Giving Chase (Incendiary Ink #1)

32. Never Tear Us Apart – Eliza

Never Tear Us Apart

ELIZA

The first thing I register is sunlight warming my face. The second is Chase's gaze.

"How long have you been watching me sleep?" I murmur, not opening my eyes.

"Long enough to memorize every beautiful detail." His fingers trace my cheekbone, trail down my neck. "Though I've been doing that for twenty years."

I blink awake to find him propped on one elbow beside me, hair adorably mussed, eyes dark with want.

"Last night was real?" I ask, though the delicious ache in my feet from dancing until dawn answers that question.

"All of it." He brushes back my hair, then follows the path with his lips. "The induction, the performance, the party..." His smile turns wicked. "The way you kissed me in front of the entire industry."

"Seemed appropriate after your speech."

"Seemed perfect." His mouth finds that spot below my ear that makes me gasp. "You're perfect."

Heat pools low in my belly as his hands map familiar territory. "Chase..."

"Do you know," he murmurs against my throat, "how many times I've dreamed of this? Just us. No rush." His teeth graze my pulse point. "No boundaries." His hand slides lower. "No holding back."

I arch into his touch, my body remembering every secret he's learned over twenty years. "Show me."

He takes his time, using everything he knows about my body to drive me wild. The spot on my hip that makes me shiver. The way I arch when he kisses that sensitive place on my inner thigh.

"Please," I breathe, pulling him up to me.

"Twenty years," he says against my lips. "Twenty years of wanting you like this."

When he finally moves inside me, it's with the perfect rhythm he's always had. Bass player's timing , I used to tease. Now his tempo builds steadily, deliberately, until I'm gasping his name.

"Look at me," he commands softly. "Let me see you."

Steel grey meets green as everything shatters. He follows right after, my name a low groan in his throat.

After, he gathers me close, both of us catching our breath.

"I could get used to this," I murmur, tracing patterns on his chest.

"Planning to." He catches my hand, kisses each finger. "Think the industry would notice if we just stayed in bed forever?"

"Probably." I smile against his skin. "But they've had twenty years of professional us. They can wait a little longer."

His answering laugh vibrates through me. Perfect rhythm, perfect timing.

Finally.