I scooted closer, settling my core over his. “You spent your day putting out my fires, Cormac.”
“It’s what I wanted to do, sweetheart.”
I dropped my lips to his, pressing a long kiss there. “I know that. It’s who you are, and why you’re the best friend I’ve ever had.”
“You’d do it for me,” he said simply.
“You’re so sure.”
He nodded. “I am.”
“Lucky for us, you’ll never get yourself into trouble. I won’t be tested.”
“No.” His fingers tangled, guiding my face down to his again. When our lips grazed, he murmured, “I don’t need you to be tested. I know what I know.”
Then he kissed me hard, his tongue sweeping between my lips to claim mine. His hands tightened at my waist, not rough, just sure, like he knew he had every right to touch me this way now. I kissed him back with all the squirmy, slithery need inside me, urging me closer and closer to him.
I broke away just long enough to breathe, “Bedroom.”
His eyes darkened, that warm summer blue turning deep and intent. “Yeah?”
“Yeah.”
Cormac stood in one smooth motion, and I wrapped my legs around his waist, laughing into his mouth as he carried me down the short hallway. He nudged my bedroom door wide with his foot and set me on the edge of the bed. I threw my T-shirt off and lifted my hips to tug off my shorts and panties. For a second, Cormac watched me, his eyes raking over every inch of my body.
“Come here,” I said, tugging him by his belt loop.
He yanked his shirt over his head, toed off his shoes, and crawled over me, bracing his weight on his forearms so he wouldn’t crush me. I slid my hands into his hair and kissed him again, slower. We smiled against each other’s mouths, bumping noses, trading small, breathy laughs between kisses.
“You’re smiling,” he murmured.
“So are you.”
“I can’t help it.”
“Good,” I whispered. “Don’t.”
Every time he kissed me, it was like he was checking in, like he needed to make sure I was still with him. And I kept answering. With my hands. My mouth. The way I pulled him closer even when he was right on top of me.
“I like you so much, Maccie. So,somuch.”
His eyelids went half-mast, and his mouth fell open with a whoosh of air. “Christ, Zara…I don’t know what to do with you.”
“Just be with me. That’s all.”
He lowered himself the rest of the way, chest to chest, and let his weight settle carefully over me. I wrapped my arms around him and held tight.
He exhaled like he’d been carrying something heavy all day.
“There,” I whispered, kissing the corner of his mouth. “I’ve got you.”
He groaned softly as I kissed his neck, and the sound carried all the way through me. Every brush of his body against mine made my breath hitch, but it wasn’t frantic. We were moving together with intent. Building piece by piece instead of chasing an ending.
Cormac cupped my face, slowing us down when things threatened to tip into urgency, and pressed his forehead to mine.
“Still okay?”
I smiled, brushing my nose against his. “Super, very okay.”