Chapter 120: Morning After

Chapter Twenty-one

Charlie

I wake slowly, consciousness returning in layers. First, the warmth of the body pressed against mine. Then the soft, steady rhythm of breathing against my chest. Finally, the lingering scents of rain, salt, ocean, storm, vanilla, and cinnamon—our combined pheromones still clinging to the sheets, to our skin.

Cade.

My eyes open to the dim light of early morning filtering through the bedroom curtains. He's curled against me, his head resting on my chest, one leg thrown over mine possessively. Even in sleep, he's holding on.

The rut has passed, leaving behind a bone-deep satisfaction I've never experienced before. But as I look at Cade—sleeping peacefully, his features relaxed, vulnerable—a different need begins to stir. Not the frantic, primal urgency of yesterday, but something deeper, more profound.

My dick stirs with interest, and I mentally curse my body. Can't it give us a break? But then Cade shifts in his sleep, rubbing against me unconsciously, and a soft moan escapes him. The sound goes straight to my groin.

His eyes flutter open, blinking slowly as he focuses on me. "Charlie?" he murmurs, his voice rough with sleep.

"Morning," I say softly, my hand coming up to stroke his hair.

A slow smile spreads across his face. "Morning." He shifts again, deliberately this time, his thigh pressing against my growing erection. "Someone's awake."

"Can't help it," I admit, my voice dropping to a husky whisper. "You're right here."

His vanilla and cinnamon scent spikes slightly, arousal stirring even in his sleep-addled state. "I want you," he says simply, no hesitation, no shyness. Just honesty.

That's all the invitation I need.

I roll us until I'm hovering over him, my weight supported on my forearms. His hands come up to tangle in my hair as I lower my head to kiss him. This time, there's no desperation, no urgency—just slow, deep exploration. Our tongues meet, stroke, tangle in a dance as familiar as it is thrilling.

"Last night," I murmur against his lips between kisses. "That was..."

"Intense," he finishes, his hands sliding down my back to grip my ass. "Amazing."

"Both," I agree, kissing my way down his jaw to his neck. I nip at the sensitive skin there, smiling as he arches against me with a soft gasp.

My mouth continues its journey south, pausing to lavish attention on his nipples—first one, then the other—until they're pebbled and he's writhing beneath me. His vanilla-and-cinnamon scent grows stronger, filling my senses and making my head spin with want.

I continue downward, trailing kisses across his stomach, dipping my tongue into his navel. His fingers tighten in my hair, holding me in place as I kneel between his spread legs. His dick is already hard, flushed and leaking against his stomach.

Instead of taking him into my mouth again, I decide to try something different. I gently lift his legs, placing them over my shoulders as I settle between his thighs. The new position exposes him completely, and I can't resist the temptation before me.

I lean forward, my tongue tracing a path from his perineum to his entrance. Cade cries out, his hands fisting in the sheets as I lap at his hole, tasting his slick. The flavor is just as intoxicating as yesterday—vanilla, cinnamon, and something uniquely Cade.

"Charlie," he moans, his hips lifting off the bed. "God, what are you—"

"Showing you how much I want you," I murmur against his skin before diving back in. I eat him out with enthusiasm, my tongue probing, tasting, teasing as his slick pours from him, coating my face. The sounds he makes are incredible—gasps, moans, whimpers of pleasure that go straight to my dick.

When he's writhing beneath me, begging for more, I finally pull back. I slide two fingers into him, scissoring them gently as I prepare him. His inner walls clench around me, pulling me deeper. I add a third finger, curling them to stroke that sensitive spot inside him.

"Right there," he gasps, his hands fisting in the sheets. "Oh God, Charlie—"

I could spend all day like this, exploring his body, learning what makes him gasp and moan and writhe. But my own need is growing, my dick throbbing with the desire to be inside him again.

I flip him over and position myself behind him, lining up with his slick entrance. "Ready?" I ask softly.

He nods against the pillows. "Please."

I enter him slowly, savoring every inch as his body welcomes me in. The feeling is just as overwhelming as yesterday—the tight heat, the way his walls clench around me, the completeness of being joined like this.

"God, Cade," I groan, my forehead resting against his back as I give us both a moment to adjust. "You feel incredible."

"You too," he breathes, pushing back against me. "Move, Charlie. Please."

I begin to thrust, slowly at first, then faster as the pleasure builds. Each stroke sends waves of ecstasy through me, building upon itself until I’m drowning in pleasure. Cade is right there with me, pushing back to take me deeper, his moans filling the room.

I reach around to wrap my hand around his dick, stroking in time with my thrusts. The dual stimulation pushes him closer to the edge, his body tensing as his orgasm approaches.

"Charlie," he gasps, his voice strained with pleasure. "I'm gonna cum—"

"Do it," I growl, my thrusts becoming erratic as I chase my own release. "Let me feel you cum on my dick."

With a cry, he spills into my hand, his inner muscles clamping down around me as his orgasm overtakes him. The sensation of him tightening and releasing around my dick drives me to my orgasm.

I push as deep as I can inside his body, my body shuddering as I cum. As I release, I feel the familiar pressure building at the base of my dick—the knot swelling, locking us together. The sensation sends another wave of pleasure through me, and Cade gasps as the swelling stretches him further, completing our connection in a way that feels both primal and deeply intimate.

We stayed fused like that, our limbs quivering with the intensity of our release. I press soft kisses against his back, his shoulders, anywhere I can reach as we slowly come down from our high.

"God, Charlie," he breathes, his voice muffled by the pillows. "Every time, it just gets better."

I can only hum in agreement, my body still pulsing with pleasure. My arms wrap around his waist, holding him close as we wait for my knot to subside. In this moment, there's no lab, no protein assays, no Jordan, no outside world. There's only us—bound together by something deeper than biology, stronger than instinct.

As my knot finally begins to recede, I carefully pull out, ignoring Cade's soft whimper at the loss. I roll him onto his back, settling between his legs as I claim his mouth in a deep, tender kiss.

"Stay with me," he murmurs against my lips, his hands framing my face. "Not just tonight. Always."

"Always," I promise, and as I look into his eyes—soft, warm, filled with an emotion that mirrors my own—I know with absolute certainty that my life has been irrevocably changed. The rut may have brought us together, but this—this connection, this feeling—this is something that will last a lifetime.