More on this book
Community
Kindle Notes & Highlights
TESS: Gemini (air): playful, curious, passionate RYAN: Virgo (earth): methodical, committed, kind
Langley, Ryan (#20): forward
Yeah, fuck you, sand.
Sand up my ass crack, crusty shells on my boobs. How does Ariel make this look so glamorous?
I don’t strut around talking about claiming women and fighting off the affections of other men like some brute caveman. But right now, with this beautiful naked woman standing in front of me, I feel ready to go looking for a club. Me Ryan. You pretty. Make fire and baby.
“I want to know what you taste like.” Fuck, did I just say those words out loud? It had to be me because she’s looking at me like I’m crazy. “Ryan—” “A kiss,” I say, breathless. “That’s my secret. I want a kiss. One kiss. From you.” Her full lips tip on one side, flashing me a sexy little half-smile. “And what would a guy like you do with one kiss from a girl like me?” “Savor it,” I reply. “Cherish it. Save it for a rainy day.”
This is only the beginning. Because there is no way I’m letting her just walk away. Tess Owens is my dream girl…she just doesn’t know it yet.
“And then Jake found me in Seattle,” she says with a smile. “And when he found me, I found me too. I’m who I’m meant to be now. With them, I’m me. Jake, Caleb, and Ilmari, they’re my reason. So, I’m not walking down that aisle tonight. I’m running. I’m running to them, Tess. I’m going home.”
“Jake, I love you,” he declares, loud enough for the whole room to hear. “I’ve loved you for ten fucking years. I loved you in secret,” he admits. “I loved you like a coward. I didn’t deserve to be loved by you in return—not until I got out of my own damn way. But I needed a little help. I needed a push.”
“You’ve always been my friend,” Sanford goes on. “Then you became my lover. Tonight, I make you my husband. You’re mine, Jake Price. You’re mine, and I’m never letting go.”
“I see someone who loves her friends,” I go on. “Someone who puts others first. Maybe I like the idea of being the one who gets to put you first. I like taking care of people, Tess. And I take excellent care of what’s mine.”
“Don’t get me wrong,” he says with a smirk, those apple green eyes blown black with hunger. “I have no problem with toys. But I’m not giving away my first shot with Tess Owens. I’m not taking the assist. This orgasm is mine. Now, get on the fucking bed.”
“You had it on broil instead of bake.” “What’s the difference?” I hold back my smile. “Only about two hundred degrees. And all the heat comes from the top-down when you broil. That’s why it burned.”
“Babe, we can’t fuck in here. I’ll stroke out.” “Aren’t you a professional athlete at the literal peak of physical performance?” “Yeah,” I reply, drawing out the ‘e.’ “But you do remember I play my sport on ice right, not the surface of the fucking sun?”
“You need a safe word, Ryan. This is new play for you, new sensations. You may not like it. You may need it to stop. I need to know when you’ve reached your limit. Pick a word that you’ll only say when you need it to stop. No judgement, no questions, no hesitation.” My mind scrambles to think of something—anything. “Uhh…Yoshi.”
“Because life is short, Ryan. Life is beautiful and short, and you only get one. Live it on purpose.”
I won’t rest until I’m free, and if he is going to threaten the people I love, I will burn him to ash. Boundaries, I have them now. Fuck around, and you will find out.
And a dish of seashells. Apparently, no Florida home is complete without a decorative dish with some shells.
But if this night doesn’t end in a proposal, she’s gonna be sleeping in a tent on the porch. I mean, I’ll sleep in it too, because I’m not leaving my woman out in the wild where animals could get her. But I have to prove a point, so tent camping it is.
