Above me, he shouted out his orgasm.
I swear, my fingernails gouged holes into the sheets until my body was able to calm down again. Brandt just barely managed to pull free from me before he collapsed face-first onto the mattress next to me.
“Holy fucking wow,” his muffled voice came from the pillow where his mouth was buried.
I beamed, feeling like I needed to preen in triumph because, seriously...I had no idea I’d ever be able to affect a man like this with my sexual prowess. But accomplishing what I just had—with Brandt of all people—was just...no words could describe the joy bubbling inside me, flowing through my veins and making me glow.
With a giggle, I said, “You’re welcome.”
Laughing, he turned his face so he could focus on me. For the longest second, we shared a grin. No words seemed necessary; we just knew...we made each other extremely happy.
But then the moment passed and he shifted as if uncomfortable before he winced. “I need to get rid of this condom, but I don’t want to move.”
“I need to go to the bathroom too,” I lamented. “But I don’t want to move either. Reese always told me that peeing after sex helps keep you from getting a urinary tract infection.”
“Infection?” In a sudden flurry of movement, Brandt sat upright and flew off the bed. “Shit, why didn’t you say something sooner? I’ll carry you.”
I blinked, watching him quickly dispose of his condom before returning to the bed to scoop me into his arms. “I don’t think it was quite that urgent,” I tried, hoping to calm the panic on his face. “A couple more minutes wouldn’t have mattered that much. And really, you don’t have to carry me.”
When he glanced at me, his features smoothed and mouth relaxed into a soft, affectionate, almost-smile. “I don’t mind. The sooner the better, though, right? You didn’t go after the first time.”
I ran my finger down his cheek. “But what about you not wanting to move?”
“Hey, if you’re leaving the bed, then so am I.” His lips crinkled into a strange sort of pout. “I want to stay with you right now.”
Laughing, I wrapped my arms around him and pressed my forehead to his jaw as he carried me from my room. “So you want to go to the bathroom with me?”
“I’m feeling clingy,” he growled, sending me an irritable glance. “Deal with it.”
“Okay.” Still chuckling, I sighed and let him carry me until we reached the bathroom I shared with the twins.
A mesh bag hanging from the shower curtain rod held all their bath toys and the sink counter was mostly clogged with my cosmetics.
Brandt set me back on my feet next to the toilet, but strangely, he didn’t leave. Turning his back to me—I guess, his way of giving me privacy—he wandered toward the sink and inspected my lotion rack. After picking one up, opening it and giving it a sniff, he’d set it back down and pick up the next.
I tried not to get stage fright as my gaze fixated on his bare ass. God, he had such a nice ass, and it looked even better naked.
“This one’s my favorite,” he announced, turning back to show me my three-quarters-empty bottle of warm vanilla sugar. But I already knew this, reason number one why it was used more than the others.
Blinking up into Brandt’s blue eyes, however, the only thing I could think to say was, “I can’t believe you just stood there and listened to me pee.”
This was so weird, and the weirdest part about it was that it felt strangely domestically cozy.
Chuckling at the dazed expression on my face, he asked, “Finished?”
With a nod, I held up my arms, feeling like a toddler silently asking a grown-up to hold me. Obliging, Brandt swept forward, paused at the sink so I could wash my hands, and then he carried me back to my room.
Once we were bundled back under the sheets together, he became my cuddling best friend again, tugging me close and lying on his back to stare up at the ceiling as he took my hand and interlaced our fingers. With his thumb playing with mine and his gaze fixed on my ceiling, he murmured, “It feels extra quiet without your brother, and Reese, and the twins around.”
I nodded, watching his face and wondering what was really going on in his mind. He seemed too preoccupied with phasing out to have seen my nod, though, so I also said aloud, “Yeah, it does.”
“I wonder if this is how it’d be if we lived together.”
Everything inside me froze. But seriously, had he just said...
Live together?
My pulse jerked into overdrive and my mind whirled. I’d be lying if I claimed I never dreamed of such things. Brandt was the man I wanted to be with until I was old and gray, rocking our grandbabies on our front porch swing together. But to hear him say anything in line with my biggest, deepest wishes was just...bizarre.
Forcing myself not to get my hopes up, I shrugged. “I don’t know,” I answered, honestly. “Probably.”