Prologue

Luke

 

“Thank you for taking me tonight,” Willow says, as we walk up her front steps to her house. “It was so nice going somewhere with a man who values you for you, and not just as a piece of eye candy for his scuzzy coworkers to ogle.”

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I chuckle darkly and shake my head. “Believe me, we were all ogling, too. But it was for far more than your smoking hot looks.” Though her long, silky brown hair and emerald green eyes are hard not to be captivated by, it’s impossible to deny that the sleek, skin tight shimmering red dress she wore tonight was a magnet for every eye in the room. But it was her poise, the animation and love she speaks about her students with, the way she remembered every name of every person she met—and took a genuine interest in their lives—that really cinched people loving and ogling her a little longer.

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She sucks in a heavy breath of cool air, then lets out her nervous laugh. “Yeah, well, it didn’t feel so bad with you all…” She reaches into her purse to grab her keys, then looks up at me. “Um…”

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“What’s on your mind?” I know what she’s thinking about, I haven’t stopped thinking about it since it happened, but I need to hear her say it, to confirm what I felt.

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“Tonight, under the mistletoe…”

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Our kiss replays in my mind clearly, and I nod my head, indicating physically I’m on the same page.

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“That kiss… It wasn’t… I mean, it felt like something else…”

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I quirk an eyebrow and tread very lightly with my response, “Something else?”

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“Yeah. Something else. Something I’ve wanted for years, but never thought I could have.” She looks down at her keys, fiddling with them in the way she does when she has something to say but she doesn’t know how to.

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We’ve been inseparable, best friends for twenty years now. I can read her like a book—I know every single movement, quirk, sound, and action she takes—yet tonight, I’m not sure I’m reading her right. I’m afraid to hope for what I’m thinking.

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“What’s on your mind?” I ask again, reaching out and easing her head up with a finger beneath her chin so our eyes meet.

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“Did you mean for it to feel like more? Like, was it on purpose? Or…”

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Her body shivers beneath the blanket of cold and the scrutiny of my eyes glossing over her face, and I step into her, hoping to warm her with the close proximity and also convey everything the kiss really meant for me. “Yes, I did and it was.”

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“Okay…” She wraps her arms around her body and her face contorts into one of confusion and uncertainty…

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“Is that okay?”

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“It is if you meant for me to feel like you were showing me you want me; you’ve always wanted me. It is if you were finally telling me what you’ve thought I’ve never known. But if you’re going to pull away, not say what I’ve waited my whole life to hear, then no, it’s not okay.”

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“Willow,” I whisper, stepping in again and pulling her into me, wrapping my arms around her. “I sure as fuck hope you took it as me finally telling you I want you, and there isn’t a single part of me who only wants to be your friend. Because while I absofuckinglutely love being your best friend, I want to be so much more to you, too. As you’ve so clearly pointed out, I’ve just never had the balls to say it before… And the way you kissed me back, I’m hoping you were saying the same thing back.”

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She tugs her lip between her teeth and audibly inhales a sharp breath, nodding. “I was. I just… I can’t lose you, and men always leave me. You know that.”

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“Wills, I haven’t gone anywhere in over twenty years, I’m not about to start now. I know everything about you. The good, the bad, the bright, and even the dark—I love you—all of you. I always have.”

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“Oh, Luke,” she says, wrapping her arms around my neck and pushing up on her toes, kissing me hard. “I love you, too.”

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“Yeah?” I murmur against her lips.

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“Mhmm.” She kisses me again and pulls back. “Will you come in with me?”

“You never have to ask.” I take her keys from her and unlock her door, ushering her into the warmth of her house and out of the cold.

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I know her place as though it were my own, but tonight, following her in, letting her take my hand and lead me to her room, it feels different, foreign. “Wills, we don’t have to… Only if you’re sure. I’ve waited for over a decade, I am in no hurry now.”

She smiles shyly back at me. “I was afraid to hope for more, afraid you wouldn’t and you might leave too. I can’t lose my one chance, Luke. Not if everything could change tomorrow.”

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It won’t, my darling girl. I swear.

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I nod my head, silently letting her know I understand, and follow her down the dark hallway into her room, waiting until we are over the threshold before I pull her to me and slide my hands down her body. “You’re fucking gorgeous in this dress. But I’m dying to get you out.”

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“Please…” she sighs out, then slides her hands to the buttons of my shirt and starts working them open. “I’ve gotten to see you like this more than half my life, but never gotten to touch…”

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“I know the feeling.” I slowly start to peel her dress up her body and off her. I feel the loss of her hands over my chest instantly, but when I see her in nothing but a bright red bra and panty set, my mind becomes aware of only the feast before me. “You’re… So fucking beautiful.”

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“Thank you.” She slides her hands down my chest, letting her fingers dip and trace the lines of my muscles as she works her way to my pants and pushes them down my legs. “What if things change?”

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“I hope they do, Wills.” I guide her back to the bed, kicking my shoes and pants away as she lies down and I crawl over her. “I want to be able to have all of you,” I lower my lips to her chest and kiss my way down to the top of her laced panties, “every inch, anytime I want to.”

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Her fingers slip into my hair and grasp it firmly as I lower her panties down her legs, then press my lips just over her exposed pussy, drawing out the most glorious sound I’ve heard in my life.

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“I want that, too,” she pants out, as I flick my tongue over her clit.

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“Thank God,” I murmur, glancing up at her with a smirk. “I’ve wanted this, you, for so long.” I lower my mouth to her, sealing my lips over her most sensitive nerves, and suck gently. Her body writhes and thrashes on the bed, and her hands fist my hair so tightly, it nearly brings me pain.

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Nearly.

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“Luke,” she mewls, holding me to her while her legs threaten to close in on me like a vice. “Your tongue… I can’t… Too good…”

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Her breathless voice is the most exhilarating, hypnotic sound I’ve ever heard, and it has to have a straight connection to my cock, because it is so hard, I’m not sure how much longer I’ll be able to hold out before losing it.

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“I’ve got you baby,” I promise over and over between licks and nips. She’s so wet, so primed and ready that when I slip two fingers inside her, curling them up to add that extra bit of stimulation she clearly needs, her slick walls spasm and tense around my fingers. I work them in and out methodically, expertly, driving her closer and closer to the edge, to her first fall off the edge tonight.

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“Oh God, Luke. I’m… You… Yes!” she shouts, arching her back and head into the mattress as her climax overpowers her.

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I don’t stop my movements for even one millisecond as she rides the waves of pleasure surging through her right now. It’s the most breathtaking, glorious sight I have ever seen. It’s a sight I want to see over and over again.

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As her body relaxes, and her breaths grow steadier, I detach myself from her and climb up her body, focusing on her wide, lust filled green eyes. “Willow,” I whisper, dipping down to kiss her and let her taste herself on me, “I can’t hold out any more. I need you, more than I’ve ever needed anyone or anything in my life.”

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Her soft fingers frame my face and stroke over my cheeks as she pulls me back down to her, guiding my lips to find the comfort of hers. “Take me, Luke. I’m yours. I’ve always been yours.”

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With those words, I reach down between us and line myself up with her, ready to claim the woman I’ve been in love with for as long as I can remember…