Total pages in book: 107
Estimated words: 103033 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 515(@200wpm)___ 412(@250wpm)___ 343(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 103033 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 515(@200wpm)___ 412(@250wpm)___ 343(@300wpm)
It was like setting off an explosive that’d already burned its fuse. I imploded with euphoria and too many sensations for me to process. Other than arching my back and going rigid, I couldn’t do anything. I couldn’t warn, I couldn’t moan, I couldn’t breathe. My orgasm bolted through me, zinging and zapping between each pleasure point, releasing all the pent-up frustrations—and effectively draining me of energy.
Sounds came from far away, almost with a rushing effect, like underwater, and I stopped registering hands on me.
Don’t ask me to move. Ever. I’ll just stay here now.
Eventually, I drew a raspy breath, and when someone pulled me to their body, I managed to curl up against it—he smelled like Santiago. I knew his cologne. I felt his heart beat under my hand. His lips pressed against my hair. We were damp with sweat, all of us, and the room smelled of so much sex.
Hunngh.
I swallowed dryly and sniffled.
Oh my gosh, I was so dead.
CHAPTER 14
Santiago Jones
Part of me regretted making a reservation for the night, because I itched to go home with Dean and Gael. I wanted us to close ourselves in and spend the rest of the night on the couch, watching movies and reenergizing with snacks and zero personal space.
But this worked too. It truly did. Aftercare chatting was never wrong. Kingsley, Jack, Franklin, Walker, and Macklin headed home shortly after because they had work early in the morning, but KC and Noa stayed. River, Reese, and Shay stayed. We ordered takeout that arrived by the time we were out of the showers and in comfortable clothes, and we gathered three couches around a table in the club area downstairs.
It did Gael and Noa good to spend time together after the play. Noa was as little as he got after an intense scene, and I believed my boy was experiencing some of that now too.
The boys got two Happy Meals each; Shay and I pretended to be healthy with McDonald’s salad options, and the others unwrapped burgers of various sizes.
“Daddy, can we switch places?” Gael asked.
“Yeah, sure.” I stood up and sat down in the middle instead. He grinned and immediately fell into a conversation with Noa.
I skipped the dressing, which earned me a wry smile from Dean, and he was misinterpreting my intention. I just wasn’t a fan of this food. I’d eaten too much of it over the years—that was the problem. It did something to my moods, to my state of mind, and to my joints.
If they wanted to see me pig out, just wait. Nachos and queso, rare steaks that would alarm any doctor, my mother’s chocolate chips cookies and chuchuflís with dulce de leche filling—and don’t fucking get me started on the waffles at Gael’s work…? Damn. But I was done with the millions of additives. My body couldn’t handle them anymore. I hadn’t realized what a big part they’d played in my semi-depressed state before I’d started cooking for Gael and Dean—before returning to the man I’d been many times in bursts of “I gotta get my shit together.”
The one I had to keep an eye on now was Dean. I was falling in love with the bastard, and I wasn’t going to lose him to a heart attack.
Gael was easier. So was falling for him. He was constantly on his feet, happy to help out, and he knew more than I did about cutting out stress. He liked his world small. He wanted friends, our community, and preferably his own library.
I chewed around a mouthful of chicken and lettuce, and I checked my watch. Gael and Noa were giggling about theories on the upcoming Game, and Dean and KC were quizzing the Tenleys about the progress on their house.
It was funny how life worked. Had this been an orgy a few months ago, I would’ve suggested we go out for a couple beers or go straight for round two.
“I’ve driven up this road hundreds of times, and I’ve never seen a left turn anywhere,” KC chuckled.
Shay let out a laugh. “First time they showed me the build site, they were like, meet us there—take a left before the gates. And I was like, gates? There are gates here?”
I grinned. Even I knew about the gates. They were just fairly well hidden behind high grass and weeds at this point. I didn’t think they’d ever been closed. But they were right at the beginning of the private road.
“When do you think the house will be ready?” Dean wondered.
River and Reese eyed each other pensively.
“We’re shootin’ for April or May,” Reese replied. “I said I wasn’t movin’ in till the AC was runnin’ and the pool was ready.”
I wondered how many months it would take me to convince Dean and Gael to move in with me. Because I had a feeling I’d be ready within six months—but then to win over a stubborn professor…?