“I was so scared you wouldn’t be able to teach again.” Her whispered voice brought me out of my thoughts, reminding me where I was.

“No. They didn’t fire me. I ended up leaving on my own accord—I resigned. So there was nothing they could really do. Apparently, they didn’t have enough on me to prove that I’d done more than befriend a student. And although it’s frowned upon, it’s not grounds for termination.”

Her shoulders slacked and a sigh of relief left her lips. “I know you told me that you moved here for a teaching job, and then I saw you at Ayla’s school, but I didn’t know if you were allowed to teach because it was a different district. I didn’t know if it mattered.”

“Had I been fired, no school would’ve touched me. I would have had my credentials revoked and my file permanently tagged. And I guess so much time lapsed between that nothing was reported when I applied for the position.”

“So you’re here for good now?”

I nodded, staring at the wall behind her head to keep from seeing her reaction. I didn’t want to witness her disappointment if she didn’t want me there. “I mean, I’m only a substitute. My job isn’t permanent by any means. But right now, in Ayla’s class, there might be a chance I could stay for at least the remainder of the year. I’m sure you’ve heard, her teacher suffered a heart attack over the weekend, and they’re not sure if she’ll come back. I’m filling in for her until a decision is made. And then I’ll find out if my position will carry into next year or not.”

“I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to be her teacher.”

“Why not?” I asked, feeling slightly offended.

She tilted her head and regarded me with soft eyes. “I just don’t think it’s a good idea with everything we’ve been through.”

I reached out and settled my palm against her cheek, feeling her soft skin beneath the pads of my fingers. “Bree, I promise it’ll be fine. I won’t show her any special treatment, or take anything out on her. You’ve taught me a lot, and one of those things is that no matter the situation, I need to remain professional.”

“I know.” Her clipped tone implanted doubt and I didn’t know what my next move should be. But she didn’t bat my hand away or move back from my touch. Instead, she covered my hand with her own, holding my palm to her face. Her touch held just enough tenderness, giving me the courage to move in, albeit painstakingly slow, until my lips barely brushed hers. Testing the waters, still unsure of myself and the direction we were heading. It was so hard to go slow. For the minute my lips touched hers, a familiarity resonated within.

And then I heard her slight intake of air.

The sound of that one gasp was enough to send me over the edge, diving into the depths of the abyss. The memories of us swarmed me. I couldn’t stop myself from pressing my mouth into hers further, gradually leaning in until our chests collided. Worry over her pushing me away quickly faded the second her arms circled my neck, holding me to her. She held onto me as if I were something to be treasured. As if she would never let go. I deepened the kiss, parting her lips with my tongue, and finally seizing what’s always been mine.

I pressed into her until I had her on her back, my body gently covering hers. She adjusted her legs, automatically fitting them on either side of my hips as I nestled into her. I’d been in this position once before—in the back yard so many years ago—but this time, I had no intention of leaving our clothes on. I’d had many dreams over the years, wondering what it would be like to have her naked beneath me as I sank into her, watching the pleasure take over her features. And the mere thought of those dreams finally coming true had me hard as I rocked against her.

My lips moved to her neck, and I tasted her sweet skin with my tongue. “If you’re waiting for me to stop this, Bree…it’s not going to happen this time. So if you don’t want this, you’re going to have to be the one to put an end to it,” I rasped into her ear as I kept up with the movements of my hips.

She grabbed the sides of my face, bringing it to hers, and then thrust her pelvis into mine. “I’m not going to stop you, Axel.”

That’s all I needed to hear.

I trailed my lips down her perfect neck, dipping my tongue into the crevice at the bottom of her throat. Her smooth, porcelain skin broke out in chill bumps as her breathing turned ragged, her chest heaving up and down beneath my face. I continued my trail to her cleavage and licked the tender area between her breasts. My mind might’ve been playing tricks on me, but it seemed as though they’d grown over the years. She’d never had a large chest, but she’d filled out more, enough to fill my hand.

With each kiss, each swipe of my tongue on her skin, she held my head and encouraged me to move further down her body. By the time I made it to her stomach, my hands were beneath her shirt, lifting it up to expose more of her to me. I was so impossibly hard, looking at her from this angle and watching her stomach dip with my breath, that I feared I wouldn’t actually make it through the entire duration.

Bree sat up, pushing me back with her body as she finished pulling her shirt off, throwing it on the floor next to the bed. I couldn’t take my eyes off her cotton-covered chest, and I became entranced the moment she reached around and released her bra. My breathing, which had been harsh and incontrollable just moments before, became stuck in my lungs, burning as my chest grew incredibly tight. The moment her bra fell away, I pushed my mouth back to her, latching onto her nipple with my lips, sucking, licking, toying with it as she writhed beneath me. And then I switched to the other, starting all over again.

She tugged on my shirt until I sat up, unbuttoned it, and pulled it from my arms, then I dropped it to the pile of discarded clothes on the floor. I grabbed the back of my undershirt and yanked it over my head, watching her eyes brighten.

“You have no idea, Bree…” I growled as I made quick work of the button on her jeans.

“I think I do, Axel.” She lifted her hips, allowing me to remove her pants easier. And then she hooked her thumbs into the waistband of her underwear. But I stopped her, grabbing ahold of her wrists.

“Nah-uh. That’s my job. I didn’t wait all this time for you to take that from me.” I leaned down, catching the cotton material between my teeth, slowly dragging them down her legs before pulling them the rest of the way off.

I trailed my nose up the inside of her leg, starting at her calf and ending on her inner thigh before taking over the path with my tongue. I slowly licked my way to where I wanted her most, taking in the heady scent of her arousal.

“Axel…stop fucking toying with me,” she whispered hoarsely and let out a frustrated moan. She tried to regain control, pushing her hips into me, closing the gap between my mouth and where I knew she ached the most, but I held her down with my forearms while I continued to tease and torture her with my tongue.

“Bree, I’ve dreamt of this moment for over six years…don’t rush it, baby.”

Her body squirmed beneath mine as her fingers gripped the sides of my head. “Well, I’ve waited just as long, so hurry up before I explode.”

“Once I’m inside you…I don’t know how long I’m going to last,” I growled against her silky, wet core. I swiped my tongue up her slit, tasting her for the very first time, and immediately became an addict. Her whimper egged me on until I closed my lips over her clit and sucked. Her back arched, and the moment my fingers entered her, her gasp rang through the air, covered me in heat, and then infiltrated my body until my fingers relentlessly pumped inside of her and my tongue furiously flicked her hardened nub.