Logan lay on the couch with Jodie, her back pressed to his chest and his arm draped over her waist, their fingers tangled together. Last night they fell asleep watching movies. He wouldn’t mind waking up like this most mornings. The thought felt more comfortable than he expected. Then again, once he finally let himself admit how he felt about her, it all felt right.

The only thing he would do differently about this moment, if he had a chance to repeat it tomorrow, was to wake up in bed instead of on the sofa.

And maybe have a solution to subdue his erection. With Jodie snuggled up to him, his hard-on dug into her ass. There was no way she could miss it. Her heat sank into his skin, taunting him, and each time she shifted, tiny frissons of pleasure sped over his skin.

He meant what he said last night, both about loving her and not expecting her to return the sentiment until she was ready. It made sense she’d want to take a step back and grow their romance more organically. But fuck—knowing that didn’t relieve his arousal. He couldn’t stop thinking about sliding inside her. How wet she got. How tight she was, wrapped around his cock.

She wiggled her ass against him. “Is that a kielbasa in your pocket, or are you happy to see me?” she teased.

“When you do that, you make it hard to want to behave.” He spoke through clenched teeth.

“Hard is the point. And who said you had to behave?” She slid their joined hands under the waistband of her pants.

“Fuck. You know how to torture a guy. I don’t want to push you into anything.”

She twisted her head, to look at him. “I’ll take the time to think about how I feel and make sure I’m comfortable with it. But I’m not giving up sex in the meantime. That is… Is one time enough to make me an addict, when it comes to you?” She faded off as she finished her question, so he had to strain to hear the last words.

“If so, it goes both ways.” He kissed along the back of her neck, inhaling her intoxicating scent.

She sighed and molded her body more tightly against his.

Logan trailed his mouth along her skin, to the tender spot where her neck met her shoulder, and sucked. Her quiet sigh made his pulse roar. At the same time, he glided their hands lower, over her panties and between her legs. When he pressed into her, she moaned.

“I dreamed about you last night,” he said.

The sounds stealing from her throat were making it difficult for him to think. “Oh?” Her question was breathy.

“Mhmm.” He increased his attentions on her sex, teasing through cotton, until he found her clit.

She arched into him. She was damp enough he felt it through her underwear. “I hope it was good?” Her question was punctuated with gasps.

“It was fantastic. You were fantastic. Not as good as the reality, though.”

She gasped and ground against their tangled hands when he rubbed at a new angle. “Maybe we should re-enact some of the events. Make sure that’s true.”

“I like the way you think.” He wasn’t doing much of that himself. The blood from his brain had rushed to his cock, which throbbed with a fresh ache every time she twisted or squirmed. He let go of her hand, to yank her bottoms down. It took a few painfully long seconds to undo his pants and work his shaft free.

He didn’t care they were in the living room. Noah would sleep late, so one was walking in on them, and his dick begged for release. He nudged her opening, and her groan erased any of his remaining reason. He thrust inside her without pause. The friction of her legs pressed together added a new layer of heat.

“Finger yourself,” he whispered in her ear. “Make yourself come while I fuck you.”

Her pussy clenched tighter when she obeyed his command. There wasn’t much option for movement, lying like this, but he built to a steady pace, and her self-attentions provided additional sensation.

“You’re so tight.” His voice came out gravelly. “So good.” He moved his hand to her breast, kneaded it, and pinched her nipple.

Jodie’s tiny whimpers grew to cries of pleasure, as he slid in and out of her pussy. He was pretty sure his groans were as loud. He couldn’t find any more words. He rolled a swollen pink nub between his fingers, and she clenched around his cock.

Her screams when she came were as enticing as the way she clenched around him, milking climax from him. He dropped his hand back to her hip, pounding as best he could. Grunting when he spilled inside her. Thrusting until he was spent, and she dropped her hand with a happy sigh.

“Fuck.” He buried his head against her shoulder.

“Mhmm.” The tension vanished from her body, and she slumped back into him. He wasn’t sure how long they lay there, struggling to catch their breath, before she said, “We should get up. Clean up. Something like that.”

“Good call.”

They should pull a blanket over them. Neither of them moved.

Logan was surprised Noah slept through the noise.

Someone knocked, and Jodie squeaked. She let out a shaky laugh. “I should get that.”

Logan couldn’t ignore the disappointment at having to disentangle himself from her. He hoped whoever was at the door was lost. Not because he was wearing a wrinkled suit from the night before—who cared what he looked like? —but because he wanted to pull Jodie into the shower, so they could work on that getting-clean thing.

While she pulled up her bottoms and raked her fingers through her hair, half-smoothing it, he made sure he was presentable by putting his dick away.

She opened the front door. “Mom.”

Logan’s gut clenched.

“Hey, sweetie,” Megan said. Jodie hadn’t let her in yet, so Logan couldn’t see her. “We wanted to let you know we were heading out. Logan’s car is in the guest parking. Are the two of you driving up together?”

Right. Because they were supposed to be heading up to the summer rental today. Logan should have remembered that last night, but he had more important things on his mind.

“Yeah. Sure.” Jodie glanced over her shoulder and met Logan’s gaze.

He shrugged, not sure if she was asking for permission or help. They didn’t have a lot of options either way. This was the one bit he should have thought through better and discussed with Jodie—how to tell their parents. Last night, his single concern was earning a chance to prove he meant what he said. Now it was joined by the reminder that Jodie was pretty much Dad’s little princess.

Their parents stepped into the living room, and his dad raised his brows when he saw Logan. “You sleep here?”

Logan wanted to say yes. Wanted to explain why, minus the graphic details.

Jodie spoke first. “You know how I am. Even over spring break, I can’t walk away from school. He was helping me study.”

It was the smart thing to say. A reasonable excuse, until Logan and Jodie could discuss how to best have this conversation. The flippant lie still dug into him.

“We thought we’d head up in a few hours. And yeah, drive together. Meet you at the condo,” Jodie said.

“Jodie.” Noah’s shout overlapped the sound of a doorknob latching open.

“Yeah?” she called back.

Logan was entirely too cynical to think this would get better before it got worse.

Megan and Dad exchanged a look Logan tried not to interpret.

“You know the walls in here are paper-thin, right?” Noah’s voice grew closer. “The neighbors probably heard you fucking…” He stepped into the living room, and his eyes grew wide. “Sorry. I didn’t realize you had other company. I… uh… need to get ready. I have to be someplace.” He spun away so quickly, he half-tripped on his feet.

At least the getting worse would be interesting. Logan mentally scowled at his sarcasm.

“Who are you fucking, hon?” A threatening tone ran through Dad’s question.

Megan rested a hand on his arm but glanced between Jodie and Logan. “The who is none of our business. You’re being safe, right?” She looked at Jodie.

“Of course.” Jodie’s reply was thin.

“Have you met the guy?” Logan’s dad turned a narrow-eyed gaze in his direction.

Logan didn’t like this deception. He was torn between saying something Jodie didn’t want revealed and proving he meant that he loved her. “As a matter of fact, I do know him.”

Jodie winced.

“Is he a good guy?” Duke asked.

“Depends on your definition of good,” Logan said, at the same time Jodie blurted out, “He’s the best.”

Some of his dread lifted. Jodie looked at him. He struggled for the right words or expression, to figure out if she was okay with announcing this.

She raised her brows and drummed her fingers on her leg. Fuck it. Their parents weren’t stupid, and he wasn’t interested in stretching out some convoluted facade. He stood and grasped Jodie’s hand. “It’s me,” he said.

Twin parental gazes of shock stared back.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” Dad roared.

Megan smiled. “It’s about time.” His father looked at her with a scowl, and she shrugged. “I’m surprised they weren’t getting it on in high school.”

Pink spread over Jodie’s cheeks, and Logan swallowed a laugh.

“She’s your baby girl,” his father said.

Megan shook her head. “She’s your princess. She’s my daughter and an adult, and I trust her to make her own decisions.”

“It’s not just sex.” Logan should have kept his mouth shut, but he was tired of that. “I love Jodie.”

Jodie squeezed his hand, and her flush deepened.

His father looked furious. “You’ve all lost your ever-loving minds. I’m not listening to this.” He stormed out of the house.

That went much better than Logan expected.

Megan patted Jodie and Logan’s intertwined hands. “I’ll talk to him,” she said. “I’m happy for both of you.”

“Yeah?” Jodie smiled.

“Yeah.” Her mom looked at Logan. “But break my daughter’s heart, and awkward family dinners will be the least of your concerns.”

His laugh came out more nervous than he intended. “That’s the last thing I want to do.”

“I’ll go talk to Duke,” Megan said. “Wait until I call, before the two of you head up to the condo. We can talk about this when we’re all thinking with cooler heads.”

When Megan left, Logan pulled Jodie into him, and wrapped his arms around her waist. “Talk about dysfunctional.”

She leaned her weight against him. “Not nearly as bad as some families. And I wouldn’t want it any other way.”

Logan tangled his fingers in her hair and crushed his mouth to hers. He fell into the kiss, burning every sensation into his mind. Her taste. Her sighs. The way her body molded to his, as if they were two halves of the same puzzle. He broke away and studied her face. “I meant everything last night,” he said. “That I’m done with the hot and cold. That I love you.”

“I need time to adjust.” She sounded apologetic. “And thank you for not telling them about… You know.”

“Take the time you need. You’re worth waiting for.” Logan kissed her on the nose. “As for the other part, I’ll stand with you when you’re ready to tell them. Or not. Whatever works best for you.”

A string of loud grunts echoed from the bathroom, mingled with the sound of running water.

Logan knew what it was, but he didn’t want to believe it. “That’s not…”

“Noah jerking off in the shower? Yes.”

Logan shook his head. “I’m sorry I stuck you in this place. It seemed like a good idea at the time.”

“I’m a big girl. I made my own decision. No one forced me to live here.”

“What would it take to convince you one of those decisions should be finding a new roommate? Me, for instance. It can be a no-expectations kind of agreement. Your own room if you want.”

She brushed her lips over his. “I don’t want. But you’re not only inviting one person to live with you.”

“I know what I’m asking. I want you both there. Move in with me?” Logan asked.

She nodded. “Yes. Definitely.”

He kissed her again, swallowing her moans, dancing his tongue with hers. This was as perfect as he could imagine, and that included Jodie being the rational one when it came to confessions of love. He had a feeling they were on their way toward an amazing future together.