"I love you," Ethan murmured, his voice low and raw as Lena clung to him, her cheek pressed against his bare chest. His fingers threaded slowly through her hair, his touch soothing and almost reverent. "I mean it, Lena. That's how I feel. You don't have to say it back if you're not ready."
She stilled in his arms, then lifted her head, eyes glassy but burning with something deep and unwavering.
"I love you more," she said. Her voice didn't tremble. "Not because you said it first... I meant it."
Ethan's breath hitched.
There was no hesitation in her gaze—only truth. Real. Honest. Heavy.
Their lips met again. This time wasn't soft. It was urgent. Hungry. They kissed like they had held back for far too long.
"Will you be mine?" Ethan asked against her lips, breaking the kiss only slightly. His breath fanned across her skin. "My girlfriend. Officially."
Lena's lips curled into a smile as her hands cupped his face. "Yes," she whispered, her breath brushing his. "Yes."
His arms tightened around her. Her body molded against his as he rolled over her, his weight sinking into the mattress, pressing her into the softness of the sheets.
"Do you still have those nightmares?" she asked, her fingers moving gently across the muscles of his back, tracing slow, invisible lines.
"Sometimes," he murmured, eyes half-closed.
"Do you want to talk about them?"
"Not yet," he said, voice rough. "Not tonight. Right now, I want to know my girlfriend. I want to memorize every sound you make when I touch you. I want to lose myself in you."
A sharp breath caught in her throat as his lips found the side of her neck. She felt his hands explore—slow, deliberate—like he was discovering something sacred.
She arched into him. "Okay," she breathed, "but you still haven't told me how you knew all my favorite things… my favorite flower, the dish I make when I'm upset, even the snack I hide in my desk drawer…"
He chuckled against her skin. "I might've done some digging. Was it too much?"
"No," she whispered. "It was perfect."
"Well," he said, eyes twinkling, "I had help."
"Help?" She raised a brow, curious.
"Someone who knows you well," he teased.
Lena narrowed her eyes. "Who?"
"Guess," Ethan said, trailing kisses along her shoulder.
"I can't think of anyone who knows me that well… unless…" She paused, realization dawning. "Audrey? Is it Aud?"
He nodded once, a mischievous smirk tugging at his lips.
"Really?" She groaned. "I'm not even surprised. I must've ranted to him about all those things. But if he shared them with you, then… what did you give him in return?"
"He didn't ask for anything," Ethan said, sliding his hand up her thigh. "But I owe him. Big time."
"He never gives info for free," Lena murmured, trying to stay focused through the heat building between them. "I'm glad you two get along."
"Me too," Ethan said, his lips barely brushing hers again. "Do you think we should tell him about us?"
"Maybe… if you trust him."
"I do," Ethan said, voice quiet. "But I'll be careful. I wouldn't want him thinking less of you."
"Of me?" she asked, grinning.
They both laughed—but the laughter quickly died as Ethan cupped her chin and looked into her eyes with aching sincerity.
"I love you so damn much," he said, his voice almost shaking now.
"I know," she whispered. "And I love you just as much."
She leaned into him again. Their lips collided with more intensity, more hunger. His hands tangled in her hair as hers slid across his stomach, gripping, exploring, craving.
Then he rolled her beneath him again, hands braced on either side of her head. She looked up at him, flushed and breathless.
"Lena," he whispered, "you make everything else disappear."
She pulled him down into another kiss—and just as their breathing deepened and her legs wrapped around his waist—
Ding-dong.
The sound of the doorbell cut through the tension like a blade.
They froze.
Lena groaned, burying her face in his neck. "Are you going to get that?"
"Probably nothing important," Ethan muttered against her skin, refusing to move.
"You won't know unless you check," she whispered, tugging the sheet to cover herself, cheeks flushed, breath still uneven.
Ethan grunted. "Fine," he said, pressing one last kiss to her lips before sliding out of bed and grabbing a shirt from the chair.
He padded to the door, still slightly dazed, and opened it.
Christian stood on the other side, hands in pockets. "Bad timing?"
Ethan stared at him blankly for a second. "What do you want?"
Christian grinned. "You didn't show up at work, so I figured something weird was going on. Ethan skipping work on a weekend? Unheard of."
Ethan sighed and motioned for him to come in, steering him toward his home office.
"I just took a break."
"You? Taking a break?" Christian laughed. "Since when do you listen to me?"
"Since now."
They sat down, slipping back into their usual banter, catching up on business talk. But Ethan's eyes kept drifting toward the hallway. His mind—his heart—still upstairs.
"It's boiling," Christian said eventually. "Wanna hit the pool?"
Ethan gave a nod. "Yeah. Good idea."
As they headed toward the pool, Lena stood by the bedroom window, wrapped in a robe, watching them below—her heart still racing, her lips still tingling, and her thoughts tangled in everything they had just shared… and what had been interrupted.