They’d get safely to wherever it was he was taking her. After waiting thirty years to lose her virginity, they had better get there safely.

Or Saint Peter was going to get an earful when she reached the pearly gates.

*  *  *

She said yes.

Aiden felt like throwing his arms in the air and whooping for joy. Granted, she didn’t say yes to his proposal, but Sadie had given in an inch in that darkened, empty room back at Diamond Crown Hall. And she’d given in another when she climbed onto the back of Sheila.

Wind beat Aiden’s cheeks as he took the side streets to get home. No way was he draining Sadie’s limited well of trust by zipping down the highway at seventy miles an hour. Despite wanting to get her home as quickly as possible.

She felt good nestled against him, her hands at his stomach, her body warming his back. He liked her there, liked her conceding control and letting him take care of her. That’s why he’d proposed. That’s why he’d asked her to ride. He wanted to take care of her. Wanted Sadie to see she could trust him. With her body…and with her heart.

One step at a time, he reminded himself. Even if they were slightly out of order.

Stubborn as she was beautiful, Aiden shouldn’t have been surprised when Sadie ran from his proposal. He’d stood and assured the crowd, “That was a maybe.” He’d been vaguely aware of his scowling siblings, and Shane and Crickitt’s looks of concern. No doubt they’d ask for an explanation later.

Well, they could wait.

He’d run after Sadie, understanding too late he’d pushed her too far. Understanding that Sadie wasn’t the kind of woman who reacted well to being pushed. He’d known that about her, but had thought maybe she was ready and didn’t know it yet.

Wrong.

He could only hope her languid, agreeable nature would continue after he got her home. Because getting Sadie into bed was only the start of what he had planned for her. After he got her to shout yes followed by his name at least a dozen times tonight, he intended to propose again…eventually…and get a similar response.

They were meant to be together. And if he hadn’t thought so before he’d made her come and mewl and grip on to him moments ago, seeing her guard drop so solidly at his feet would have convinced him.

And because Sadie was who she was, Aiden realized it may take longer for her to arrive at the same conclusion. Hell, Aiden, on some level, had known he wanted her for forever the first night he met her. All he needed was her undivided attention for a little while and he knew he could get her to see it, too.

It wasn’t as if he was coercing her. Sadie was the one who wanted to take him to bed, who’d made it her mission to seduce him tonight. He couldn’t think of a better way to show her how serious he was than to prove their connection was way beyond friendship, way beyond physical. To show her just how much he loved her. And he did. God help him; he loved her until it hurt. Tonight, he planned on peeling back her layers until she saw the same undeniable truth.

That she loved him, too.

He pressed a remote to open the garage and pulled the bike in. He parked and kicked the stand as Sadie let go of his middle.

“Where are we?” she asked

He allowed Sadie to climb off first, then he followed, pulling off his helmet.

“My dad’s,” he told her as she pulled off her helmet and smoothed her hair. “But not for long.”

*  *  *

Aiden unlocked the back door and Sadie slipped off her heels and followed him in. The kitchen was dark save for a light on the range above the stove, the only sound a ticking clock counting away the seconds.

Seconds until she’d be in Aiden’s arms again. A shiver of hair stood on her nape.

“My room’s through the den,” Aiden told her, his voice hushed. “Bathroom, too. Give me a minute.” He kissed her forehead and Sadie clutched her shoes to her chest.

Give him a minute to what? Find his dad and tell him he’d brought a girl home? There was a thought. She cringed, feeling sixteen and unsure of herself all over again.

Sadie scurried into the den, decorated in deep, forest-green carpeting and burgundy and cream plaid wallpaper. A rolltop desk and bar stood on one side of the room, a large leather wraparound couch and fireplace on the other. It was a guy’s space, furnished by Aiden’s dad, she guessed, given the deer head mounted on the wall. Ew. She made a face and entered the adjoining room, closing the door behind her with a quiet click.

This looked more like Aiden’s space. The furniture was more feminine than it should be—picked out by his late mother, she assumed—but Sadie could tell Aiden spent his time here. His shoes were lined against the wall, workout clothes tossed over the back of the desk chair, and a sleek black laptop rested next to a lamp near his bed.

His bed.

Never before had an unmade bed—with rumpled black bedding—looked so inviting. If Aiden could make her eyes roll back into her head in the corner of a banquet room, what could he do with all this space and a closed door?

Tonight she’d find out. She dropped her high heels on the floor and padded over the neutral gray carpet to the attached bathroom to freshen up. After she used the facilities, washed her hands, and repaired her helmet-head with damp fingers, Sadie stepped back into his room.

Aiden was sitting on his bed, but stood when he saw her, rubbing his palms down his suit pants in a nervous gesture. “Hey.”

“Hey.”

“I have everything ready.” He pointed to a rolled sleeping bag and duffel on the floor.

Sadie approached the pile of gear as warily as she would a cobra in a basket. Camping? Please, not camping. Sadie’s idea of camping was a cheap motel.

Aiden lowered his eyebrows as he studied her. “What’s wrong?”

“This makes it look like we’re braving the elements.” She gave him a pleading smile. “Can’t we just stay in here?”

He shook his head, stalking toward her with dark intent in his eyes. He glanced at the ceiling. “My dad’s room is over this one,” he said, keeping his voice low. “And I do not want your screaming to wake him up.”

Sadie’s eyes went wide. “Screaming?”

Aiden leaned forward and kissed her, a rough, possessive kiss as he slid his hands beneath her dress. His palms cupped her bottom and he lifted her, settling her onto his lap as he sat on the edge of the bed. She clutched his neck as she straddled his legs. “You don’t strike me as a girl who can keep it down during sex,” he whispered, his hot breath in her ear sending trails of goose bumps down her arms.

He moved his lips to hers.

“I can control myself,” she breathed against his mouth.

He kissed her again, deeper, with tongue.

“I mean, I think I can,” she breathed when he pulled away.

“Think so, huh?” Challenge flared in Aiden’s eyes. There was nothing she liked seeing more. He reached behind her and unzipped her dress, sliding her top to her waist. Sadie’s breaths came rapidly as he revealed her breasts. He stared for a few seconds before running his hands over her nipples. They peaked in response.

“Beautiful,” he murmured, leaning forward and laving her skin. His tongue circled one nipple, leaving it to cool as he moved his head to work on the other.

Sadie’s head dropped back on her neck. His fingers gently pinched one nipple as he suckled the other. It was too much. It wasn’t enough. She wiggled against him, aware of the high mewling sounds emitting from her throat as he tongued and pulled her. The pulse between her legs grew to a painful throb.

“Aiden,” she whispered. Or squeaked. She couldn’t quite get her vocal cords to do what she wanted them to.

He extracted her nipple with a soft pop, then darted his tongue around the bud, biting her ever so softly. She pressed her lips together to keep the cry from pushing out of her throat. Aiden smiled against her skin, knowing he had her, and did it again, this time pinching her other nipple in tandem. She bucked against him and let out a brief whimper she was powerless to hold in.

He took the sound as encouragement to continue and dove back in, pinching, licking, suckling, and pulling as Sadie clutched on to the back of his head for support. Then she was flying apart, releasing his head to cup her mouth with both hands to keep from wailing Aiden’s name at the top of her lungs.

She collapsed against his shoulder, one arm holding on to his neck, one palm secured over her mouth. She dropped her hand only when she was sure she wouldn’t yell the word more!

Aiden swept his hands up her back and held her against him. When she finally had the strength to lift her head, she found him grinning to beat all.

“Fine,” she said, giving in. “Let’s go camping.”

*  *  *

Aiden had brought Sadie to the tree house behind his parents’ house last year. She hadn’t seen what he’d done to it since and he found himself excited to show it to her.

But he was more excited for what he’d get to do to her after.

She climbed the wooden slats to the top, commenting they were easier than the rope ladder she’d scaled the last time she was here. He let her go ahead of him, shouldering the duffel and sleeping bag as he kept his eyes securely fastened to her butt as she climbed.

Every inch of this woman was more beautiful than the last. Aiden could hardly wait to have her completely nude and beneath him tonight. And on top of him. And in front of him. He didn’t want Sadie in any way…he wanted her in every way. Heart, soul, body, and mind. With any luck, this trip to the tree house would pave the way for getting what he wanted long-term, too.