Finding Forever

Chapter 20

I pace the rug on my hotel room floor so much I wonder if I am wearing a track into the carpet. My head is a mess; my heart won't stop pounding. I have no idea what just happened. Just now was my opportunity. I could have told him exactly how I feel about him – that I like him as more than a friend – but instead, I panicked and told him the complete opposite. What the hell is wrong with me? I feel tight and tense, unable to stop my mind from racing to knock on Ryan's door and kiss him. But I'm afraid if I try to kiss him again, he could reject me, and I could lose my best friend for good.

I stop in front of my hotel room door and stare at it. Make a decision, Ella. Either knock on his door and tell him how you feel, or crawl under the covers and go to sleep.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

I jump from the sound of three swift, repetitive knocks. I stand frozen in place, worried my mind is playing tricks on me. Am I hearing things? Or did someone seriously knock on my door? But when another series of knocks happens again, I step forward and pull open the door.

Ryan appears in front of me. My heart trips. His shoulders fill the doorway. I admire his bare chest as it widens and retracts with his slow-steadying breaths. His muscular shoulders lead to a smooth, tan neck. His lips parted slightly, and his tongue peeks out to wet them again. My eyes drop to his toned arms, the large hands relaxed at his sides, his flat stomach, and the front of his pyjama bottoms begging me to rip them off and explore further.

Okay, Ella. Play it cool.

Silence ticks between us, and awareness trickles in. He rakes a hand through his messy hair, then looks at my eyes, cheeks, and lips for a long moment before meeting my eyes again.

"Hey," he says, a gorgeous, deadly smile tugs at his mouth. "Did I wake you?"

I swallow thickly, crossing my hands over my chest. Only now fully registering what I decided to change into: flimsy t-shirt, no bra, and black lace panties.

"No. I was, uh, – what did you want?"

"You," he exhales, watching me carefully before saying. "I want you."

His eyes darken, and he takes one step closer. His hand comes up to grip the back of my head, and he gives me exactly what I want: the deep, demanding kiss I've been craving him to give me all night long. My breasts are heaving with each labored breath, my sensitive nipples grazing against the warmth of his bare skin. His cock presses into my stomach, and it's a presence I can't ignore. My body sinks into him with a moan, pressing closer. The electricity between us is palpable. Like how he knows exactly what I want, where to touch me, and how to make my legs wobbly. The back of his arms slide around my waist, and the curl of his massive body over mine makes me forget the outside world even exists.

We stumble backward into my hotel room, lips seared together. Ryan slams the door behind us and presses me into the wall just a few steps in. He bends, sucking on my neck and my jaw, running his hands under the hem of my shirt, feeling down around my ass and the skin of my thighs.

"I couldn't sleep without tasting your lips one more time," he says, pulling back to look at me. "Tell me you don't want me to stop."

"I was just about to knock on your door and kiss you fucking senseless," I whisper against his lips, sliding my hands into his hair, digging my nails into his scalp. "I don't ever want you to stop."

"Jesus fucking Christ," he growls.

He kisses up my chin to my mouth, sucking and licking, tasting every millimeter of my lips and my hungry tongue. I step away only long enough to pull my t-shirt over my head, tug down his pyjama bottoms, and push them to the floor. With a flick, his fingers slip into my panties, and I shrug out of them, wrapping my arms around his neck as he guides me onto my bed.