Words & Whiskey

EDITED VERSION: Chapter Thirty-Two

Nathan and I stumbled through his bedroom door, not taking our hands off one another as we were kissing our way to the bed.

My backs of my knees hit the mattress as I fell onto the bed. Nathan crawled on top of me, kissing my lips, my jaw, to my neck, sucking gently on it. I arched my back to give him more access but also so I could unbuckle his belt. When Nathan realized what I was doing, he assisted me by kicking off his pants and pulling off his shirt. When he got to my clothing, which was a simple sun dress I had worn to my surprise party, Nathan's hands trembled as the lurked at the hem of it. He looked up at me, nothing but love in his eyes. "I don't want to rush you."

I shook my head, reaching my hand out to him, cupping his cheek. "I don't feel rushed, Nathan. I want this, I want you."

Nathan kissed my lips as he pulled my dress upward, only breaking our contact to throw the dress onto the floor beside his discarded clothes. He unhooked my strapless bra from the front and began kissing my breast, causing me to gasp at the sensation of his lips on my skin. "Nathan."

He stopped what he was doing and looked at me, gently moving the hair that fell onto my face and swiped it to the side. "I love you."

I would never get tired of hearing him say that. I smiled at him. "I love you too."

We discarded the rest of our clothing and Nathan fumbled around the nightstand. He ripped the foil wrapper of the condom and slid it on. Slowly, he entered me. I tilted my head back, let out a small moan at the same time as him. Nathan began to move, his forehead resting on mine.

"I love you," he repeated in a whisper.

Together, we whispered sweet nothings as we moved. Connecting in all ways possible.

***

The next morning, I awoke to Nathan staring at me. I flinched slightly at the intensity of his gaze. "Are you well?"

Nathan chuckled at my question, kissing my forehead before he answered. "I'm perfect, Princess. I was just admiring the woman I love."

I snuggled closer to him, craving the heat of his skin against mine. I rested my head on his chest and look up at him, curiously. "When did you know you loved me?"

"Honestly?" Nathan cocked an eyebrow. "I always knew I had feelings for you but when we spent the night together on Christmas just talking until we fell asleep, I knew I loved you."

My eyes drifted down to the necklace that rested on my bare chest, it looked like a shamrock, but with elaborate knots. I ran my fingers over it. "You never told me what my necklace meant. Yours meant strength but what about mine?"

Nathan's lips twitched upwards, his eyes mischievous. "Love." He let out a little chuckle. "When your date with Jude sucked and I went to find the perfect gift for you, I got a little cocky."

I laughed before a kissed him on the cheek. "So you professed your love to me and I didn't even know it?"

"I'm not just a pretty face, Princess," Nathan replied, taking my hand in his. He kissed my fingers lightly. "When did you know you loved me?"

I tilted my head to the right, trying to pinpoint the exact moment I loved him. "I knew for certain I liked you on Christmas, but I knew I loved you when you had your match with Reed. When he was hurting you-" I shook my head, my stomach in knots thinking about the sight of it. "-all I could think about is if you got hurt to the point I lost you, I wouldn't know what to do."

Nathan's gaze softened, he took my chin in his free hand. "You won't lose me. Ever. I'm done with the fighting."

I sat up straight, dumbfounded at his revelation. "Nate, you love it."

"But I love you more," he replied, his expression with such intensity I shivered. "Besides, I can still box. At a normal gym, with no fights, where we can still train together and the only people I'll fight are the ones checking out my girl."

I rolled my eyes at his tone, laced with venom at the hypothetical men checking me out. But instead of commenting on it, I dipped out of his grasp, and crawled onto his lap, my bare chest pressing against his. His hands gripped my waist as mine rested on his chest. Without saying anything, I kissed him on the lips, Nathan happily reciprocating the action before we got lost in one another once again.