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My mouth was instantly dry.

Tegyn just said that. Whew. I rubbed my face and stuffed my phone in my pocket. What was supposed to be a few quick texts was now taking up space in my head, when I needed to focus on the job. First night back open and I couldn’t afford to be distracted…but I was.

There were no more texts and I wondered what was going on at my house. I worried over her, but more than that, I wanted to be with her so badly I could barely concentrate on anything else. As I was doing rounds an hour later, Tommy called me over.

“You good, boss?” he asked with a frown.

I gave one curt nod. “I’m fine.”

“Really?” Tommy shook his head. “You been looking but not seeing for almost an hour now.”

I groaned. “So, what’d I miss?”

“Nothing much. I stopped a drug sale and Raven managed to squash a fight between some sistahs trying to get some brotha’s attention.” He shifted his feet and glanced down at me. “But heads up. We in the home stretch.”

“I know, we get out of here faster with no blood shed and no illegal activities. Thanks.” I started to continue my rounds when he stopped me.

“So, you gon’ tell me what’s up? I saw you looking at your phone.” Tommy smirked. “What’d she say?”

I took a deep breath. “She isn’t on the pill.”

His eyes widened. “Well, ain’t that something right there.”

“Exactly.” I shook my head a few times to clear it. “Okay. I’m focused. Let’s do our jobs and get the fuck outta here. You with me?”

“That’s right, boss. I sure am.” Then he clapped me on the back and I circled the perimeter of the club.

By two thirty, I wasn’t taking shit from anyone.

“Let’s go. Take this party elsewhere,” I droned over and over again to those lingering even after last call. “This ain’t no weekend. You know you got to go to a damn job in a few hours.”

Tommy smirked as he helped me clear the bar. “Where’s the fire?” He teased. “I’ve never seen you so eager to get home before…ever.”

I nodded while I fumed. “Go home, people,” I said to group of guys hanging in a back corner. In the booth across from them, I found a couple making out. “Get a room or go to one of y’alls places, but you can’t stay here.” Then I waited there until everyone had stood and filed toward the door.

“Wow. Look at you, Mr. Motivated.” Tommy chuckled. “The last time you were like this was when you two were dating.”

I nodded sadly. “I know.”

“Hey, you was never like this over Camilla.” Tommy tugged at his chin.

“I know,” I grumbled.

“Tegyn is really cool though.” Then he whispered under his breath, “And hot.”

My nostrils flared. “You can stop messing with me any time.”

Once the bar was cleared, I looked at my crew. “Peace. I’m out.” Then I practically ran to the door. The whole ride home, I was thinking what she meant by her last text. Was I supposed to buy condoms? Was I supposed to pull and pray? I scrunched up my face. Lord, I know I’ve asked you for a lot over the years, but please if you could find it in you to let me build a life with this woman… What? Where was my bargaining chip? Church! I’ll go. I’ll raise my family in the church. I’ll be a Godly man. I mean, I like to think I’m pretty good already, but damn I love this woman. There is nothing I wouldn’t do for her.

Maybe it was just about saying it out loud. Maybe it was because somewhere deep down I still believed, even after I thought Camilla had turned my heart against religion. After all, she claimed to be deeply religious, but I’d spent the last five years being married to a hypocrite.

Tegyn…the first I’d heard about her going to church was in front of my mama, but every bit of her being made me believe in God again, because she had to be heaven-sent. I thought about how I felt staring into her golden-brown eyes, the scent of her sleek honey brown hair, and my stomach started to get all weird. I was too fucking old for butterflies, but damn sure I had them.

I pulled into the driveway and hit the remote to open the garage door. As it rose, I found Tegyn standing in the laundry room doorway, a coy look on her face. It was after three in the morning, and she was so eager to see me she didn’t even wait for me to enter the house. Instantly, I forgot how tired I’d felt. The guy who was dragging only an hour ago was now full of life.

“Baby,” I murmured as I stepped out of the vehicle. “You’re up.”

Tegyn grinned. “I told you I’d wait up for you.”

I took the steps to the door two at a time and had her in my arms in a matter of seconds. I backed her into the laundry room, grabbed her waist, and lifted her onto the dryer where she promptly wrapped her legs around me.

“Hi,” she whispered, her eyes sparkling with mischief.

“Hi yourself.” I buried my face in her neck so I could inhale her scent. “What perfume?” I asked, determined to make a mental note. We were going to have birthdays and so many holidays together in our future. I planned to spoil the hell out of her.

“Dolce & Gabana Floral Drops. I love it,” she responded in a husky voice.

“Hm. Sounds intense,” I teased as I kissed my way to her ear. “What else do you love?” I continued to push, hoping for one particular answer.

“Playing in the rain. Dancing in the waves. Bubble baths.” She giggled.

“That’s a whole lot of wet.” I chuckled as I pulled on the neck of her shirt to expose more of her collar bone.

“You have no idea.” She moaned. “So wet.”

I paused. “We still talking about things you love, Tegyn?”

She pushed me back to look me in the eye. “Mostly. Although there’s one more thing I love…”

“A lot?” I asked as I stared into her sparkling eyes.

“Oh yeah. This is the kind of love you never get over, never recuperate from. This is the love they write poems and cheesy movies about.” Tegyn moaned as my hands moved under her shirt, slid up her sides and I moved to cup her breasts.

“You’re not wearing a bra,” I noted as the blood rushed to my groin.

She shook her head. “It’s late. I took it off after putting Keyon to bed.” She smirked while I toyed with her nipples. “I can’t concentrate with you doing that,” Tegyn whispered.

“What’s there to concentrate on, baby? This is all about feeling.” I grinned as I lifted her shirt, hoping to finally get to enjoy every square inch of her body.

Tegyn pushed her shirt down and groaned. “I’m trying to tell you all about my feelings, you big jerk.”

I laughed. “I’m a jerk?’

“Well, you’re jerking me around,” she pointed out. She wasn’t wrong. I truly enjoyed teasing her. “Let me finish.”

I lifted my hands and took a step back. “Okay. I’m listening. Hands off so I can concentrate.”

“Good, because I love you, DeSean. I’ve loved you for a long time, and maybe these years and the pain that we’ve experienced apart had to happen so we could truly appreciate and not squander this second chance.” She shrugged. “That’s all. So, I’m going to be philosophical instead of bitter. And I’m going to treasure each and every moment we have together. Starting now.”

I was frozen. I couldn’t move. For years, I’d wanted to hear this. The first time around, she refused to tell me how she felt. She didn’t want to get too attached to a married man. And now, she was ready to embrace every bit of this, including me.

“Say something. I never had you pegged for the strong and silent type.” She smiled shyly.

“I love you, Tegyn. I’m going to take you upstairs and show you how much.” I scooped her up off the dryer and began carrying her to the stairs.

“No! Not up the stairs. I don’t want to die tonight.” She giggled as she tried to kick free.

I grinned. “Okay, if you feel that strongly about it, we can go caveman style. I’ll grab you by the hair, drag you back to my cave…”

“What if we do it feminist style?” She waggled her brows at me as I set her on her feet in front of the first step.

“How’s that go? You carry me?” My brow rose.

“No. We hold hands and walk up together, side by side.” She tugged on the back of my neck so I’d lower my face for a kiss.

When she finally pulled back, I wasn’t sure I could walk at all. “I don’t know what I did to deserve you.”

With a smile, she reached for my hand. “I feel the same way.”

Together we mounted the stairs and I have to admit, it felt really nice. I could picture us doing this for the rest of our lives. As we neared my door, I urged her to enter the room first. Then I closed the door behind us.

We were alone, just like I’d wanted for so long and I was convinced I was going to mess this up somehow. “You gonna sleep in here with me tonight? Or are you planning to hit it and quit it?” I eyed her carefully.

“Quit it? All the way to the room next door?” Tegyn laughed. “Nah. I’ll stay.” She watched me for a reaction.

“That’s cool,” I murmured. Then I ran my hands over my face. “I feel like I used to be better at this.”

She took a step closer to me. “I hear it’s like riding a bike. It’ll all come back to you.” Tegyn tipped her head up and sighed happily. “I came back to you.” She licked her lips. “I mean, I almost had no choice, since my life seemed to be on the line.”

I smoothed her hair back from her face. “Maybe I should catch this stalker and thank him. Otherwise we might not have ever found our way back to each other.”

Tegyn pulled her shirt over her head. I stared at her, my heart racing. “Huh. Okay.” Her brow furrowed as she pulled off her yoga pants. I couldn’t even move because she made me want to pounce and the last thing I wanted to do was scare her off. She tilted her head as she bent to pick up the clothes she’d removed. Then she folded them and set them on the dresser. Finally, she pulled her black lace bikinis down and stepped out of them. “Nothing,” she noted when she’d finished. “Three years ago, you would’ve totally attacked me by now. We may need to get your testosterone checked.”

I yanked my shirt over my head, carefully flexing my muscles as I did so, and made short work of my socks, pants, and boxers. My erection was large and in charge. “Does this look like a low T problem to you?” I stalked over to her, lifted her up, and groaned as she wrapped her legs around my waist. “I want you, but you’re going to have to slow me down because right now, I want to take you hard and fast. Then I want to torture you with painfully slow. And finally, I want to wear you out so you’ll never think of leaving me again.”

“Sounds perfect,” Tegyn murmured against my lips. “I’m aching for you. Don’t make me wait. Three years is long enough.” She kissed her way to my ear. “I don’t plan to leave you, D. I’m pretty sure we’re ‘til death.”

Without hesitation, I moved us to the bed and laid her on her back, her ass barely on the mattress, her legs spread wide for me. I could see she was wet from the way her pussy glistened in the low light from the lamp on the nightstand. I meant what I said and she seemed to be good with it, so I reached up and ran my hands all over her body, trying to calm down. Right now, I felt like I’d last as long as a teenage virgin and Tegyn deserved better than that. I planned to satisfy her. “You have the prettiest pussy I’ve ever seen,” I murmured while her hips writhed against me.

Then I bent over her and sucked and licked her pebble hard nipples while my cock was positioned to press against her slick opening. I kissed my way down her body until I could prop her hips up with my hands. “I’m going to taste you now, Tegyn,” I warned seconds before licking up her slit. I heard her gasp at my attentions, but I didn’t stop. I continued using my mouth and my hands to pleasure her. And when I recognized how excited she was, I stood and carefully slid inside her.

“Damn, baby. You’re so tight.” I meant it. I could feel every bit of her as I pushed inside. I laid a hand on her lower abdomen. “I read your text,” I whispered, afraid of ruining the mood. “I didn’t know what to do about that. I’ll pull out, okay?”

Tegyn propped herself up on her elbows. “Don’t you dare. Not tonight. We’ll talk more tomorrow or something, but tonight is special.”

I nodded. My heart was pounding so hard, I thought I’d fall over. Instead, I started sliding in and out, while soaking in every bit of it. I held her hips, yanking her closer with every jerk of her hips. I wanted to slam into her, but I feared hurting her.

“I can take it,” she whispered as she stared at me, her cheeks flushed. “I need you, D. Harder.” She arched her hips and tightened around me inside. I could feel it and this only spurred me on.

Soon, I was slamming into her and we both seemed frantic. “Tell me you’re close,” I urged.

“Uh huh,” she whimpered. “Feel it?” she asked as her body began to contract around mine.

All I could do was nod. Feeling her orgasm had me exploding inside her, without guilt or worry. My eyes stung and I wiped at the sweat over my brow. Being with Tegyn had me all emotional and shit. This woman was too much.

Reluctantly, I pulled out. She started to move, but I laid a hand on her lower abdomen. “Don’t move. I’ll be back with a towel.” I grinned. “I made this mess. I’ll clean it up.” Then I padded off to the bathroom and when I returned she was curled up on her side, half asleep. I gently wiped her and worried over the marks I’d left on her hips from my fingers.

“Lay with me,” she whispered.

“You don’t want me to take you gently now?” I asked. “I wanted to do tonight right.”

“You did it perfectly. You can take me gently tomorrow night. I’m going to be wonderfully sore.” Tegyn smiled at me and then yawned. “Come hold me.”

So, I pulled up the covers around us, and tucked her in against my side. “Rest, baby. Keyon will probably wake us up in a couple of hours. It’s going to be a long day.”