Page 105 of Except You

I don’t care if people see me kissing a guy.

It doesn’t matter anyways. It’s Bow-tie.

He’s mine.

“Just want to kiss my new roommate,” I tell him as I pull his body against mine and slant my mouth over his.

He sighs, his hands moving into my hair, a smile lifting his lips up.

“A roommate who shares your room.”

“And bed,” I remind him. Because this is not platonic. Not at all. I can’t wait to get him back to our hotel room, strip him out of his clothes, and stick my fingers inside of him.

God, I love it. Love watching him come. Love that he says my name like a prayer every time, love the way he kisses me so desperately.

And now that he’s moving in with me, we can do this every damn day.

Not that we haven’t been already, but now it’s going to be permanent.

At least as permanent as it can be until we get married.

It just makes sense, the two of us making it official. It’s just the next step.

“I think I need another snow cone,” Beau says, and I pull him in for another kiss, tasting the cherry on his lips.

“How about something healthier?”

“Fuck healthy. I want sugar, Max.”

He grins at me as he grabs my hand, pulling me toward a street vendor, ordering one and letting me pay for it. Just like a boyfriend would do.

He scoops some of the red ice into his mouth, and his lips are so alluring this color that I lean down and kiss him again.

He hums against me and then gently shoves me away with a small laugh.

“Max, I can’t let the ice melt, okay?”

I sigh as he takes another bite. So damn cute, I think as I place my arm around his waist and we walk down toward the beach. When we get there, Beau takes his shoes and socks off, rolling his jeans up as far as he can, and I follow suit, the two of us standing in the waves, just looking off into the horizon. When I pick him up and pretend that I’m going to throw him into the ocean, he squeals and clings to me, threatening me with sleeping in a different hotel room tonight if I toss him into the water. I don’t want to risk him actually following through with that threat, so I just hold him against me, the waves lapping at my calves as I shift him in my arms.

He fits perfectly against me.

Always has. Always will.

“You drive me crazy, Max,” Beau says, his lips hovering over mine.

“Good. Because you’re mine.”

He sighs and his lips meet mine just as the sun sets over the Pacific.

A fucking wonderful way to end our day.

Chapter Eighteen

Beau

So, I’ve lost my mind apparently. In a moment of utter obsession, I agreed to move in with Max, and now I’m having reservations about the sanity of it all. But the way he’s grinning at me is making my heart stupidly happy. It’s like he’s been waiting for me to just agree to this asinine plan, and fuck me, I couldn’t say no.

So here I am, walking back from a late dinner with Max, our hands tangled, our bodies pressed against each other, the two of us smelling like salt and air as we make our way to our hotel room. At the moment, Max looks deliriously happy, and I admit that I am too. But I’m also worried.