"Sera? Where are you?"

She gently fingered her brother's model plane before calling out, "I'm in here. Down the hall. In Malcolm's room." They'd arrived last night and of course her mother hadn’t been there. Her mother had had some meeting with financial backers in New York yesterday, so she stayed the night, leaving the house to Dylan and Sera.

Dylan stood in the doorway. "Are you okay?"

Surprisingly she was, and she nodded. "Obviously I still miss him. But it's good to be here. Haven't been home, in this house, since I left for college. Couldn't stand the idea that his presence would still cling to everything. But I'm glad to be back now."

"I wish I understood how hard this was for you."

Sera swiped away a tear rolling down her cheek. "It's not too bad. More bittersweet than anything." She picked up the last yearbook he'd ever gotten. "My friends and I used to thumb through this and pick out our future boyfriends. God, we were so lame."

"Pretty sure I've seen my sisters do that."

She picked up one of the soccer balls that sat in the corner. “This was Malcolm's lucky ball. When he was younger, he really wanted to be a professional soccer player. You know, Bend it Like Beckham. But of course a professional athlete was not up to our mother’s standards, so he never did become a pro soccer player."

“I think a lot of parents would've balked at their children attempting to become professional athletes." He shrugged. "Every parent dreams of their kid doing something great, but also safe. Who wants their kid hurt or injured?"

"As an adult, I know that now. But at the time, all I could think of was how unfair she was being. It's funny what you see when you use a different lens."

Her phone rang in her pocket and she pulled it out to answer. "Hello, this is Sera."

"Hello Miss Justice, This is Alexa Reed, Deputy Secondary Staff for the senator."

”Oh, hello. Is there some kind of problem?"

"No, not a problem really. We're just adjusting the time you'll meet your mother and the press. She wants you to be there at Malcolm Memorial park at seven thirty for some early interviews. Not eight thirty."

"Thank you for notifying us."

When she hung up Dylan met her gaze with a furrowed brow. "What was that about?"

"Just my mother and her last-minute plans. She's moving everything up an hour."

Dylan frowned. "Why?"

"You're asking me to explain my mother?"

"Never mind. Rhetorical."

Sera had promised herself she'd never come back here. But here she was, voluntarily strolling into the lion's den. "I'll be happy to get this all over with tomorrow."

Dylan rubbed her back. "Come on. Let’s head downstairs. And I'll get you something to eat."

Her stomach grumbled in response. The man knew his way to her heart. She followed Dylan out but paused in the doorway to turn and look at her brother’s room. "Goodbye, Malcolm. I miss you every day."

* * *

Dylan hated it when his brother was right. Sera was more than just some girl he could walk away from. You shouldn't have touched her if you didn't want to get involved. And now he didn't know what he was going to do without her. Tomorrow after her mother's announcement, this would be over. He'd go back to his life in New York and he'd never see her again. His heart squeezed. No matter what he did, he couldn't seem to escape the pain.

He toyed with a piece of her hair on her cheek and she smiled in her sleep. Without even trying, she had him completely locked up.

She also made him feel alive. This will hurt. "Are you awake, Serafina?"

Her tongue peeked out and ran over her bottom lip. Immediately his cock stirred. Dammit, he should be passed out cold. They'd made love three times already. Like they were both desperate to get in as much quality time as possible.

Her lashes fluttered and slowly she opened her eyes. The dark depths seemingly boring right into his soul. "You can't tell me you're awake again."

He chuckled low and held her tight. "Well it's all your fault. But I've got him under control. "I just—" What? What could he possibly say to her to that would cover how he felt. "You looked beautiful." That wasn’t what he wanted to say but nothing he could say would be enough. Trying to lighten the mood, he grinned. "I have some ideas of what I want to try with you since this is our last night. How flexible are you again?"

She laughed. "Not very."

He shrugged. No matter. "We'll make it work."

Giggling, she tried to scoot out of his arms. "I need to know what I'm agreeing to first."

He just held her tighter. "Oh no you don't, I'm not letting you go."

"Total hardship." She sat up and the sheet fell from her breasts. “We have to get up in an hour. What do you say we shower together?"

Well fuck. He stared at her full cups and tried for the life of him to remember what he'd been saying again. "Hello, Earth to Dylan?"

He dragged his gaze up to her face, but couldn't help a couple downward glances. Dylan scooted closer and kissed her shoulder before nipping. He knew her body well by now. And with a gentle slide of his fingers between her thighs, she was lying back and arching her back, her thighs splayed and ready to accommodate him. "Yeah?"

She cleared her throat. "Did you hear me ask about the shower or were you too busy staring at my boobs?”

"Oh, right. Look, you're going to have to cover them if you don't want me to stare at them." Or lick them, or fuck them. His brain, ever helpful, offered up the imagery of his cock sliding between her oiled breasts. Again just like that, he was rock-hard again.

"I, uh, we could use a shower." Her inner walls clamped around his fingers.

He couldn't think with her doing that. "Sera that's not fair." At this rate, it would take no time to make him come gain.

"Who said anything about fair." She laced her fingertips through his and brought his hand to her breast; gently, he plucked her nipple and she shivered. "I like that."

"I know. Two can play at this game. Turn over, baby."

When she complied, his cock slid against her ass. Her breath hitched and his cock slid between her cheeks again, this time grazing the pucker of her forbidden hole. But she didn't move away. Oh God, she was going to kill him.

She ran her ass over him once more, this time, the tip of his cock grazed her wet slit and he groaned. When his cock nuzzled into her wet entrance, he shivered. Fuck. He wanted to make her scream his name. She easily coated him with her juices. With every slide of his cock over her entrance, she lifted her hips in invitation. "Please…"

"I know what you want. I'll give it to you, but you have to stop moving. Otherwise I'll come and we'll have all kinds of problems.” She moved again and he cursed, the tip of his cock slipping inside. Fuck, so tight. So damn soft. With a little contraction, she pulled him inside to heaven and he stroked deep. She pulsed around him and he squeezed his eyes shut. He never wanted to leave. He wanted to press his whole body against her and fuck her slow for hours. But he wanted to try something. He flipped the switch of the little red vibrator and she stilled. "What is that?"

"It's your vibrator."

He pressed it against her clit and she came apart in seconds; he held on and didn't move, didn't breathe as she writhed and screamed out his name. "There we go. Now I get to play. " He pulled the vibrator and pressed it against her ass. He turned up the speed and he held it in position with his thumb.

Sera lost all coherent thought. "Oh—Dylan—please. Oh yes."

He fucked her slow. Pouring every bit of emotion into his strokes. Silently telling her how he felt. Silently sharing that things were different for him. He let go of the vibrator but it stayed in position as he pressed his chest against her back and entered her slowly. She bucked beneath him and he whispered in her ear, "I love being inside you… So tight… So slick… Never want to leave.” When he came again, he could feel the vibrations shooting up his cock.

Dylan held her tight as he nipped the nape of her neck. "Mine," he whispered before the darkness took over.