38

It turned out that Olivia was far more forgiving than she’d believed herself to be. Maybe it should have worried her, but as Chris’s lips trailed a blazing path down her neck, she couldn’t find it in herself to feel anything other than happy.

He was willing to move across the country for her. He’d told her he loved her, and she couldn’t do anything but believe him after everything he’d said. Olivia knew she would never have forgiven him if he’d hurt her that day in the library without a reason. The things he’d said had inflicted deep wounds, but the things she’d said in the video had cut him first and had cut him right to his core.

She could have kept wearing her anger like armor, but Olivia knew her mistakes had been just as bad as his, if not worse. If he could forgive her for not telling him what had really happened to cause the crash, she could forgive him for lashing out at her in his hurt.

“You really mean it?” Olivia asked, her voice coming out husky as he placed a kiss below her ear. “I’m your first choice?”

He lifted his head and met her gaze with heavy-lidded eyes. “I meant every word,” he said before closing the distance between them and placing a soft kiss on her lips. “You’re my favorite,” he murmured before brushing his lips over hers again. “My favorite person. My favorite everything.”

After feeling like second-best for most of her life, the words were like a soothing balm.

Chris tugged her shirt from her skirt, and Olivia let out a quivering breath when his fingers grazed over her skin.

“I love you, too,” she whispered as her eyes fluttered closed. Much as she’d tried not to, she’d fallen for him. She’d fallen hard over years and years, starting as a childhood crush on her brother’s friend and developing into something so much more.

Chris’s fingers stilled, and his head slowly drew back. “Is my mind playing tricks on me, or did you just say you love me?”

Olivia’s lips curved up in amusement. “Your mind isn’t playing tricks on you,” she assured him.

His face broke into a grin before his mouth crashed down on hers again with an eagerness that had heat pooling between Olivia’s legs. He swallowed her moan, and his arms wrapped around her, enveloping her in warmth.

Olivia stumbled back toward her bed, pulling him with her. Maybe she should have wanted to wait at least a day after forgiving him, but she didn’t want to wait. She needed him. She needed this.

Chris covered her body with his, propping himself up on one arm. His free hand slipped under her shirt, his fingers gripping her waist. He was so much bigger than her, but Olivia didn’t feel any fear or uneasiness.

She knew the kind of man Chris was, and she trusted him because of it. Her pulse spiked for a different reason, her heart racing with every touch on her skin and every brush of his lips.

This time, there were no harsh whispers in her mind telling her she was making a mistake. There were no shouts for her to stop and no hissed accusations. Drew was gone, and he’d taken all of that with him, leaving her mind clear and without doubt or censure.

When Chris pulled her shirt over her head, the only thoughts in her head were her own. When he tugged off his own shirt, Olivia’s teeth dug into her bottom lip, and she was free to let her eyes wander over him without swears drilling into her brain.

She’d been able to shut Drew out for the most part the last time by focusing on Chris and the pleasure he’d coaxed from her body. But this time, Olivia could feel everything so much more keenly. There were no distractions and no forced focus on her part.

When Chris removed her skirt and kissed his way down her stomach, Olivia could give herself over fully to the heat gathering in her core. When he slowly pulled her underwear down her legs and kissed her where she was most sensitive, Olivia gave herself over to the pleasure without hesitation.

She gasped when he circled his tongue, and her fingers sank into his hair as her eyes fluttered closed. Chris kept his movements torturously slow, but even so, Olivia felt herself nearing the edge. She tightened her fingers, urging him to keep going even as her hips rolled unconsciously, seeking more.

And Chris gave it to her. He increased his pressure and his speed, groaning approvingly against her when Olivia’s hips rolled again. She got closer and closer, and the muscles in her body tightened as pleasure built. Olivia gasped out a curse when his tongue finally sent her over the edge, and Chris’s fingers dug into her thighs, keeping her in place as he worked her through it.

Olivia had never come so hard in her life, and her body dropped to the bed, her muscles feeling tired and heavy.

Her eyes slowly opened like she was emerging from sleep and not the best orgasm she’d ever had. Her gaze met Chris’s, and he smiled before raising his body over hers again.

“That…” Olivia said, unable to finish the rest of the sentence. Her mind was too sluggish.

“Good?” Chris asked, placing a lingering kiss on her lips.

Olivia nodded. “Very.” She lifted her heavy arm and brushed his hair from his forehead. “I think I may need a nap now, though.”

Chris let out a chuckle. “Is that so?” he asked before kissing her throat and tracing his hand down her side.

Olivia hummed. “You wore me out,” she murmured.

“Already?” he asked, his hand gripping the outside of her thigh and his hips thrusting against hers.

She could feel his hardness through his boxer briefs, and the press of him against her had a gasp falling from her lips. She didn’t feel so tired anymore, and her hands joined his in exploration.

Her fingers slid down his chest and stomach, tracing over his defined muscles before slipping beneath the material covering him.

“Fuck,” he muttered when she gripped him in her hand, and his eyes darkened with heat before falling closed.

She stroked him twice before he let out a choked groan and covered her mouth with his. He attacked her lips with earnest, his tongue stroking into her mouth as his hips jerked forward. He paused only to pull the boxer briefs off and unclip her bra.

They were both bare, every inch of skin exposed, and they both took a minute to take the other in. Olivia’s eyes lingered on his abs before trailing down his V lines. She swallowed and bit down on her bottom lip before lifting her gaze to meet his.

He was all muscle. All hard edges and defined lines, and Olivia couldn’t believe she was the one he’d chosen.

As if sensing her thoughts, Chris tucked her hair behind her ear and whispered, “You’re beautiful.”

The corners of her lips tipped up, and her cheeks heated.

“You’re so out of my league, it’s not even funny,” he added with a sigh, the pad of his thumb brushing over her breast.

Olivia bit back a gasp and clicked her tongue. “Please, you’re in the same league as Chris Evans and Henry Cavill.”

Chris smirked. “You’re saying I’m in the same league as Captain America and Superman?”

Olivia rolled her eyes but let out a laugh. “Sure, why not.”

“I’d try and come up with a comparison for you,” he said, his hand moving down her stomach.

“But?” she asked, her breath hitching when his fingers stroked over her.

“But you’re in a league all of your own,” he answered.

Olivia chuckled even as her chest warmed. “You’re a cheeseball.”

“Hey,” he said with a mock glare. “I prefer romantic.”

“That too,” she agreed with a smile before he sank one of his fingers into her. Olivia closed her eyes and arched her back. “Please,” she begged.

“Tell me what you need,” Chris said, his voice rough.

“I need you,” she managed to reply, her eyes fluttering open to lock with his heated gaze.

Her words snapped the hold he’d had on his restraint, and Chris moved his hand away and lowered himself over her, guiding himself between her legs and pushing into her with one hard thrust.

Olivia was more than ready for him, and her lips parted with a gasp as he filled her. Her fingers pressed into his back, her nails digging into his skin. She whispered encouragements to him as his hips pulled back only to surge forward again and again.

Chris’s hand clutched the outside of her thigh, drawing her leg up so that her knee was closer to her chest. His next thrust went deeper, and they both groaned. Chris swore, and he withdrew almost all the way before snapping his hips forward hard.

Olivia’s eyes rolled back. “More,” she gasped.

Chris didn’t hold back. He pounded into her, his hard thrusts pushing her up the bed and his breaths becoming ragged. He lowered his head and crushed his mouth to hers, his lips moving over hers with an urgency that Olivia felt, too. She kissed him back just as eagerly, feeling herself nearing that peak again.

She shattered on his next thrust, and Chris only slowed once her muscles had relaxed again and her moaned gasps had ceased. Olivia opened her eyes to find him looking down at her with something like wonder.

“I love you, Liv,” he murmured as he eased forward, his hips moving at a slower and more gentle pace now that she’d gone over the edge.

“I love you, too,” she replied breathlessly.

“I never want to lose you again,” he said, his hips stilling.

Olivia smiled. “You won’t.”

“Good,” he replied, “because you’re it for me, Liv. You’re all I want.”

“And you have me,” she assured him.

His throat bobbed with a swallow, and then he was surging forward again, every move of his hips brutal and fast. He gritted his teeth and closed his eyes with a look of pain, and Olivia circled her hips on his next two thrusts. That was all it took for him to lose control.

He came with a groan, his final thrusts faster but not as deep. He collapsed, more of his weight falling into her, and Olivia traced patterns over his back, his skin hot beneath her fingers. Chris pressed languid kisses against her neck, his breaths still heavy.

“So where are we moving?” he asked once he’d recovered. He rolled to the side but pulled her with him so they were still facing each other. “Stanford? Berkeley?”

Olivia bit her lip. Moving had seemed like the best option that morning, but now…now she couldn’t find it in herself to care about the looks she would get or the whispers that might follow her.

“Both are good options,” she finally said, “but maybe we just stay.”

The sleepiness vanished from Chris’s eyes, and he lifted his brows. “Are you sure?” He brushed her too-long bangs aside and palmed her cheek.

Olivia nodded, a content smile playing on her lips. “I’m sure.”

He grinned, his eyebrows returning to their regular height. “Can I ask you another question?”

“Sure.”

Chris tugged her closer, his legs intertwining with hers. “How do you feel about having dinner with my family this weekend?”

It was Olivia’s turn to raise her eyebrows. “What?”

“I’d like them to meet the girl I’m in love with,” he explained.

Olivia closed her eyes and pressed herself further into him before saying, “I’d like that.”