Luke pulled out of Elise’s heat and turned her around to face him. He loved her spontaneity and her sense of adventure. But she deserved more than some quick fuck against the dryer in her laundry room. Not that she seemed to mind, going by how hard she’d come.

He picked her up, sat her butt on the dryer, and took her lips. He kissed down one side of her face and then her neck. She clutched the back of his head, pulling him closer. He opened his mouth over her pulse, feeling it throb against his tongue, and sucked.

Elise moaned, and that was all it took to make him hard again. Her shorts and underwear were still down around her calves, so he slipped one leg out, pulled her to the edge of the appliance, and entered her.

She drew back from him and opened her eyes. They were wide with surprise. “Again? Already? Now?”

“Again.” Now. Forever. Always.

She affected him more than any other woman had in the past.

He withdrew and pushed back home. She was wet from him coming in her earlier, but she was tight from her climax, and even though they’d just done it, she felt incredible.

“How do you always feel so good?” he asked her.

Her head was thrown back, but she lifted it enough to look at him. “Me? How do you always feel so good?”

He chuckled and leaned her back over his arm. “I guess we’ll have to agree to disagree,” he said as he pushed her shirt and sports bra up.

He sucked her nipple in his mouth as he thrust, and she began softly chanting his name.

He was pretty sure that Elise didn’t realize that she said his name over and over again when they had sex and that she usually got louder, the closer she was to coming. He loved it because then he had no doubt that she knew who was inside her.

Their relationship might have started out as fuck buddies, but it was more than that now. They’d moved from one-night stand to friends with benefits to sleeping exclusively with each other, and today, when he’d told her niece that Elise was his girlfriend, he’d meant it.

He might not have brought his feelings to Elise’s attention in the correct way, but he was scared of things getting serious. Not because he was afraid of commitment, but because he was terrified she was. He was also worried about messing up the rhythm they had going. As if making the relationship serious would make it too serious, and she would think they couldn’t have fun anymore, like they were now.

He had probed her more about the orgasm thing and about guys not being able to get her there. She’d been open about discussing it, but he wasn’t sure if she realized that the guys she had gotten serious with weren’t great in bed and that her non-serious relationships, encounters, whatever you wanted to call them, were the ones where she’d managed to climax. Considering how responsive Elise was in his arms, he had a feeling that he knew what category she’d put him in.

So far, she hadn’t asked him about the girlfriend thing that had come up with her niece. Granted, they hadn’t been alone very much, but he was going to let her bring it up. He wasn’t sure if she was ready to take their relationship further, and he was afraid that, if he pushed her, she’d push back—and not in a way he’d like. He wasn’t willing to risk losing her.

Luke released her nipple and pushed her breasts into his chest, so he could look into her face. He grasped her hair and gave a slight tug. “Elise.”

“Hmm?”

“Open your eyes.”

Her green eyes flickered open, and she smiled at him.

“Attagirl. I want you to look at me while I fuck you.”

“Oh, Luke,” she moaned.

Her pussy squeezed tighter over him.

“Come on, Lise, come for me.”

Unable to keep her eyes open any longer, they slammed shut as her back arched, and she came around him. He loved how tight she got as she convulsed when he was inside her.

Unable to hold his orgasm off any longer, he let go and released himself deep within her.

He rested his forehead against her chest. “Damn, woman, I don’t think I can walk.”

Elise chuckled. “You can’t walk? I’m the one who’s going to be limping out of here later. I don’t think we’ve had sex twice in a row like that so soon.”

He jerked his head up. “Did I hurt you?”

She cupped his cheek. “No, it’s just that you’re not small, and I can get a little sore sometimes.”

“Please keep talking about how big my dick is.”

She laughed, causing her to tighten around him.

He groaned.

“I don’t think you have any trouble with your ego and penis.”

He pulled out of her. “Oh, babe, it’s a dick or a cock. Not a penis.”

She leaned up onto her elbows. “But that’s the actual word for it.”

“I know. It makes me think of work.”

“Ah,” she said as she understood. “Okay then. Your cock is huge.”

“Thank you,” he said, grinning. He pointed to the floor. “Are these clothes all dirty?”

“Yes.”

He tore open the garbage bag, grabbed the first thing his fingers touched, and gave it to her. “Sorry, I think I left you extra messy.”

She grabbed the shorts and put them between her legs to clean herself up.

Luke grabbed something else out of the bag to clean his own body up. Right as he was done, he threw the garment on the floor and heard his name.

“Shit,” Luke said. “Someone’s coming. Quick. Make yourself look busy.”

Elise had just pulled up her shorts, and she went over to her pile of clothes and started sorting them while Luke opened the dryer to make it look like he had come down there to inspect it.

He waited for his name to be called again before he answered, pretending like he hadn’t heard the previous shout, “In here.”

Right before the door opened, Luke looked at Elise. “Your hair,” he told her.

Elise reached up and realized half of her ponytail had fallen out. She pulled out the band holding her hair up and let the rest of the tresses fall down around her shoulders.

“Hey, what are you doing?” Sean asked.

“Elise saw that post on Facebook about making sure the dryer vent is cleared out, so your house doesn’t catch on fire.” Luke tried to put enough inflection in his tone to make it sound like he thought Elise might be overreacting a bit.

“Hey, it can really happen. I don’t want my new house to burn down because my dryer is in the basement, and I’m upstairs.”

Luke gave her a thumbs-up behind Sean’s back. She was really selling it.

She, however, shot him a look that said, I’m half-serious, and if my house burns down, I will cut you.

Elise stood up. “Well, I got all the clothes sorted. You’re sure everything’s okay?” she asked Luke.

“Yep.” Luke stood and wiped his hands on his shorts, as if he’d really gotten them dirty.

“Okay. See you guys upstairs then.”

As soon as Elise was gone, Sean looked at Luke. “You’re fucking her, aren’t you?”

Luke was taken aback. “Holy shit, Sean.”

Sean shook his head when Luke didn’t deny it. “How long has this been going on?”

None of your goddamn business, Luke thought as he gritted his teeth. What happened between him and Elise was between them.

“How did you know?” he asked instead.

“Because it smells like a brothel in here.”

Luke cursed. He hadn’t thought about that before Sean walked in. The room didn’t have a window or any sort of ventilation, so he really shouldn’t have been surprised that Sean smelled sex.

“Look—” Luke started.

“If you hurt her, man, and Rachel finds out I knew…”

Luke was grateful that he didn’t even have to ask his friend for his loyalty in keeping their secret. But, at the same time, where was Sean’s faith?

Luke stalked toward his friend and poked him in the chest. “Fuck you.”

“Fuck me?”

“Yes. Why does everyone assume I’m going to break her heart? You know, I have had a long-term relationship before. My last girlfriend and I dated for two years before she broke up with me. I am not the same guy I was in college.”

“Damn,” Sean said, taking a step back, “I had no idea.”

“Of course not because no one bothers to ask me. They just see me and assume that I’m the same player that I always was, but I’m not. A term that you all gave me by the way, not something I have ever called myself. I never fed false promises to anyone. Back then or now. Either way, I’m not the same guy I was in college. I mean, I wasn’t ready to marry my ex or anything, but I loved her. Or I thought I did. Now, things are so clear.” Luke shook his head. “But that’s not the point.”

Sean looked ashamed. “I’m sorry, man. I really am.”

Some of the anger left Luke upon seeing Sean looking so guilty. “It’s okay. I mean, it’s not, but I can forgive and forget.” So, not all the anger had left.

“So, you have no plans on breaking Elise’s heart?”

“Well, first, she’d have to give it to me, but the answer is no. I don’t have any plans to go anywhere, okay?”

Sean nodded. “Okay.”

“Sean?” Rachel called from the stairs.

“Yeah?”

They heard Rachel’s footsteps descend until she came through the door. “Hey, what are you guys doing?”

“Nothing.”

“Talking.”

Rachel looked back and forth between them, clearly picking up their tension. She went over to Sean’s side. “Is everything okay?”

“Yeah,” Luke said. “I’ve gotta go…do something,” he finished lamely.

He left the laundry room and took the stairs two at a time. Elise was in the kitchen, pulling stuff out of the pantry. She’d put her hair back up in a ponytail, looking like she hadn’t been doing the nasty with him less than a half hour ago.

For some reason, that really added to his disappointment and irritation.

She took one look at his face and asked, “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.”

He didn’t want to tell her about his conversation with Sean, only to have her worry about Sean saying something to Rachel, but maybe she’d already guessed, given his mood.

He couldn’t help feeling a little resentful, preparing himself for her asking if Sean could keep a secret. Like that was the important thing here.

She stepped closer and touched his arm. She surprised him when she said, “I hope everything’s okay. I’m here if you want to talk.”

Her offer calmed Luke. He liked knowing she cared. He pulled her close and kissed her temple. “Thanks, babe. Maybe later. We still have stuff to bring in. Then, you and I have a lot more rooms to christen.” He smiled at her. It wasn’t his usual full smile, but he was trying to be his normal self.

Elise laughed, knowing he was trying. “Okay, but we might have to do the christening thing in steps. My house isn’t small.”

If it meant he got to see her over the next few days, that would totally work for him. “Deal.”