Page 46 of Mercy Lake

When he sucked on my neck, I was done.

My climax took me over, and I barely registered Owen’s in return as he moaned low and deep in the shell of my ear.

Sated, my eyes began to droop.

Warm lips feathered against my lids. “Up, Lex. I’ve made a damn mess in my pants, and so have you. Let’s clean up and meet in bed. Then, I’ll snuggle the shit out of you.”

I grunted, latching on tighter and refusing to move.

Owen chuckled before he swung me up into his arms. “Sleep, baby. I’ve got you.”

I distantly processed some rustling and manoeuvring, and the last thing I remembered was Owen pulling me into his embrace.I could have sworn he said, “I love you.” But that could have been my dreams, wishing it so.

When I finally woke with the sun, my surroundings managed to click back online.

After I dry humped Owen into oblivion, he kept his word and snuggled the shit out of me.

I began the day with the biggest smile on my face.

Chapter 27

OWEN

Liam tended the barbeque as I kept him company outside while the rest of our family hung out indoors.

“I still can’t believe you mettheEthan Harris,” he said. “That guy’s on his way to being a legend.”

“He’s an idiot… like me.”

Liam noted my downcast tone and arched a brow my way. “Trouble in paradise?”

I sighed. It had been over six months since Alexis and I shared our first date, and everything since then had felt like a fucking dream. The boys had since turned four, Phil’s recovery was tracking well, and best of all, I was a regular presence in Alexis’ life again.

However, the past week, I could sense her withdrawing, rebuilding that wall I had so meticulously removed one precious brick at a time.

Her pulling away was subtle. It had me all up in my head.Am I coming on too strong, too forceful?

I rehashed our previous date to Liam to see if he could pick up on anything I’d missed.

After a late-night movie, I drove her home, her palm firmly settled on my thigh—a regular occurrence when we were married. I had interlinked our fingers, giving an appreciative squeeze.

When I parked outside her parents’ place, I lifted the back of her hand to my lips, giving her a light peck.

Since our spontaneous dry humping session in the city apartment, we had pulled back and kept our desires in check. We shared chaste kisses, light caresses and I even got in some tight snuggles. It was relaxed, carefree, with a certain shyness. As if we were young, reliving those teenage years where we just enjoyed each other.

Although, on the flip side, the sexual tension didn’t abate. If anything, it festered and grew into an uncontrollable monster that I cultivated and fed every time I was in her vicinity, every time she touched my skin. I fucking lived for the charged anticipation. And I wasn’t the only one.

Sometimes, I would catch the blatant lust in Alexis’ eyes as her gaze lingered on my body. And the way her lids drooped in an attempt to hide her desire—fuck, I was a goner.

The waiting elevated our connection to the point where we were both on the verge of snapping.

When the engine cut off, we couldn’t resist any longer.

Alexis slowly leant over the centre console, her nose burying in the base of my neck before her tongue poked out to wet my skin.Goosebumps erupted from her touch, and my mind snapped into overdrive.

I caught her lips with mine, surrendering a groan, which she returned in kind. Hands roamed bodies, trying to pull each other ever closer in the cramped space.

As I buried my fingers in her hair, I took control by tilting her head to the side, giving me access to her smooth, exposed neck. I had the desperate urge to mark her, to make her squirm and writhe out of control.

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