Page 2 of Queen Rose

He smirks, then reaches out and drags his finger through the cum on my stomach in quick strokes.

I half-heartedly swat at him but also wonder what he’s thinking. “What…?”

With a chuckle, he rasps, “I wrote my name on you,” then plucks me from on top of him and rolls me onto my back.

I sputter with laughter. “You’re weird.” What I really want to say is Damn. My stomach flutters inside.

“I’m possessive.” There’s a glint to his eye that I know has something to do with what I said before, but he doesn’t push it. Climbing from the bed, he heads for the attached bathroom, and a minute later comes back with some tissues to clean me up. He swipes gently over my skin, then stamps a kiss to my lips. “Mine.”

I grin, tilting my head to the side. “Yeah?”

He nods. “You’d better fucking believe it.” He rests his hands on either side of my head and leans in, sealing our mouths together in a fiery battle of our tongues.

We’re both so preoccupied, lost in the moment, we almost miss the quick succession of notification chimes coming in on Nate’s phone. When he winces, I simply pat his shoulder, shaking my head. “It’s okay. Go check it.”

His pants are on the floor where he’d kicked them off earlier, and he makes a quick dive for them, thrusting his hand into the pocket. Quickly, he flicks his phone open, checking his messages. “Oh shit.” He runs his hand roughly through his hair. “Fuck. I gotta go.”

“What’s wrong?” I wet my lips as my brow furrows, noting the worry sliding over his features.

“It’s Mom. Power’s out, kids are scared. She’s not sure what’s going on.”

“Oh shit.” On the one hand, I’m worried for Nate’s family if he is… but on the other, I feel an overwhelming sense of relief that he won’t be staying. Because it’s only a matter of time before—

Nate looks pointedly at me as he drags his clothes back on. “This isn’t over, Aria. I get what you were doing.” He looks at me with steely determination. “You’ll eventually trust me enough to let me into your head, just like you let me into your body.”

My stomach churns as I blink up at him. “I don’t know how.” And my traitorous lips tremble.

He doesn’t miss it either, and he grits his teeth, clearly frustrated. But whether it’s directed at me or the fact that he has to go, I can’t tell. “I don’t want to leave you.”

“But you have to, Nate. Go. Take care of your family. I-I’ll be okay.” And I might be, so long as I focus on all the good Nate just showed me and forget about the way Conner is spiraling out of control.

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