Page 37 of Had To Be You

Crawling back on the bed, he nudges my legs open, gliding himself slowly into me. There’s nothing between us. His heated moody irises never leave mine.

“I think about doing this to see you every damn night,” he confesses, moving inside of me, our bodies joined. “Tell me what you like and how you like it, Ellie.”

He wants this to be so good for me. He wants to make me feel good. “It’s perfect. You’re perfect. Just don’t stop.” And it’s true. Liam knows exactly how to get me there. He knows exactly what I like. Nothing has ever felt this good in my entire life.

My eyes close briefly then they’re back on his in the most intimate moment I’ve ever experienced. This is more than just sex. So much more. And I wonder if he feels it too. I wrap my legs around his back a little tighter, needing all of him. His skin on mine, my face now buried in his neck. My nails press tiny moons into his shoulders as he speeds up the pace

“You’re mine, Ellie. I want you to say it. Tell me you’re mine.” My heart soars, realizing at that very second that those are the words I’ve been wanting to hear. It all becomes clear that I want him to choose me. I want him to be mine.

“I’m yours, Liam. I’m yours.”

He goes harder. Faster. His eyes burning into mine again, moaning and shuddering and I can tell he’s almost there. “Let go, baby. I’ve got you,” he says, as pleasure builds and my skin tingles all over.

I cry out his name as ecstasy like I’ve never felt before ripples through my body. My body trembles as he follows me over the edge, pulsing, moaning, breathing my name.

“It’s always this way with you. Nothing has ever felt better,” he says, sliding his hand over the edge of my jaw. I am in a post-sex haze, spent and tired but somehow, I still want more. He drops his chest to mine, holding me close, and I know I’ve never been happier.

“I want you to stay, Liam. I don’t want you to go.”

And he does, until the Reed Point sun breaks through the morning sky.

Chapter Fifteen

Liam

If Ellie is wearing my dress shirt to torture me, it’s working. It’s buttoned only halfway, hitting her just above her knees, which are stretched out across my lap as we sit together talking over coffee and toast at her kitchen table. My hand lightly draws lines up and down her feet to her ankles. Taking a sip of my coffee, I admire her high cheekbones and her full, pink lips. Without a stitch of makeup, her hair ruffled and messy from last night, she is breathtaking.

Noticing her coffee cup is empty, I reach for it, begrudgingly slide her bare legs from my lap, and walk across her tiny kitchen to her coffee maker. I pour her another cup. Setting it down in front of her, I rest my hands on her shoulders and kiss her neck. “Tell me about your fridge,” I say, looking at the small Polaroid pictures covering the refrigerator door.

She rests her head back against my stomach. “Every now and then, my parents will send me a photo of themselves from wherever they are. I like to print them and stick them up there so I can look at them whenever I want,” she says, looking up at me with her turquoise eyes. “I know it probably seems silly, but they make me feel good. It sort of makes me feel like they aren’t that far away.”

“It’s not silly at all,” I assure her. I like this softer, vulnerable side of Ellie, who is always so strong and independent. “They’ve really seen some sights, huh?”

She turns her face to the fridge, and I notice the smile that curves her lips. “They have. It’s pretty incredible. They’ve been to places I’ve only ever dreamed of.” Her face lights up when she talks about them. Her love for her parents is undeniable.

“I take it you haven’t travelled much?”

“No. The first time I flew anywhere I was in college and went to Vegas. It was a fly-by-the-seat-of-my pants trip that I basically booked on the way to the airport.” I flinch remembering that time in my life but recover quickly when Liam re-routes the conversation.

“You didn’t travel with your parents when you were a kid?”

“We did, but they were more local ones. We travelled along the coast, we camped on beaches and stayed in quaint little towns with pretty bed and breakfasts. My dad was never able to go for long because he had the gallery and never trusted anyone to run it for him. But I loved every second of those trips. I never felt like I was missing out. Would you believe I’ve never been to Manhattan? I realize how absurd that sounds but it’s true.”

“It sounds like your parents wouldn’t have been big on the Big Apple.” She nods in agreement then turns to glance at the fridge decorated with magnets again. “The vacations they did take you on sound like they were pretty great.”

“They were, but now I would like to see more of the world. I’d be happy with anywhere in the U.S for that matter.”

“Yeah? Like where?”

“Well, for starters I’d like to see the Golden Gate Bridge, the Florida Keys, Hawaii… the Grand Canyon looks pretty spectacular. But I’d settle for New York City and a Broadway show.”

“Hence the crazy Cats magnets?”

“Who says they’re crazy?”

“I do. Definitely.”

There must be 20 fridge magnets mixed in with her family photos, all something to do with that God-awful musical Cats. I will never understand the appeal - grown men and women dancing around a stage in furry feline costumes, licking themselves and coughing up hairballs. And people pay to watch it? People like Ellie, apparently.

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