“Yes, yes . . . ,” I moan as I feel the orgasm mounting, ready to spill over. “I’m there, Alec, I’m there.”

He groans against my shoulder, bites down, and then unleashes a flurry of pumps so hard that he pushes us up the bed. When my head hits the headboard, he lets go of my hands, presses his against the board, and continues to pound into me.

Above me, his muscles ripple and sweat drips down his chest. His body is so beautiful moving in and out of me, and that’s my undoing.

Bliss tears through me as my legs spasm and my mouth falls open, though no noise escapes me as I am submerged beneath waves of pleasure.

“Oh . . . shit,” Alec says. “I’m coming.” He stills above me, his groan one of the most provocative things I’ve ever heard.

A roar so delicious that it keeps my orgasm spasming, my body tingling and seeking more as his hips slowly move against mine.

“Fuck, Luna,” he murmurs, pressing his face against my neck, his breath hot on my skin. “You just about killed me.”

I chuckle. “Pretty sure it was the other way around.” I cradle his face and bring his lips to mine, letting them take over as we ride out the postorgasm bliss, our bodies connected, our breaths evening out.

He lifts up slightly, his smile crooked and lazy. “You’ve ruined me, you realize that? Absolutely ruined me.”

I nudge him onto his back and lay my head on his chest. “Can I be honest with you?”

“Always.”

I nibble on my bottom lip, nervous, but knowing it needs to be said. “You’re, uh . . . you’re starting to . . .” I roll my lip under my teeth. “I’m liking you a lot . . . a lot.”

He smiles softly. “I’m liking you a lot too, Luna Moon.”

“Scary-like? Or serious-like?”

“Very serious-like,” he answers, his voice husky and beautifully lazy. If Farrah weren’t due back soon, I would stay like this all night.

“Yeah?”

He nods. “My feelings are strong, Luna, and getting stronger every second I’m with you.”

My toes curl just from that little sentence, just from knowing that he’s in the same boat as me, and we’re not off course.

“Me too.”

“Good.” He rubs his hands over my back. “Should we go rinse off?”

“Probably.” But I don’t move. Instead, I drag my finger over his chest. “Are you okay? You know, with your mom and everything? You were really upset on Saturday, and I don’t think that just goes away in a few days.”

“It doesn’t.” He sighs, rubbing my back. “The pain is there, the realization that she’ll never be the mom I want her to be, but I also know there are other people in my life who care about me. Who cherish their time with me . . .”

I lean in and press a kiss to his lips. “I do.”

“I know.” He kisses my forehead. “And I’m grateful for you. I’m grateful for Naomi wanting to help me, and I’m grateful I’ve been able to see past all my baggage and realize how much I miss my brother.”

“And you can lean on me—you don’t have to shut me out.”

His fingers drag up my back, then over my shoulders and back down, sending chills along my skin and making me yearn for him again.

“I know that, but I also don’t want to be another project you can fix.”

“Hey!” I snap, insulted. “That’s not why—”

“I didn’t mean that to hurt you; I meant it so you can understand that I don’t want to be something you make better. I want to be the man you deserve. The strong, put-together man. Not the crumbling guy who can’t seem to hold it together, who reverts to drinking his problems away.”

“I don’t see you that way, Alec.”

“Well, I see myself that way, and you deserve more than that man. It’s why I didn’t want you to come over on Sunday. You already saw me at my worst—you didn’t need the sequel.”

I pause, letting his words sink in and trying to calm the irritation building inside me. I take a calming breath. “The point of being with someone is to see them at their worst. A relationship isn’t surface level: it’s deep and multifaceted, it has ups and downs, and we need to experience them together. You don’t have to be this macho man who’s always strong and protecting me, Alec. I like seeing your vulnerable side. It’s what made me fall—” I catch myself and swallow hard. “It’s what drew me to you in the first place. That flash of vulnerability showed me that there’s a real person under this handsome exterior. A person I want to know.”

He lets out a heavy sigh, his hand dragging over his face. “Fuck, why do you always make sense?”

I laugh and lean down to kiss his jaw. “Because even though you’re older, I’m wiser. Never forget that.”

“I don’t think you would let me.” He sits up on the bed, dragging me with him so I’m sitting directly on his lap, his cock against my entrance.

God, that feels good. I shift and groan at the pressure on my clit.

“Hey, Horny Henrietta, slow down for a second.”

“You’re the one with the erection.”

“Because your wet pussy is gliding along it.” He chuckles and stills my hips. “We will get to that in a second. Shower sex—you, me, and some nice hot water.” That sounds divine. “Look at me, Luna.” I meet his eyes. “Feelings are new for me. I blocked them for so long that I’ve forgotten it’s okay to show them. I swore off relationships a long time ago, so take it easy on me while I navigate my way through this relationship. Because I’m falling—” He stops, and then winks.

“You’re falling?” I ask, looping my arms around his neck.

“Hard and fast, Luna Moon.”

I press our noses together before kissing him. “Me too.”

“I still don’t think she accidentally hit me,” Alec says, rubbing his arm as we peruse our menus at one of the nicest restaurants I think a boyfriend has ever taken me to. It’s not posh by any means, but it’s romantic, with dim lighting, earthy plants, and plush velvet seating. We took the subway down to Hell’s Kitchen for the dinner, but now that we’re here, it was well worth it—not that the travel was painful, but after what we just did, I felt pressed to stay home, in bed.

“I’d like to say it was an accident, but I saw the look in my best friend’s eye—it was a warning hit.”

“I thought I won Farrah over the last time I saw her.”

“Oh, you did.” I nod, setting my menu down. “She just likes to keep you in check—that’s all.”

He rubs his arm like a baby. “Can she do it verbally next time?”

“It was not that hard.”

“Easy for you to say. You weren’t the one who was punched.”

“She has bird bones. There’s no way her fist did that much damage.” I roll my eyes.

“Maybe I’m trying to show you more of my sensitive side so you’ll nurse me back to health after this. I heard tits have amazing healing powers. Can I suck on yours after this?”

I try to hold back the laugh, but it’s impossible. “You’re really awful, you know that? Night and day with you.”

“Keeps you on your toes.” He winks and reaches across the table, taking my hand in his. “Plus, I wouldn’t mind round three tonight.”

“For an old man like you? Impressive.”

He leans forward and points a finger at me, laughter in his eyes. “I am thirty-fucking-two—I’m in the prime of my virile life.”

“Is that what the men’s magazines are telling you?” I smirk.

“Look who’s the jokester now, and ripping at my age. Okay, I see you, Luna Rossi. I see you.”

I roll my eyes. “What are you getting?”

“Depends on what’s for dessert. If it’s a quick peck to the cheek and a pat to my ass to send me on my way, then the mac and cheese, because at least I can be bloated and happy.”

“Charming.”

“But,” he continues, “if I’m looking at naked time with my girl, then I’ll go with the Cobb salad so my muscles pop when I’m thrusting inside of her. So . . . what do you think I should get?”

“The mac and cheese. Definitely the mac and cheese.”

“Damn, Luna.” He laughs and reaches across the table, taking my hand just as our waitress walks up to our table.

Ready to order, I turn. “Hello, I would like—”

My words fade away as I make eye contact—not with our waitress, but with the one and only Mary DIY. Fear niggles at the back of my neck as I realize I’m sitting across from Alec, holding his hand, in a romantic restaurant.

This doesn’t look like friends hanging out, or enemies making a truce. It looks like so much more.

“Wow,” Mary says. “How nice to see you two when the cameras aren’t rolling.”

Alec’s eyes narrow, and I’m pretty sure I know exactly what he’s thinking.

How does she even know who we are, if she’s never actually introduced herself?

But like the pleasant person I am, I say, “Mary, hi, how are you?”

“Great. I saw you two walk in and thought, ‘Hey, I know them.’ I just had to come say hi.”