spent so much of his life stuck in cars and on planes for modeling jobs. Even now that he lives in London, he tries to walk whenever he can.