Chapter 14: Deeper Surrender

Rain pattered against the windowpanes in steady silver threads, turning the suburban night into a soft, blurred curtain that sealed the house in its own private world. I arrived just after eight with my overnight bag, the denim jacket I’d thrown on doing little to hide the way my pulse fluttered low in my belly. Katie had texted earlier about a late study session in her room—something about group-project slides that would keep her upstairs until at least midnight—and the knowledge sat heavy inside me like warm honey and guilt mixed together. David’s truck was already in the driveway, the porch light off for once, as if the house itself were holding its breath.

He met me at the door without a word, pulling me inside by the wrist and pressing me against the wall the moment the lock clicked. His mouth found mine in the dark hallway, slow and deliberate, tongue sliding deep while his hands mapped the curve of my waist beneath the thin sweater I wore. No frantic rush this time. Just the quiet certainty of two people who had already admitted they were in love and still couldn’t stay away.

“Katie’s buried in her laptop,” he murmured against my lips, voice a low rumble I felt in my bones. “We have time. I want to take my time with you tonight, Riley. All of you.”

The words sent a shiver racing down my spine. I nodded, letting him lead me upstairs on silent feet, past Katie’s closed door where the faint blue glow of her screen leaked beneath the gap. His bedroom waited at the end of the hall, door already ajar. Inside, the bedside lamp cast a warm amber pool across the king bed, the sheets turned back like an invitation. The rain drummed harder against the roof, a steady backdrop that swallowed any small sounds we might make.

He undressed me with patient hands, peeling away the sweater, then the skirt, until I stood in nothing but the simple black bra and the lace panties I’d chosen knowing he would see them. His thumbs traced the straps before unhooking the bra, letting it fall. When he hooked his fingers into the panties and slid them down my legs, he dropped to one knee, pressing a slow kiss to the inside of my thigh, then higher, until his breath ghosted over my center and I had to bite the inside of my cheek to stay quiet.

“Not yet,” he whispered, rising to kiss me again. “I have something new I want to try. Something I’ve been thinking about since the weekend we had the house to ourselves.”