38. Quinn

38

QUINN

" I knew you'd manage to charm them." I straddled Roman on one of the sofas in the crypts, my arms wrapped around his neck. He rubbed his thumbs over my hips as he kissed me.

"Yeah. The meal went well, I think. Compliments are definitely the way to your mum's heart, but I won your dad over the minute I took my first shot in the lacrosse game."

"I think you won them both over before that, to be honest. When they found out your role in everything and how you'd been dragged into it all against your will. I'm pretty sure your uncle impressed them during the meeting, too."

"He's good at that." Roman grinned. Reaching around me, he grabbed his cider from the coffee table and took a swig before offering the bottle to me. "Do you think they'll be okay with the fact we're together?"

"I…I think if I can show I can keep my focus on my studies, they'll be okay. I get the sense they feel partly responsible for the things that happened—for isolating me, I guess. We don't need to hide. We just need to toe the line for the rest of the term." Sipping the cider, I allowed myself to properly think about the future. A future that included both Roman and the approval of my parents, something I never thought would be possible. Maybe Penelope had done me a favour in her own twisted way.

"Arlo's given me the toeing-the-line talk, too. I guess I can't be the bad boy forever." He pouted, and I laughed, kissing him again.

"Ahh, look at this. All the lovebirds together. How sweet." Tristan threw himself down onto the sofa next to us, slinging his arm across Roman's shoulders. He nodded towards the opposite sofa, where Knox and Elena were reclining. As I shifted sideways on Roman's lap, placing the bottle down, I saw Knox give Tristan a lazy smile, saluting him with his beer.

"Two of the three gods are taken now, Tris. Are you gonna join us?"

"You wish." Rolling his eyes at Knox, he kicked his feet up on the coffee table and then patted Roman's shoulder. "But I am gonna do you a favour, Ro. You can have the room tonight. Literally all I ask is that you don't fuck on my bed or my desk—just stay away from anything that's mine. But if you want the room for you and Quinn, you can have it."

I was swept into a standing position before I even had time to register it, laughing as Roman more or less dragged me away from our friends, through the crowd, and up the stairs.

"Eager to celebrate, are you?"

"What do you think? We have a whole night to ourselves and a bed. All we need to do is sneak you past the prefects—oh, wait, they're not gonna stop us." His eyes sparkled, and the happiness on his face made my stomach flip.

The happiness turned into a slow simmer of heat as he wrapped his arm around me, leading me through the castle, dipping his head to my ear and telling me all the things he wanted to do to me, how I was his, and how he couldn't wait to get me in his bed. All the while, he was sliding his hands over my body, teasing me, torturing me with too-quick touches, driving me wild with need.

By the time we reached his dorm room, the simmer was an inferno, and the second the door closed behind us, Roman was on me, pinning me up against the wall as he yanked down my shorts and underwear with one hand, his mouth at my throat, sucking a mark into my skin. I kicked them off, along with my flip-flops, which went sailing across the room somewhere. I didn't care where—all I cared about was the man that was fucking devouring me.

"Fucking mine," he growled, tugging my top and bra off before getting his mouth on my breasts, leaving them aching, sending tingles all through my body when he sucked and lightly bit my nipples. I arched forwards, so wet and so desperate for friction, his jeans rough against my oversensitive skin.

"Ro. Please."

"I've got you, baby." Lifting me into his arms, he turned us, lowering me onto his desk. "Legs up," he commanded as he yanked down his jeans and boxer briefs. Lying my back flat across the desk, I hooked my legs over his shoulders, and he scooped his hands under my ass and thrust inside me without pausing for breath, both of us too desperate to wait any longer.

I cried out, impossibly full, the delicious, aching stretch of his thick cock inside me making me temporarily lose my breath.

"Fuck. You feel so good." He drew back almost all the way and then thrust back in. Only his hands kept me in place, the force of his movements making the desk slam against the wall as he fucked into me, the angle making him hit so deep inside me.

Something crashed to the floor as his thrusts became harder, but neither of us even paused. One of his hands slid onto my clit, and that was enough to send me over the edge, shaking and gasping as he continued to fuck into me restlessly, pounding in and out until he came inside me with a long, drawn-out groan.

I lowered my trembling legs, and he scooped me into his arms, wrapping them around me as he pressed breathless kisses to my hair.

"That was so good," I murmured, sliding my lips down his throat, his pulse beating wildly beneath me.

"Fuck, yeah. So good." He drew back, a slow smile curving over his lips. "Round two in the bed? I'll take my time with you, make you feel amazing. You can ride me, then I want you underneath me so I can watch your face when you come. I want to see what I do to you."

"Mmm." Winding my arms and legs around him, I let him carry me over to his bed. He stripped out of his clothes and then crawled over my body.

He placed his mouth to my ear, his hot breath sending a shiver through my body. "Don't tell Tristan we fucked on his desk."

"What? I thought that was your desk."

"Nope. His was closest. You were too irresistible; I couldn't wait any longer." His hand stroked down my side. "I think we broke his pen holder. I'll get him a new one."

"Hopefully before he notices and puts two and two together."

Roman laughed. "Or not. I want to see his face when he realises how it happened." His laughter died away, and then he nipped at the shell of my ear. "Enough talk about other people. Enough talking. All I want to hear is you saying my name and those sexy fucking noises you make when I fuck you."

That was a plan I could definitely get on board with.

The next morning, both of us woke early, and after grabbing our swimming stuff, we managed to escape Hatherley Hall without running into anyone. We made our way to our lake, stripping down to our swim clothes, and ran off the end of the jetty, cannonballing into the water.

Summer had definitely arrived. The warm rays sparkled on the surface of the lake, rainbow droplets scattering around me as Roman shot out from beneath the surface, tugging me into his arms and spinning us around in the cool water. I tipped my head back, the ends of my hair dipping into the water as I wrapped my legs around Roman's waist. He grinned and pressed a kiss to my throat before falling backwards, sending us both into the lake with a huge splash, dunking us beneath the surface.

When we resurfaced, both of us laughing and gasping for breath, he gently pushed my hair back from my face. When he was satisfied, he violently shook his head in an attempt at getting the worst of the water out of his hair, sending more droplets flying everywhere. I shrieked as cold water peppered my skin, and a gorgeous smile curved over his lips.

His eyes met mine. "Remember when we first used to come down here? I never thought we'd end up like this."

"Me neither." I reached up, sliding my hand over the wet skin of his jaw. He was so gorgeous, his gaze so intent on me, letting me see everything he was feeling. "I'm so glad it worked out the way it did."

"Me too. I love you, Quinn."

"I love you, too. This…being here with you—this is everything."

Pulling me into him, he tilted my head up for a kiss. "It is. And the best is still to come, you know."

He was right.

The best was still to come.