All copyrights, trademarked items, or recognizable characters, plots, etc. mentioned herein belong to their respective owners. No copying or reproduction of this work is permitted without their express written authorization.

thanks for the late night beta lovin, nic.

My father insisted on driving me to the Cullen's the morning of our flight. He wanted to have one last chat with the both of us despite the fact we'd gone over safety and rules to the point of exhaustion.

Was he getting on my nerves?

Yes.

Was I going to be out from under his wing by the end of summer?

Oh, yes.

So I put up with it, as did Edward. I couldn't imagine what Dad would've been like had I chosen an out of state school.

Esme was still at the house, getting ready to go to work. She greeted us at the door with a smile, welcoming us inside. Sometimes it was hard to believe that she was the same woman who'd had such drama with her son that she'd sent him away. It was hard to believe Edward had been that son. He'd matured in the ways that mattered, and while a little piece of me sometimes ached with the time we'd lost, most of me was just grateful to be with him now.

It wouldn't have been the same, anyway. We wouldn't have been the same.

"Hi, Charlie, Bella," Esme said, giving me a quick one-armed hug before hurrying back in to the house.

"Hi, Esme." My father echoed me, setting my suitcase down just inside the door. We walked in to the kitchen, where Esme was bustling around.

"Edward should be right down… I'm sorry I have to leave like this, but I have to get into the office early today." She quickly capped a travel coffee mug and grabbed her briefcase from the counter. "Have a great flight. I've already asked Edward to call when you guys get in, so…"

"We've asked Bella to do the same," my father said, giving me a swift pat on the back.

I rolled my eyes at his gruffness. "No problem. See you, Esme."

Edward appeared just then, freshly showered and dressed in jeans and a hoodie. I smiled; we were wearing pretty much the same thing.

"Hey Bella," he said, giving me a light hug. He knew better than to try and kiss me in front of my dad. "Morning, Mr. Swan."

"Good morning, Edward. Listen, I know you two have to head out, but please be careful. Take care of my daughter."

"We will. I told my parents I'd call at night, so, we can do that…"

"I have to do the same thing," I said, grabbing his hand.

My father nodded once, backing slowly away from the counter. "All right. Well. Drive safely and…uh… have a safe flight."

"I'm sure the whole trip will be very safe, Dad," I teased, dropping Edward's hand to give my father a tight hug. "Love you."

"Love you, too," he said, and his mustache tickle-scratched my cheek the way it had done since I was little.

We walked him to the door, waving goodbye as he reversed out of the driveway. As soon as his car disappeared, Edward shut the door and pushed me up against it, kissing me.

"You smell so good," he murmured, skimming his face down to my neck.

"So do you," I whispered, holding him tight.

"I'm really glad you're coming," he said, pulling back so we could look at each other.

I grinned, tucking my hands into his back pockets. "Not as glad as me."

"We'll see about that."

"Promise?"

He snorted, grabbing one of my hands and placing it on the front of his pants. "That's my promise right there."

I made a face, trying not to smile as I ducked away. "Anyway…"

He smacked my behind and pulled me back. "Where you going?"

"We don't have time for all that."

"All what?" He smiled innocently, slipping his arms around my waist. I could still feel his boner between us, and it made me laugh a little.

"Our flight's at ten. We have to be there at nine. It's…" I tiptoed, trying to see around him to the clock on the wall.

"Seven forty, he said. "More than enough time to get to the airport."

I linked my fingers behind his neck and pulled him down for a kiss. "Let's go."

"Fine," he breathed, kissing me in ways that would get us nowhere.

We made it to PBI on time, thanks to my willpower. There were more direct flights out of Miami and even Ft Lauderdale, but we weren't in the mood to deal with the hassle of driving, so West Palm it was.

I had just enough time to grab coffee and a breakfast sandwich before boarding. We stopped briefly in Atlanta before continuing on to La Guardia. As we got closer to New York, I sat with my nose glued to the window, watching the busyness below as it grew closer.

"Is it weird to be coming back?" I asked, turning to Edward.

He shrugged, and then shook his head. "Not really. It's different now, I guess."

"Have you spoken to anybody else?"

"Mainly just Jared. A couple of the guys who are graduating this year will probably want to chill. That's about it."

"Does Tia still go to boarding school or did she graduate with you?"

Edward smirked, leaning over me so he could look out the window. "She graduated."

"So… she lives in the city?"

He nodded, settling back in to his seat.

"Hm." I rooted around my purse, looking for gum. We were beginning our descent, and the cabin pressure was messing with my ears.

"You're funny," he chuckled a few minutes later.

"What?" I asked, my face warming.

"You're checking up on things…"

"Nope. I'm just curious."

"Girls are never just curious."

"Maybe I'm not like other girls."

"Not in other ways, but in this way you are." He squeezed my thigh. "I kinda like it."

"Like what?"

"You're all jealous…"

"Ugh, shut up," I groaned, flicking his ear.

He caught my hand and pulled me close, trapping me in an obnoxious half-bear hug. "It's okay. I get it."

"Edward." I pinched him, trying to get free.

"The first time I saw you with Garrett I wanted to put my fist through his face."

I stopped struggling.

"Didn't matter that we hadn't been together for years. It pissed me off," he continued, loosening his grip on me. "If I wasn't sure about my feelings for you before then, it was pretty clear at that point."

"Why, do you think?"

"Why what?"

I looked up at him, gently thumbing his eyelashes. He squished his face up and leaned back, catching my hand again. "Why did you still care, after all that time?"

"I don't know, Bella," he laughed. "You said you felt the same way."

"I did. I totally did," I said. My ears popped. I chewed furiously, alternating between yawning and plugging my nose to relieve the pressure.

"You got under my skin," he said. "Drove me crazy."

"Good."

He grinned. "You'll be the death of me."

"Life. Only life," I said, kissing his cheek.

"You got any more gum?"

I handed him a piece just as we hit the runway.

Alec met us at baggage claim. He looked just as I remembered him. My heart squeezed; this was who Edward had gone to when he'd left home, left me.

"Diamond earring girl," Alec said, winking at me as he released Edward from a hug.

I laughed, shaking my head. "Hi, Alec."

"Hi, Bella." He yanked me closer and gave me a hug, too. He smelled like cigarettes, mint and leather, an oddly appealing combination. "How much stuff did you guys bring?"

"Bella's suitcase is huge," Edward said. He'd been teasing me about it since we'd left Florida. "In fact… that's it right there." He jogged toward the carousel.

"So how've you been?" Alec asked as we walked to join Edward.

"I'm good. Excited to be graduating soon," I said, sliding my hands in to the pouch of my hoodie.

He nodded. "Yeah, I remember those days. Goes by like that." He snapped his fingers. "You know where you're going to college yet?"

"Probably USF, in Tampa. I don't know yet for sure; I'm still waiting to hear back from them."

"A lot of schools send out acceptance letters in the very beginning of April," Edward said, reappearing next to me with my suitcase. He plopped it at my feet. "Maybe it'll be waiting for you when you get back."

The thought of it made me anxious. I was pretty sure I'd gotten in – my grades were solid and USF wasn't too overly competitive – but not knowing for sure was annoying. Edward had deferred enrollment to the University of Tampa, so he had nothing to worry about.

"I hope so," I said.

We stood, chatting, as the bags went 'round and 'round. Eventually Edward spotted his and grabbed it.

Alec lived in Cornwall-on-Hudson. Other than what Edward had told me about his school and his uncle's estate, I'd never even heard of the town. It was gorgeous, hilly and lush with foliage. I was used to palm trees and the ocean, so this kind of landscape was completely foreign to me. The trees were heavy and bursting with new leaves for spring, and the air still had quite a cold bite to it.

The house was set back a bit from other homes, and like Edward had said, near a lightly wooded area in the back.

"You made it sound like there were serious forests back here," I snorted, glancing back at Edward. He'd insisted I take the front seat so I could see better. "Where are we going to camp? The back yard?"

"You're taking her camping?" Alec asked, sounding amused. I watched as his gaze met Edward's in the rearview mirror.

"I've got plans," Edward said cryptically. He tugged my hair. "And there are places to camp back there, smart ass."

We pulled up to the driveway and got out, stretching. Even the air smelled different.

As I'd expected, Alec had set up two rooms for us.

"Edward, welcome back. Everything's as you left it. For the most part… Siobhan went a little nuts with plants as soon as spring rolled around…" he said, referring to his live-in girlfriend.

"It's cool. Where is she, anyway?"

"Working. She'll be home by six. Bella, let me show you to your room."

"She doesn't need one, Uncle Alec," Edward called after us.

Alec rolled his eyes, ignoring him, and ushered me to a room right down the hall. He probably knew as well as I did that Edward would be sneaking in to my room at night.

"Thanks so much," I said, feeling sleepy just looking at the oversized sleigh bed in the middle of the room. Alec set my suitcase down.

"Gonna go check the mail," he said, leaving me alone to unpack.

Edward joined me seconds later. "You know you're not sleeping in here, right?"

"I don't know; this bed looks amazing."

"You should see mine…" He hauled me to my feet and dragged me next door. His room was a little bigger than mine, and on the corner of the house. Two of the four walls housed large windows, both of which overlooked trees as far as I could see. There was definitely evidence of his stay from before; things felt a little more personal than they did in my room.

"How come you left stuff here?" I asked softly, running my fingers along the polished wood of his desk. Several pictures were stuck to the wall, photos of him with his friends. A couple of trophies for cross country sat atop the bookshelf alongside a bunch of books.

"It's like… my second home." Edward shrugged. "At one point I thought I might go to college up here."

"What changed your mind?" I asked. My heart skipped a beat. Maybe that was a loaded question; I didn't know.

"Too cold," he said, standing behind me.

I nodded, feeling oddly vulnerable and really, really in love with him. It was almost uncomfortable.

He slipped his chilly fingers up under my layers to touch my stomach. I shrank away from the cold sensation, pressing back against Edward. "I had to go home, Bella. I had to… see."

"See me?"

"See everything. Especially you. It was like, this nagging feeling. Even when this place began to feel real to me, like it was a possibility, I always felt like I was missing out on what was going on back home. I needed to know if Jensen Beach was still what I remembered. You know? It's easy to make things perfect in your memories; I wanted to see for real." He curved around me, resting his chin on my shoulder.

"I wasn't sure I wanted to see you," I whispered, reaching up to touch his face. "I thought I was over you."

"I didn't know if I was over you," he admitted. "I figured seeing you would either prove that it was really over or that it wasn't over at all."

I nodded, understanding. "You left too abruptly. Too many what-ifs."

"Exactly."

I turned around, wrapping my arms around his neck. "I'm really glad you came back."

He nodded, leaning down to kiss me.

I loved kisses like this, the ones that made me love and feel loved, that made me want to cry or collapse in relief, the ones that made me want to get naked so that I could feel him not just in me but all over me, too. There was neediness there, a sense of wholeness.

Eventually, though, we wandered downstairs. Alec was in his office, on the phone, so Edward gave me the tour. The house had been a fixer-upper, and he was proud to show me all of the things he'd had a hand in.

"So this is why you do construction nowadays," I commented.

"Basically. I mean, Uncle Alec taught me a lot, so it wasn't that much of a leap to go in to straight building."

"You like it?"

He shrugged. "It's okay. I couldn't do it forever, if that's what you're asking, but being outside's nice."

I knew he wanted to go in to law, but I imagined he'd learned some pretty handy skills working with Alec and at his job back home.

"Speaking of which, I want to look around outside. You said there were trails?"

Edward led the way to the backyard, an uneven expanse of grass leading to a wide grove of tall, mature trees.

"We'll have plenty of time to explore later; right now I just want to chill," he said, walking slowly beside me.

"It's so, so pretty here," I said, closing my eyes against the waning afternoon sun. Even the air felt different here.

"It is. I used to spend hours outside, walking around by myself – especially before school started."

"I bet you smoked back here," I snickered, imagining.

"Hell yeah; all the time. I found out later that Alec knew, too. He was just letting me get it out of my system cuz he knew military school would kick my ass." He laughed quietly, squinting toward the trees.

"I can see how this place changed you," I said after a moment. The calm, serene setting seemed like an ideal locale for soul-searching. I could see why Edward had entertained the thought of staying. We had chill, pretty places in Florida too, but it was different.

"You guys hungry?" Alec's voice called across the yard. "We're going to meet Siobhan down at Painter's."

"Guess she got off a little earlier," Edward said as we started back toward the house. "I'm starving."

"I am, too." I caught up and took his hand, holding it between both of mine.

Any fantasies we'd had of late night fooling around were squashed the minute we hit the sheets.

Traveling always tired me out, regardless of how long my day had actually been. My bed was way too cushy and comfortable, and I slept like a baby. When I woke up the next morning, it was already past nine.

I figured Edward would come to me once he was awake, so I snuggled with my blankets and pillows awhile longer, glad the sun wasn't hitting my window directly.

I'd called my mom the night before to let her know all was well, so I could relax in that regard. Alice and Rose would be en route to Panama City by now; the last I'd heard, Angela, Jess and a couple of other girls were meeting them there. I felt a tiny pang of wistfulness, knowing they were all going without me. Not that I would have chosen Panama City over a trip with Edward, but still. We'd always said we'd go together, but when the time actually came to plan, things had changed.

Rose was especially hell bent on going, wanting to have a wild time and party hard. She was stressed out over school and college and Emmett. Especially Emmett. They'd been talking a lot for the past few weeks – hence Rose's "it's complicated" status – but were still funky in terms of actual reconciliation. When Em had announced he was going to South Padre Island with a bunch of his frat brothers, Rose had practically spit flames.

I giggled in to my pillow. The two of them were full on crazy, both about each other and in general.

"What're you laughing about?" Edward asked quietly, shutting my door as he came in.

I rolled over to face him as he crept beneath the comforter with me. "Emmett and Rose. And the battle of who'll have the most depraved Spring Break."

He rolled his eyes, snorting. "They'll probably both come back with sunburns and tattoos."

"And alcohol poisoning."

"We'd probably be right there with them if we hadn't come up here," Edward reminded me, copping a feel. "You're wearing pants."

"Sweatpants," I amended. "Obviously. I'm in your uncle's home. Anyway, I almost always wear sweatpants to bed."

He started tugging them down.

"If we were back home, would you be going to Panama City or South Padre?" I asked, shifting my hips to help him out.

"I wasn't invited to either one," he said, smirking. "Isn't Panama City some girl thing?"

I nodded, smiling.

"And Emmett's with his brothers."

"Are you going to be in a frat next year?" I asked, throwing my now-naked leg over him.

"Can you see me in a frat? That's Emmett's thing." He moved away and started squirming around. The next thing I knew he was naked, and yanking my shirt up over my head.

"Where are –"

He went for my neck, tonguing it the way he knew would make me wet. "At work. They left about an hour ago."

"In that case…" I moved away from his mouth and disappeared under the covers.

"Oh…holy shit, Bella."

The first couple of days were spent in and around town, walking around and hanging out. The more time I spent there, the more I could see why he'd been able to call it home for a couple of years; it was beautiful. There were so many trees everywhere, often forming canopies over the roads.

Edward brought me to New York Military academy, where he showed me the paths he used to walk to get from one class to another, as well as the building where he used to live. He shared little historical tidbits as we wandered the campus, and a couple of times we even ran in to faculty that he had once known.

"It's so weird to be here," I said, gazing up the building we were standing in front of. "Like, after seeing it in your pictures, you know?"

"Yeah." He nodded, looking around. "It's weird to be here, and know that I can leave when I want."

I smiled ruefully at him, squeezing his hand.

"Come on, let's go grab something to eat," he said, nodding toward the parking lot.

We went to a local pizzeria in town, and had just slid in to a booth when his phone rang. I could tell by how he was talking it was someone local. Not wanting to totally listen in, I scanned the menu and answered a couple of texts from the girls. Alice and Rose had been keeping me up to date on their Spring Break adventures, including Rose's drunken make out fest with some guy from North Carolina.

I shook my head, sighing. Hopefully Emmett was being just as sheisty; otherwise the shaky truce they'd forged might dissolve for good. They'd said they could see other people for the time being, but neither of them really had.

"What's up?" Edward asked.

I looked up from my phone. "Rose, acting up. What else is new?"

Edward fished his phone from his pocket and poked around. "You mean like this?"

There was a picture of Emmett, in his swim trunks, with a girl on his lap.

Facing him. His face was buried in her boobs.

"This one's called body shots," Edward said. "Want to see more?"

"No thanks."

A waiter appeared, smiling. "Hi guys, my name's Brady. Can I get you started with drinks?"

We ordered, and then I turned back to Edward. "So, who called?"

"This kid Quil Ateara. He's a senior this year…anyway, there's a party in the city tonight and he wanted to know if we were interested."

"Oh yeah?"

He nodded. "Should be a pretty good turn out."

I couldn't deny, a party in New York City sounded amazing. "Where is it?"

"I don't know; somewhere on the Upper East Side. House party. You wanna go?"

"Yeah."

"Cool." He grinned, quickly typing something on his phone. "We can get a hotel for the night, that way we won't have to deal with trains or whatever."

"We can't just drive?" I asked.

"I mean, we could but it would be a pain in the ass. And we'll probably be drinking. It's all good; we can find someplace decent."

"Your uncle won't mind, right?"

"Nope. We'll just take the train in."

"Okay."

Alec and Siobhan dropped us at train station around five. It took us about an hour and a half to get to Grand Central, where I promptly went in to tourist mode. I had to fight the urge to take pictures of the station, and then once we were above ground, to take pictures of everything else.

Edward was a good sport about it, grabbing my hand and leading me through the crowds like he was experienced or some crap. Maybe he was, I didn't know. All I knew was I finally saw why there was so much hype surrounding this place. It was larger than life.

"Are we far from where the party's gonna be?"

"It's not too far, but Quil said he'd pick us up."

I bought myself a bottle of water from a newsstand while Edward called Quil.

"He'll be here in about twenty minutes," he said. "Let's go drop our stuff off at the hotel."

"Where are we staying?" I asked, still fascinated by the frenetic energy around us.

"The Marriott."

"Marriott?" I frowned slightly. "You said cheap."

He shrugged. "It doesn't matter, Bella. It's close to the train. Come on."

Ah, frig it. It was an adventure. If I had it my way, we'd stay more than just one night…maybe I could persuade Edward; throw a little cash his way. Besides a couple of meals, hadn't really let me pay for much – not that we had many expenses with Alec.

We checked in and went on up to our room. I dropped my backpack on the bed and walked over to the window, looking out. "I wish we could stay longer."

"I know, me too."

"I mean right here."

"We can stay the weekend if you want."

"Sounds good," I said, pleased that he was down to stay. "I'm gonna go change."

I slipped in to the bathroom and put on a different shirt before fixing my hair. Our plans might've been super casual, but I didn't want to look like a slob around Edward's friends. I was brushing mascara on when he knocked on the door.

"Quil's downstairs…want me to have him come up or are you ready?"

"I'm ready," I said, coming out of the bathroom.

Edward smiled at my cleavage. "Hi."

"Hi." I shrugged in to a light jacket and nodded toward the door. "Lead the way."

Quil was this really chill kid with a low Mohawk and a leather jacket. His mellow vibe and easy smile kind of reminded me of Jasper, who seemed like he could be stoned even though he usually wasn't. It was easy to see why he and Edward were friends, and his friendliness put me at ease right away.

"So this is your first time up here, Bella?" he asked, glancing at me in the rearview as he drove.

I nodded. "Yeah."

"What do you think?"

"It's crazy; I love it."

"It is that," he said, grinning. "Pretty much the exact opposite of old Cornwall."

"I like it there, too," I said, gazing at the scenery as it whizzed by. He was right, though; the Village of Cornwall on Hudson couldn't be more of a polar opposite to Manhattan.

The kid having the party, Sam, lived with his parents in a condo. The building itself was in the Upper East Side, a place I'd only seen on TV while watching Gossip Girl or whatever with Rose. Once the doorman let us in, we took an elevator to the fifth floor.

Sam met us at the door, greeting Quil. We were introduced; Edward got a clap on the back, I got a once-over. Twice. In fact, he was totally checking me out. Edward linked his fingers through mine and didn't let go after that. Back home, everyone knew us. Here, a lot of them knew him but they didn't know me.

I quickly got used to the gushing girls, all of whom were soooo excited Edward was back. Everybody was so damned trendy; I was glad I'd changed in to something cute. Sam walked over after awhile and offered us drinks, saying there was plenty of stuff in the kitchen if we wanted.

By the time night fell outside, I'd loosened up a lot – thanks to a steady supply of vodka and cranberry juice. And honestly, most of the people Edward was talking to were really cool, even the girls. Conversation was superficial, but it was pleasant. It was fun.

"I have to pee," I whispered to Edward, grasping his arm.

"Oh, uh… I don't even know where the bathroom is," he said, looking around.

"It's cool; I'll find it," I said, standing. I was definitely a little wobbly – Edward had been right to get us a hotel.

I turned back to the girl I'd been talking to. "Irina."

"'Sup?"

"Do you know where the bathroom is?"

"Yeah, come on. I have to go, too."

She stood up, adjusting her very short skirt, and led me through the now very crowded room toward a hallway. There were several closed doors; she knocked on one, got no response, and pushed it open.

"There you go."

"Thanks." I ducked inside and went quickly, checking my appearance as I washed my hands after. Besides looking a little drunk, I was fine.

Irina went in when I came out. I leaned against the wall, not sure if I should wait for her or what. A door opened across the hall from where I stood; the kids inside were doing lines of coke off a desk. Sam was one of them. He caught me looking and winked before shutting the door again.

And I thought we partied hard down south. I wondered if Edward had done all that while living up here before. It wouldn't have surprised me.

Edward had stood up from his spot on the couch when we returned to the living room.

"Now I have to go," he said, planting a wet, sloppy kiss behind my ear.

"They're doing coke back there, in one of the bedrooms," I said.

"Probably not all they're doing," he said, nodding. "Where's the bathroom?"

I pointed to where Irina had brought me before and he took off, weaving through the throng of people.

Irina and her friend were asking me what I thought about summer time in Florida when I spotted Tia with a group of girls. God, she was even prettier in real life. Her hair was shorter than it had been in the pictures I'd seen, cut and styled in shoulder length layers. My stomach coiled; I'd hoped I wouldn't have to see her.

I was probably being dumb, but whatever. It was an automatic reaction to seeing this girl. And as welcome and relaxed as things had been so far, I still couldn't help but feel weird, like I was out of place. These people all knew each other. I sipped my drink and glanced toward the hallway, mentally willing Edward to hurry up. He emerged, texting as he walked back.

"Hey." He grinned down at me, motioning for me to stand up. I did, and he sat in my place, pulling me on to his lap. He tended to get goofy and affectionate when we drank a lot, and I tended to like it.

"Having fun?" he asked. His voice tickled my ear.

I cringed away, laughing a little. "Yep...you?"

His fingers tickled at my waist. "Yeah. It's good to see everyone."

"I'm glad." I leaned down and kissed his nose.

Quil sat on the armrest and started talking to Edward. I looked around, wondering if Tia had seen us.

She had.

We made eye contact. I knew who she was, and I had a feeling she knew who I was.

I looked away first, biting my lip. Maybe if I ignored her, she'd go away.

Nope.

Minutes later she appeared in front of us, her head cocked as she smiled down at Edward.

"Hey, you."

Edward adjusted me so he could see. "Oh, wow. Hey, Tia." The music had gotten louder; he practically had to yell.

"Hi. I'm Tia," she said, extending her hand to me. She had a pretty smile. I wondered if it was sincere.

I shook her hand, smiling back. "Hi. Bella."

She nodded, brushing her bangs from her eyes.

Awkward. Even Irina had stopped fidgeting beside me.

"Well, I just wanted to stop by," Tia said. "I'll see you guys later."

She walked away, glancing back just once at Edward. My stomach relaxed. Well, that had been anti-climactic. She was gorgeous, and could probably have anyone she wanted, but I knew there was a very real chance that she wasn't over Edward.

The same way I hadn't been over him when he'd left me.

I downed the rest of my drink and leaned forward to set the cup on a table. "No more for me," I said to no one but myself, twisting around to look at Edward. He was chatting with Quil again. I wished could see in to his mind.

But then his fingers, which had been stroking the skin right above my jeans, inched higher. He rested his other hand on my thigh, squeezing. Reminding me.

He knew.

It warmed me, warmed me so that I was melty with desire. The low lights and music and intoxication didn't help, either.

I rested my hand on his shoulder, letting my fingertips graze his neck. He glanced at me, his eyes flickering between mine.

I must have looked as aroused as I suddenly felt, because his eyes got all lazy and heavy. He shifted, bringing his hand even higher on my thigh.

"Ready?" he mouthed.

We took our clothes off and fell in to bed, not even bothering to get under the covers. I sat on top of him, rubbing all of me against all of him. I felt all wound up and almost anxious, wanting him so bad I wanted to be inside him as much as I wanted him to be inside me.

He let me mess with him for a minute before pushing me on to my back. Messy, wet kisses, inebriated off alcohol and lust. We made out until he was right there and then he plunged inside, going hard and fast, stopping only to turn me over so he could hit it from behind.

And then his mouth was on my neck, even his teeth; he pushed me flat on the bed and raised my hips so he could go deeper, deepest.

So good. I gasped every time he pushed in, fistfuls of blanket in my hands.

We didn't talk, couldn't. He shoved his hand beneath me, touching me until I was coming and then he came too. I felt his heart racing against my back. After a moment he eased out slowly, kissing my shoulder blades and along my neck.

"Okay?"

I nodded, turning over so I could capture him with my legs. "Don't go yet."

"'Kay."

We kissed. I didn't want to let him go, so I didn't.

"Come clean up with me," he murmured eventually, biting my ear.

I let him haul me out of bed so we could rush through a shower and fall back in to bed.

It was, maybe, the best sleep ever.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxxoxoxoxo.

songs:

We'll Be Alright - Travie McCoy (good call, lightstardust)

Cherry Moon - Lorn

Butterfly - Jason Mraz