Hope on the Rocks by Annabeth Albert

Thirty-Five

Quinn

Taking a deep breath, I took a step backward so I could look at Adam, really look at him. He continued to hold my rock in one hand, cradling it carefully in his fingers, almost like it was my real heart. And his expression was serious with a set jaw, firm mouth, cautious eyes.

I could trust him. I knew this, but finding the words was still difficult.

“I don’t want to need a Daddy.”

“Bu—” He opened his mouth, but I held up a hand.

“Yet I do. I need you.” I still probably wasn’t explaining this the best. I needed him like I needed long walks and coffee and fantasy novels. Not water or food for survival, but absolutely essential to my happiness and well-being. And I had a lot of big feelings around that realization. “Part of me wants to be all independent and strong—”

“You are. You’re probably the strongest person I know, Quinn. And I don’t mean only the doctor stuff. You’ve got an iron core. But I still like when you lean on me, and I don’t see that as weakness.”

“I don’t anymore either. You’ve made it safe to bend.” That was more what I meant. He made it safe to be not strong every single second. To want this. “Lean on you, like you said.”

“It goes both ways. I suck at asking for help or admitting when I’m not feeling well. You take care of me too.” After tucking my rock in his pocket, he pulled me back to him.

“I like that. And I’m a lot more comfortable now with wanting—needing—the kink in my life. And you. I need you. That’s what I’m trying to say. It’s big and scary, needing you this much.”

“I know.” He kissed my head as a tremor ran through us both. The shiver made me sink more into him, let him hold me, and it felt so good to be back in his arms. “I can’t promise we’ll never disagree again, but I can do better at listening. Trying to work things out for both of us.”

“A team.” I’d been thinking about that ever since the clinic. I could trust my patients to work with me. I needed to extend that same trust to Adam, but it went both ways.

“Exactly. That’s what Darren said to Ramona. That he wanted to be a team. A partnership. And that’s what I want too. I want to be a team.”

“Darren’s back?” My voice chilled. Maybe this wasn’t about me as much as him not having to worry so much about Ramona.

“Yeah. He proposed. She said yes. And before you go thinking that’s the only reason I’m here, it’s not.” Adam made me look at him again, cupping my face. “I was working my way toward an apology all day. Darren coming back is great for Ramona, but I still need to make changes for myself. Regardless of what’s happening for her. Or you, for that matter.”

“Oh?”

“I don’t mean discounting your opinion.” He kissed the top of my head. “I mean, even if you don’t want to give us a chance, I still need to bring my life into better balance for my health.”

“I do want to give us a chance. Fears and all.” I snuggled in against him, wrapping my arms tightly around him. The nightly coastal wind whipped along the beach, but he was warm and solid and everything I hadn’t let myself want. “Be patient with me?”

“Always. And I need patience too. I don’t have all the answers. But I want to find them together.”

“Good.” Not having all the answers and not knowing how certain things would go, like Adam’s mom’s reaction, made my knees wobbly, but I was ready to put this blip behind us and move forward. “Want to head back before it gets too dark to see the trail?”

“Yep.” He released me only to link our hands as we walked back toward the condo complex. “I’ve got a flashlight in my pocket though.”

“Is that all you have, Daddy?” I bumped his shoulder, eager to let go of more tension, return to the flirty and playful part of our dynamic.

“Mmm. Not all.” Stopping, he leaned in for a swift kiss. “But we don’t have to head right to the bedroom.”

“Yes, we do.” Laughing, I poked his chest. “I want it. Want you.”

“You’ve got me.” The next kiss was slower and sweeter, full of promise, both sexy and otherwise. And one wasn’t enough. We kept stopping on the trail for more kisses, each more lingering than the last. We raced the final distance from the trail to my front door, trailing sand and laughter as we crashed into the condo. Kicking off our shoes, we kept trading kisses as we banged into the walls and an end table.

“Couch is closer than my bedroom,” I said breathlessly as I narrowly avoided knocking over a lamp.

“Yeah, but your bedroom has lube.” Tugging me toward the stairs, Adam made his intent clear with an absolutely filthy grin.

“This is true.” I laughed as we stopped for one more kiss before my bedroom.

“First I want to kiss you silly in your shower.”

“I’m already silly.” I was totally silly, head over heels, for this man.

“Yeah, well, you can be silly and clean.” He led the way to the master bath, stripping off both his shirts as he went. I loved how easily he both knew and accommodated my quirks. I liked the idea of fucking right then as much as he did. I just liked it post-cleaning up after a long day a little more.

“You know me well, Daddy.” I happily wriggled out of my own clothing until we were both naked and under the water.

“The shower when we were camping had more room,” I observed as we jostled around, trying to find positions that had equal access to the water.

“I want to take you camping more often.” Moving behind me, Adam made sure I got most of the water as he soaped me up. Him taking care of me like this always made me feel so warm and protected and was rapidly becoming one of my favorite things. He made me all clean with very little help from me and then backed me against the wall, kissing me until we were both breathing hard and rocking against each other.

“We’re not going to make it to the bed if you keep kissing me like that.”

“Oh, we’re making it to the bed.” Chuckling, he immediately shut off the water and grabbed two towels, handing me one. “I’ve got a powerful craving.”

“I noticed.” I ran a hand down the length of his hard cock, but he batted my hand away before I could do it a second time.

“None of that.”

“Yes, Daddy.” I pretended to be all contrite as I quickly toweled off. Feeling rather playful, I raced ahead of him to the bed, sprawling out on my stomach, ass up in clear invitation.

“Ha. I see I’m not the only eager one.” Adam sauntered over, taking his sweet time before he stretched out next to me. He gave my ass a firm squeeze. “This is sexy, but I want you on top. Want you rubbing on me instead of your pillow.”

“Yes.” I loved that idea myself, and I quickly scrambled to straddle him. I’d left my glasses in the bathroom, but I could still see his twinkling eyes and the tenderness in his expression.

“You like that idea, my dirty boy?” He ran his hands down my still-damp sides before settling me more firmly against him.

“Hey, thanks to you, I’m all clean now.” I couldn’t help but tease, which earned me a smack on the ass, exactly as I’d hoped.

“Brat,” he scolded.

“But yours.” Grinning, I leaned down to capture his waiting lips.

“Mine.” Taking over the kiss, he swept his tongue into my mouth, holding me close. He used his lips and tongue to drive me wild until I was rocking against his abs, cock dragging against his fuzzy belly. When he pulled away to grab the lube from the nightstand, I groaned at the loss, already needing him so damn much.

“I don’t need a ton of prep,” I said as he slicked up his fingers. I wanted his cock, right that minute if possible, sting and stretch be damned.

He gave me a stern glare. “Who’s in charge?”

“You are, Daddy.” My answer came out all self-satisfied because I was that happy. Giving up control to him in this way felt so good. So right. So us.

“Good. And you’re ready when I say.” Even though he’d denied my request, he was still much faster than usual. He didn’t tease as much as he went from one to two fingers, scissoring in between deeper forays against my prostate. I rested my head on his broad chest and reveled in how damn good this sort of caretaking felt as well.

“Please, Daddy. Want it,” I begged. Even this pace wasn’t fast enough, and he had me slick enough that while his big cock might burn, it wasn’t going to truly hurt.

“Greedy boy.” Removing his fingers, he slicked up his cock and held it steady while I positioned myself. “Nice and slow now. Work yourself open on my cock.”

“Yes, Daddy.” I lowered myself down with shallow movements, taking a little, then retreating only to try for more, similar to how I enjoyed working up to taking more and more of his cock when blowing him.

“Fuck. Overachiever. And your face is so fucking sexy. So determined.”

“Oh, I’m determined.” I groaned as I finally slid more of his deep, broad cockhead exactly where I needed it, and rocked my hips, searching for the perfect combination of pressure inside and friction for my cock outside.

“Slow. Make it last.” Adam screwed his eyes shut, mouth a thin line. “Feels too damn good, bare like this and you all over me.”

“Bet I can make you want to go for doubles later.” With another deliberate movement, I brought myself flush with his thighs, as deep as I could take him, reveling in his moan.

“Come kiss me with that smart mouth, boy.” Guiding my shoulders down, he claimed my mouth.

“That.” Even my breath was shaky against his lips as the perfection of his kiss turned out to be the missing piece. My body was full, the sort of fullness that found every spot that had been secretly craving this for years. And that fullness made me need to rut artlessly against him as we kissed and kissed, my cock trapped between us, sticky friction so good I kept gasping.

Every time I tried to speed up too much, however, he stayed my movements with firm hands on my ass.

“Please, Daddy.” My voice had the whiny tone it only ever reached around him, my mind tumbling into the place where all I was, all I had to be, was his boy. Any judgments I had about myself and needing the kink slipped away. I existed simply for this, for him. “Want to go faster.”

“Yeah?” His breathing was as hard as mine, and my power over him made me tremble, even as he loosened his grip. “Show me. Show me what you want.”

“Yes.” Freed, the last of my inhibitions disappeared as I kissed him and moved hard and fast, pushing my cock into his stomach as I ground my ass down on his cock. I used every trick I knew and several I made up on the spot to try to get him there with me. “This. Want you. Fuck. I’m close, Daddy. But want you to come too.”

“Tell me.” Eyes open again, he tipped his head back against the pillows, expression intent.

“Need you. Need your come,” I begged, shameless now. I wanted this to last, but my body was too loudly demanding, too greedy. I wanted it all, the rush of orgasm and him coming undone as well. “Please. Please. Daddy.”

“That’s it, Quinn. Such a good boy. So good for me.” His praise felt more potent than any drink he could mix up, and I moved even more urgently, pleasure coming in wild waves like a winter storm I couldn’t hold off.

“Daddy. Coming.” My cock twitched and spurted between us, climax winning without either of our permission, but he didn’t seem to mind too much, moaning and moving my shuddering body as he pumped up into me.

“Fuck. Fuck.” His big body thrashed under me as he came too, hot surge inside me, its primal perfection enough to make me moan right along with him. As we both started to slow our breathing back down, he petted my back and stopped me when I would have moved to disentangle our bodies. “No. Stay a minute.”

“Oh. This is nice.” I hadn’t ever thought about it, but without a condom, there was no hurry. Staying connected stretched out the afterglow, made me feel floaty and powerfully sexy at the same time. I liked the earthy primal-ness of it too, his cock holding his come inside me as we traded slow, sleepy kisses.

“Quinn?”

“Yes, Daddy?” In that moment, I would have given him anything, but I also trusted him to not ask for more than I could safely give.

“I choose you.” His eyes were solemn yet full of affection, and other words hung between us, probably better left unsaid because this alone was terrifying enough, Adam choosing me and needing me to believe him that I was a priority.

“I choose you too. I trust you.” I might not be able to give him those big, scary words, not yet, but I could put everything into hoping that we found our path forward. I could trust him, and in that moment, my trust and those hopes were the most precious things I had to offer him.