I brace my hands and jut out my ass. “Now.”
He slides the tip of his cock against my opening, and with one solid push, he’s inside of me.
I rise to my tiptoes to escape the bite of pain radiating through me because of his size, but his hands land on my waist. Gentle movements of his fingers on my skin coax me back down to my feet.
“We’ll take it slow,” he promises with a kiss to my ear lobe. “You set the pace.”
I push against him. “I want it hard and fast.”
“I can’t promise fast.” His hand circles my neck from behind. “I can promise hard.”
I close my eyes and give in to it all.
With pounding thrusts, he fulfills his promise until I come with a trembling moan.
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Berk
My hands shake as I slice a knife through a piece of mango.
Astrid is on her way down for breakfast. She showered after I did.
I wanted to insist she join me, but she was still in bed with her eyes closed. She looked like a dream.
Last night feels like a dream.
I lost track of how many times we fucked, but it still doesn’t feel like enough.
I look up when I hear her soft footsteps on the approach.
“Hey,” I say as she comes into view.
She looks phenomenal.
Her hair is pulled into a high ponytail courtesy of an elastic band I found in my desk drawer. I tossed her clothes in the dryer sometime around the crack of dawn.
I had gotten out of bed in search of a glass of water.
I made it two feet before I turned back to watch her sleep.
I must have stood in that spot for twenty minutes before I scooped up her clothing and came downstairs.
“Hey,” she returns my greeting with a smile. “I like the suit look, but this is nice too.”
I glance down at the faded jeans and black T-shirt I’m wearing. “It’s my weekend look.”
“It works.”
“I made coffee.” I gesture toward a mug sitting on the corner of the island. “It’s just the way you like it.”
I remember how she ordered it at the coffee shop. No cream and no sugar.
I remember everything I’ve learned about her so far.
She hurries over to the mug and picks it up. As soon as the rim hits her lips, she takes a swallow. “This is so good.”
I place the knife down on the cutting board. “Last night was so good.”
Both of her eyebrows perk. “It was incredible, Berk.”
Dropping my gaze to the counter, I try and catch my breath. “I’m glad you came home with me.”
“I am too,” she whispers.
That lures my eyes back to her face. “I want to say something, but I don’t want it to come out wrong.”
She takes a few steps to settle on a stool across the island from me. “Take it slow.”
Nodding, I fuel myself with a sip of coffee. “I like you, Astrid.”
She tilts her chin. “I thought you might.”
I scoop up a few mango slices with a fork and drop them into a bowl filled with berries. I slide that across the island toward her. “Eat while I talk.”
“I can do that.” She laughs. “I’m starving.”
I watch her stab a raspberry before she slips it between her lips.
Taking a steadying breath, I brace both hands on the edge of the granite countertop. “We started this with an agreement that it would be a fuck and…”
“I remember,” she interrupts. “It’s been a few really mind-blowing fucks.”
I can’t hold in a smile. “Mind-blowing is right.”
She takes a bite of a piece of mango. “If you play your cards right, there could be more.”
I want that. Jesus, do I want that.
I glance down before I lock eyes with her. “I know I said I didn’t want this to be serious. You agreed, but I’m not planning on sleeping with anyone else, Astrid.”
“I’m not either,” she says succinctly. “I don’t want to.”
Relief barrels through me.
“We’re exclusive,” I say to hammer home my point.
“Exclusive,” she agrees with a nod of her chin.
I round the island to wrap my arms around her from behind, but she’s quick. She’s on her feet before I get close to her.
Her hands land on my shoulders. “I think I’m going to like being exclusive with you.”
“Oh, you will.” I laugh as I cup her cheeks in my hands. “You’re going to like it a hell of a lot.”
I press my mouth to hers for a soft kiss.
“Daddy!”
The sound of that tears us apart instantly.
Astrid’s hand jumps to her mouth. “Is that your daughter?”
I nod.
Shit. Dammit.
I was supposed to pick up Stevie from Keats and Maren’s in a couple of hours.
“Daddy! There’s a guitar here,” she screams from the foyer. “Am I going to get guitar lessons?”
Astrid skims her hands over the front of her jeans. “What should I do?”
“Wait here,” I say softly. “Give me a minute, all right?”