After the second song ends, we walk the couple of steps back to the nket in unhurried silence, with our fingers locked around the others. The night hums with something quieter than noise, and something softer than sound. It’s just her and me beneath this midnight–blue sky, with the hum of crickets thick in the grass, and the warmth of the fairy lights overhead that makes everything feel dreamlit and sacred.

    b83 /b

    La steps onto the nket first and turns to face me, her arms folding lightly across her chest as she watches me lower myself to sit at her feet. “You know,” she says, lifting an eyebrow, “I’m going to need at least a week to process all of this properly.”

    I chuckle as I recline back on one elbow, grinning up at her. “Take your time, Sunshine. You know I aim to make things difficult.”

    She bites her bottom lip, smiling around it, then slowly sinks down beside me, mirroring my position for a second before shifting to sit cross–legged, half facing me. “Seriously, Cade. Thank you. For all of it. I know you didn’t have to go this far.”

    “I didn’t have to,” I agree softly, “but I iwanted /ito.”

    She doesn’t reply. She does, however, lean forward and kiss me, and it’s quiet and sweet. At first. A thank–you, maybe. A promise. But the second I bring my hand up to cradle her jaw and kiss her back,

    it changes.

    And it deepens. Into the kind of kiss that breathes fire into quiet ces and makes you forget how long you’ve been holding yourself together. She shifts closer, sliding her delicate hand along my chest until she’s almost in myp, her body angled over me like gravity doesn’t quite apply to us

    tonight.

    When we finally break apart for a breath, her eyes search mine with something unspoken but sure. Slowly, while keeping her golden gaze locked on mine, La lies back onto the nket, her fingers that are fisted in my tee, tugging me gently down, until I’m leaning over her with my one elbow braced on the ground next to her shoulder, while the other trails along her waist.

    “You okay?” I ask, my voice low, and my forehead nearly touching hers.

    She nods, and her one hand slips beneath my shirt, not stopping until it’s resting over my heart.

    “More than okay.”

    We kiss again. And even though it’s slower now, it’s much more meaningful. Her legs shift slightly

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    Chapter 124: Cade POV

    b83 /b

    apart, and one of mine slides between them carefully and not rushed. Her touch trails along my ribs, and I groan into her mouth when her nails drag gently along the skin on my back. I take my time exploring her–her supple waist, the dip of her hip, the softness of her breast, which is encased in hercy bra. Every inch of her feels like something I never want to stop studying and mastering.

    And then, unexpectedly, she pulls back just enough to look up at me. Her breaths are rasping from her at a fast pace, and her cheeks are flushed, but her eyes are steady as she looks deep into my

    soul.

    “Cade?” she says.

    “Yeah?” I whisper, leisurely brushing my thumb along her ribs.

    “Will you be my first?” she asks tentatively, yet resolutely.

    Time halts abruptly.

    I blink, startled at her words, and then push myself up just slightly so I can see her face better. “Wait… Seriously?”

    She nods, and there’s a nervous edge to her smile. “I want it to be you. I trust you, Cade. And

    tonight’s already been perfect.”

    Emotion catches tight in my throat as I search her gaze for any sign that she’s not doing this for the right reasons. “La… I-” I shake my head softly, smiling down at her like a fool. “I’ll never say no to you. But that’s inot /iwhy I did any of this tonight.”

    “I know,” she says as she touches my cheek tenderly. “I know that. But I also know you’ll make it special. And maybe even a little fun–so I don’t have to be so nervous.”

    My heart cracks open in all the best ways, so I lean in and press a slow kiss to her forehead, then one to the tip of her nose, and then one at the corner of her mouth. “You have no idea what you do

    to me,” I murmur.

    We keep kissing, letting the moment build, and it’s slow and unhurried and breathless. Her hands find the bare skin of my back again, then my shoulders, as my mouth finds that sensitive spot on her

    neck I’ve noticed makes her squirm.

    I ease my weight more fully over her as she arches her body beneath me, and her breath hitches. I pull back just enough to look down at her again. “You’re sure?”

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    Chapter 124: Cade POV

    :

    She meets my gaze without any hesitation, then breathes, “Yes.”

    So I smile. And it’s slow and full of all the affection I’ve been carrying for her since the day she walked into my life. “Then I guess it’s time I show you just how good this night can get.”

    b83 /b

    I kiss her again with no rush, then shift downward, pressing gentle kisses to her jaw, her corbone, the center of her chest, her navel. And with each kiss, she shivers beneath me, as her eyes flutter

    shut.

    My hands move with care, unfastening her jeans slowly, like unwrapping something I’ve been aching to hold. I press a kiss just below her belly button as I ease her pants down, dragging her underwear along with them in one unbroken motion. Her breath hitches as the fabric catches slightly against the curve of her hips before slipping free.

    I take my time, letting my palms smooth over her legs on the way down, memorizing the shape of her, the warmth of her. When I nce up, her eyes are on me–wide, trusting, and just a little shy- and it damn near undoes me. I drop onest kiss to her inner thigh, then settle between her knees, my breath skating across her skin as I nudge them farther apart with my shoulders. I nce up at her from where my chin is basically nestled at the apex of her thighs, and with a yful grin, I murmur, “Better hold on, Sunshine. I n on making this very memorable.”

    Sheughs softly and breathlessly, her voice catching on the edge of anticipation. The sound dances through the night air as if it were meant just for me. Then, as I lower my head between her thighs and finally taste her, herugh turns into a gasp that’s sharp, stunned, and involuntary.

    Her fingers clutch at the nket, and her spine arches just slightly as the first ripple of sensation takes hold of her senses. She tastes like skin warmed by the summer sun, like trust and vulnerability and everything hallowed all rolled into one. And as she exhales my name like a secret she’s only just discovered, I know I’ll never want anything more than to make her feel exactly this way again.

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