My eyes opened wide after my moment of clarity and I smiled at Aaron. He was hunched over and breathing heavily as he tried to regain control of his body. I savored his relaxed expression for as long as it lasted.

When his eyes finally cracked open and met mine, the look of pure adoration made my heart pound harder than ever. Was it possible he had come to the same realization? Was I naive for even hoping it was true?

He brushed the hair from my face—seemingly dumbstruck—before a frown appeared and sullied the moment.

“Did I hurt you?” he whispered with concern. He pulled out and reached for the key on the nightstand. “How are you feeling?”

“Like I came so hard I melted into a pile of goo,” I mumbled, laughing softly. “I seriously don’t think I can move.”

Aaron chuckled and kissed each wrist as he released them from the cuffs before moving to my forehead. He placed a chaste kiss on my sweaty skin and whispered, “Just relax, sweetheart. I’ve got you.”

I whimpered in protest when he tried to pull away. He chuckled again when I puckered my lips before indulging me with a sweet, lingering kiss. Once I was satisfied, he pulled back and hopped off the bed. The blanket he covered me with was a poor substitute for his warmth, but I appreciated it nonetheless.

“Be right back.”

I sighed and rested my eyes, listening to the sounds of his footsteps as he padded through the house. The sound of the plastic bags rustling again made my stomach rumble. My hunger was probably the only thing keeping me from falling asleep.

Both hands were full when he finally made his way into the room. He was grinning from ear-to-ear as he placed the food bags on the foot of the bed and reached out to hand me a water bottle. I took it with a lopsided smile of my own, laughing when he came over to lift me from the bed so he could prop up more pillows behind me.

“I could have sat up!” I cried between my laughing fits. “What’s gotten into you?”

“You said you couldn’t move. I’m just doing my gentlemanly duty.”

After he sat me back down, I twisted the cap off the water and took a swig while he turned his attention back to the bags. He handed me a container and I opened it immediately—moaning when the scent of teriyaki chicken assaulted my senses. A fork appeared in my eyesight and I snatched it greedily, stuffing a piece of chicken into my mouth and moaning once again.

I waited for Aaron to get in bed beside me, but he apparently had other plans. He pushed the blanket covering my legs up to my waist and I nearly choked on my food. I chewed hastily so I could question what he was doing.

He beat me to the punch by clasping my knees and dragging them apart. A warm washcloth brushed against my inner thighs and I let my body relax once more, sighing happily as I did.

“You’re a dream, you know,” I softly admitted. The urge to turn my face away from his intense gaze was strong. I wasn’t ready to declare my true feelings just yet, but I could at least give him this. “I can’t imagine anyone else taking care of me better than you.”

What I really meant was: You are the only one I want to take care of me—ever.

“No one else can,” he said with more than a hint of arrogance. But there was something else there—some twinge of nervousness lurking beneath the surface. “I’ll treat you like a queen every day, for as long as you’ll let me.”

The message his tone gave off was: I’ll give you everything you want until you’re sick of me.

I wasn’t sure why I got that impression, but the thought made me frown. Did he really think this was a temporary thing for me or was my imagination creating things that weren’t there?

His eyes were downcast while he focused on his task. The moment was lost and the only way I’d find out if I was right was if I asked. Something told me that now wasn’t the right time.

So I ate my chicken in silence and smiled when he finally took his spot beside me. He propped himself up and dragged me to lean against him, curling his muscled arm around my shoulder. He ate with one hand while the other toyed with the ends of my hair.

It felt like a dream come true. If I imagined it hard enough, I was easily able to pretend that we were a married couple curling up together in our home at the end of a long day. There was nothing I wouldn’t give for my dream to become a reality.

“I like this.”

Surprised, I turned my face up to look at Aaron. He had a soft smile on his lips and was giving me another one of those tender looks I was beginning to crave.

“I like it, too.”

His body shifted beside me and his head turned until his lips were nuzzling my temple.

“Is there any chance you might end up wanting this every day?”

God, I already did. How could I say that without sounding totally desperate? Should I shoot for honest or aloof?

I went for something in the middle.

“I could definitely get used to the idea.”

The answer must have satisfied him because he let out a content hum before kissing me. He returned to eating while I mulled over my choice of phrasing.

He’d already made a few vague comments about living together, but the real question that plagued my thoughts was—could he get used to it? Aaron had spent how many years living on his own. Were his comments caused by a desire for regular sex or could he truly get accustomed to sharing a home and a life with me? I was dying to ask, yet hesitant to risk spoiling our long weekend.

Deep down, I knew I wouldn’t be able to make it that long. I decided then and there to risk it all the next day—to voice the questions that could make or break us.

For tonight though...

I placed my almost empty tray on the nightstand before turning back and nuzzling my cheek against his chest.

He seemed surprised by the turn of events, but was more than happy to oblige when I whispered, “Make love to me.”

By the time we were done, the rest of the food had gone cold.

* * *

We alternated between making love, cuddling, and eating for hours before finally passing out in an exhausted heap of limbs. It wasn’t a shock to either of us that we slept well past the morning and into the day—but it was a surprise to be rudely awakened by the shrill sound of his cell phone.

“Fuck,” he cursed, his voice hoarse from sleep.

He detangled himself from me with a murmured apology and was out of the room with his phone before I could even force my eyes to open. I groaned and buried my face in his pillow, breathing in his scent with a sappy smile. After a full-body stretch, I sat up and rubbed my bleary eyes before cracking them open and looking at the clock.

I had to do a double-take. Did we seriously sleep until one in the afternoon? Thinking back, I remembered collapsing on his chest and turning my head, too worn out to be surprised that it was almost six in the morning.

Even with the bone-deep exhaustion and the aches I felt in various places—it was without a doubt the best night of my life.

Aaron trudged back in the room a few minutes later—gloriously naked with a bewildered look on his face. His eyes met mine and I smiled, waiting for the expression to be mirrored back at me.

Instead, I got a sad, pleading look. My smile faded instantly.

“What’s wrong?”

“I’m so sorry, baby. I have to go out for a few hours.”

“Can I come?”

He winced and shook his head. “It’s a work thing.”

“But... It’s our weekend.”

“I know. Damn it—I’m so sorry. I promise I’ll be as quick as possible. Two hours tops.”

I sighed as acceptance began to settle in. “You really can’t get out of it?”

“I can’t.”

“Okay. Well... I’ll be here when you get back.”

The smile I wanted to see when he entered the room came to his lips before he leapt onto the bed and smothered me with kisses.

“You’re really not mad?”

“It’s only two hours. I think I’ll live,” I teased.

“Thank you, sweetheart.”

I wrapped my arms around his shoulders and kissed him back. Very soon, our make-out session was bordering on dangerous territory. He groaned and pulled away, glaring down at his hard-on with a scowl.

“Damn it.”

“You want me to take care of that?” I teased, knowing the effect my words would have.

Sure enough, his cock twitched with interest as he let out a disappointed groan.

“Why do you torture me, baby?”

“It’s fun.”

“I’ll punish you for it later.”

“That’s fun, too.”

With a heated growl, he pushed himself off the bed and stalked over to his dresser. It was quite amusing to watch him dress—especially when he had to maneuver his erection around in his boxers in order to get his slacks buttoned. I must have giggled because he shot me a hurt look.

“You really do take pleasure in this, don’t you? Little sadist.”

“I wouldn’t go that far, but...” I trailed off and bit my lip before working up the nerve to continue. “I think I’d like to try out a cock ring on you.”

His eyebrows raised high. “Is my staying power not enough for you or do you just want to find new ways to torment me?”

One boring evening at the shop had led me to question Mona about a variety of things—including cock rings. Mandy had been very vague with her description, but Mona spelled it out with no hesitation. She explained how to use a cock ring to keep a man on edge until he came so hard he shook the walls. The whole thing just sounded so... interesting.

“I want to edge you.”

His hands paused in the middle of buttoning up his shirt. He blinked a few times before turning to me with narrowed eyes.

“Have you been watching porn in my absence?”

“No! But I do work in a sex shop, you know.”

“Ahh, so it was the girl with the piercings. Mona, right?”

“Yeah. What she described just sounded kind of fun.”

“Fun for you,” he said darkly. He licked his lips and I didn’t miss the subtle way he adjusted his cock in his pants. After a long stretch of silence, he simply said, “If you want it—it’s yours. I’m down for anything that doesn’t involve penetration on my end.”

“Oh. I guess that talk about strap-ons was for nothing.”

Aaron growled and I couldn’t hold back my laughter. He started laughing along with me as he jumped on the bed, covering my body with his.

“Nothing in my ass, we clear? Now if you’d like something in your ass, I’d be more than happy to oblige.”

Even after everything we’d done together—my cheeks turned beet red. He chuckled and kissed me again before nuzzling our noses together for an eskimo kiss. We settled into a moment of comfortable silence as we gazed at one another.

“You make it hard to leave,” he whispered before letting out a heavy sigh. “I’ll be back soon. Don’t go anywhere.”

“I’m just going next door to feed Sugar and get the mail. I figure I might as well do it now.”

Aaron groaned in protest. “Noo. Stay here. I want you naked in my bed when I get back.”

“I won’t even get fully dressed—a quick in and out, that’s all. I promise to be naked and ready for you when you get back.”

The purr-like noise he let out was way too erotic for my poor body to handle. I shuddered and clung tightly to his uniform, licking my lips when his eyes darkened.

“Shit,” he whispered as he reached for my wrists and detangled me from his shirt. “If I don’t go now, I never will. Back soon, baby. I l—”

He froze, eyes wide. I gave him a questioning look and waited, frowning when he shook his head as if to clear it.

“I’ll stop for food on the way home.”

He said nothing as he backed off the bed and finished getting ready, nor when he glanced back at me from the doorway with a longing look in his eyes. We had fallen into a weird, tense silence that for some reason reminded me that I swore to ask him some unpleasant questions today.

My mood dampened by reality, I sighed and dragged my sore body out of bed. Might as well get it over with so I could come back and pace around in the hopes of burning off some of my nervous energy.