25. Worth

Icould never have denied Laurie what he needed. I pulled almost all the way out and drove back into him, making him cry out. "See? I do know what you need."

He wrapped his legs tightly around me, and I couldn't stop thrusting into him over and over again, driving us both insane with the friction. His nails dug into my shoulders as he met every stroke. What had been tender, what I'd intended to be me showing him with my body the things I wasn't ready to stay with words, turned into a wild, animalistic climb to climax.

"So close. Please." Laurie begged.

"Not yet." I didn't want this to end, but I couldn't slow down.

"Please, Worth. I'm losing my mind. It hurts to hold back."

"Waiting makes it feel so much better when you come." I reached between us and squeezed the base of his cock to prevent him from going over the edge.

I was mindless with need. I knew I couldn't hold out much longer either, but I wanted every single stroke I could get. I wanted us to come so hard we blacked out and woke up in a place where there was nothing but pleasure.

When I'd pushed myself to the limit, I reached between us and wrapped my hand around Laurie's cock.

"Now?" He was breathing so hard the word was barely audible.

"Yes. Come for me, Princess."

He did, and seconds later, I joined him, spilling into him as his ass clamped tight around my dick.

When we were done, I collapsed on top of him. I worried I was crushing him, but he wrapped his arms around me, holding me there.

"Are you okay?" I asked.

"Yes. Maybe. I don't know. Just don't leave me."

"I have no intention of leaving you, now or ever."

"God, Worth, what have we done?"

"Found what we needed to make us whole."

We lay together until our breathing returned to normal and our heartbeats slowed. I could hear the thud of his heart as I lay on his chest. He toyed with my hair and traced my jawline. I wanted to stay there forever.

How did I find such comfort in this man? Comfort that even my friends who truly loved me couldn't give. Was this what they felt with their partners? No wonder they seemed so fierce about them.

Why had I denied myself even the chance of this for so fucking long?

I was a fool.

"Do you really think Beck's going to be okay?" Laurie asked, his voice small and soft.

I rolled to the side, pulling him with me so we faced each other. "I hope so. I need that to be true."

Laurie nodded. "Me too."

I took his hands in mine, leaned in, and kissed his forehead. "We will find him. They're not going to take him from me. Not when I finally realized so many things I've been fucking up, not when I finally understand how much I need to be there for him."

"He's been such a good friend to me, and I have been terrible," Laurie said.

"No, you were trapped. You were hurt."

"But then he gave me this trip, and I?—"

"You found what you needed, and that's exactly what he wants for you. We'll fix this."

Laurie turned over and fit his body to mine. I held him, stroking his hair as tension slowly eased from his muscles. Eventually, he slept peacefully against me.

I waited until he was deeply asleep before I rose and once again looked out from the balcony, double-checked the locks on the door, and reexamined the entire villa.

In the early hours of the morning, Carter called to let me know someone would be there to get us in an hour.

When we stepped onto Miles's private plane, Laurie's eyes went wide. "I've never seen a private plane except in the movies and this is…Wow."

"It's top of the line. Come on. Let's take our seats. We want to get off the ground as fast as we can."

He marveled at the cushy chair positioned next to another in front of a table like we were in a restaurant rather than on a commercial airline.

"Is this how you fly all the time?"

I smiled. "I occasionally fly commercial."

"First class of course."

"Yes."

"I'd never imagined being in first class until Beck got me the ticket to Aruba. I felt so weird up there. I didn't know what to do. I'm not used to somebody being willing to just bring me whatever I want."

"I want you to be used to it, because I want to do that for you."

"Worth—"

"Put on your seat belt."

A few moments later, Clara, the flight attendant, checked to make sure we were ready for takeoff. She offered us drinks, and I asked for champagne. When I turned to Laurie, he looked pale.

"I…um…."

"Maybe some ginger ale or a coke?" Clara asked.

"Ginger ale would be nice."

"I'll be right back with that for you, sir. We'll be in the air in a few minutes."

Two security guards were on the plane with us, but they were seated up front with the crew to give us privacy. I turned to look at Laurie when Clara walked away. "What's wrong?"

He exhaled. "I'm not very good at flying."

"Oh, Princess, why didn't you tell me before?"

"What were we going to do? Drive home from Aruba?"

"No, but if I'd known I would've done anything I could to make you more comfortable."

"I'll be all right once we're actually in the air."

I frowned, wanting to make him comfortable. "At least I can hold your hand."

That made him smile. "Thanks."

"I can also distract you."

"I'm not sure that would be appropriate. Aren't we supposed to keep our seat belts on?"

"I can distract you by telling you what I would do if we weren't supposed to keep our seat belts on."

Laurie rolled his eyes. "I wasn't quite this bad when I flew to Aruba, but…everything was so new."

"Wait a minute. Was it your first time in first class or on an airplane at all?"

His cheeks reddened. "I…um…I'd never flown before."

"Do you mean that on your first ever flight, you flew all the way from St. Louis to Aruba?"

"I didn't really have any choice."

"And you were by yourself." If I'd known, I would have flown to St. Louis so I could sit beside him.

"I watched some YouTube videos so I'd know what to do and what to expect."

"And now that you know what to expect, it's worse?"

"Kind of, but also because I feel sick every time I think about Beck."

I nodded. There was no news when I'd checked with Carter as we'd gotten ready, but I knew he would've called if they found Beck or knew anything concrete.

"How long is the flight to New York?" Laurie asked.

"Six to six and a half hours."

Laurie frowned. "All that time and we won't know what's going on?"

"We have Wi-Fi. We'll still get updates."

"This all just seems like a dream, and I keep thinking I'm going to wake up."

"Lying next to me in our sunny bed in Aruba? We'll return eventually. You're still owed some time in paradise."

Laurie frowned. "That is definitely not necessary."

"I love Aruba, and I was counting on that time with you. I want to be there with you."

He looked away and didn't say anything else I reached for his hand. "Laurie?"

"I just…I can't talk about this right now."

"All right." Now wasn't the time to push. He was with me, and he was going to stay with me once we were back home. We'd figure it out from there.

"What I actually meant was that I'm afraid I'll wake up in St. Louis with Tommy."

"No. This is all real. You never have to go back there. You're my princess and I'm taking you to my castle."

"Worth…."

"We don't have to talk about details right now. Do you want something to help you sleep?"

He shook his head. "I don't want to be groggy when we get there."

"What would help you?"

"I think if I put on my headphones and kind of zone out that would be best, but I still want you right here holding my hand."

"Of course."

When the plane began to make its way down the runway, he squeezed my hand tight as he reclined against the seat and closed his eyes.

"Everything's going to be fine," I told him and prayed I was right.