Follow the River (River of Rain, #1)

by C.E. Ricci

Yep, you guessed it. I’m spending the night alone in a hotel room with River motherfucking Lennox.

“I love the way you fight me, baby. It makes the taste of your cum that much fucking sweeter.”

“Sorry to disappoint, baby, but you should know by now I’m anything but docile.”

Because I love the way he controls me when he’s inside me, yet he lets me have my way with him even when I’m bottoming.

Yes, I’d be lying if I haven’t thought about sinking inside him more often than is probably mentally sane, but I would be happy to live the rest of my life never sinking my cock into anything other than a mouth if it meant getting fucked by Rain Grady. Which in itself is…problematic.

“Every night, for the rest of the time we’re here, this is how it’s going to be. Maybe because it makes sense or because I feel guilty, I don’t know. Whatever it is, the most important reason is I’m a selfish bastard, and when I want something, I take it.”

“And what I want? More than anything? Is to finally have something to hold onto to make it through the night.”

At some point, he became a necessity, even when he was never meant to be anything more than an enemy.

He’s seen the good, the bad, and the ugly. And stayed.

My soul begs for this. For more. For him.

Then again, it’s not every day you realize you’re in fucking love with the most beautifully infuriating man you’ve ever met.

Claiming him. Mine. Creating a fucking masterpiece. Ours.

I always seem to be caving when it comes to him. And then he said something, I swear to God, I’ll remember until the day I die.

Staring up at the night sky, it’s the best way to remember we are so much smaller than we make ourselves out to be.

“I don’t want to lose you either. Not when I know what it’s like to have you.”

“You have me. You will always have me. Until every star in the night sky burns out. And maybe even then.”

But I just lie here, not tired in the least. How can I be when every second I spend asleep tonight is one less I’ll have awake with him?

Being in love is a daily battle, not only fighting for the other person, but for yourself. It’s finding the common ground, the parts of your souls that speak to each other, strengthening them in ways no one else’s ever could. It’s knowing your worth and not only telling the other person you won’t accept anything less than what you deserve, but trusting them to provide that for you. It’s giving the darkest parts of yourself to another human, saying this is who I am in all my fucked up glory, and not asking them to fix you, but to give you what you need to mend yourself.