I leaned down and kissed the top of her head, closing my eyes as I wrapped my arms around the woman I loved with every damn thing inside of me.

I wanted to shout it from the rooftops. I wanted to tattoo it on my butt cheek. I wanted to shake her awake and scream it at the top of my lungs so she could hear me. And then I wanted to make love to her.

I didn’t want to f**k her. I didn’t want to screw her. I wanted to make sweet, sweet, Marvin Gaye style love to her.

But given the way Vivian was snoring, I didn’t see her waking up anytime soon. To be fair, we had had a pretty intense night.

But I was antsy and restless. I wanted to share with her my amazing realization. Okay, okay, I also wanted to put my dick inside her. I was only human.

I was an impatient man and I didn’t do waiting.

I rolled Vivian on her back and latched my mouth onto her breast.

“Ahh,” she moaned, instantly awake.

“Good morning,” I mumbled around a mouthful of nipple.

“What the hell?” Vivian groaned as I dipped my hand between her legs. She was ready. Shit, she was always ready.

God, I loved her.

She threaded her fingers through my hair, pulling gently. Her body moved languidly, still half asleep.

I grabbed a condom from the pile Vivian had to snag from Gracie’s room last night and quickly put it on.

Vivian’s eyes were heavy lidded, her lips parted as she breathed erratically. Her hair was all over the place.

And I wanted her so badly I thought I’d die from it.

I slid slowly and surely inside her. She wrapped her legs around my hips as I started to thrust.

“I love you, Viv. So f**king much,” I moaned, holding onto her hips as I pounded into her.

She didn’t say anything. I didn’t think much of it. My entire focus was on my need to come.

I wanted her to go first though. I couldn’t come without her. I reached down and pressed my thumb to her clit and started to rub. She arched up off the bed, her thighs tightening around me.

I changed the angle and continued to use my thumb to work her over. And then she was screaming and I was screaming and we were exploding in one giant orgasm.

I collapsed on top of her, my c**k still bedded deep inside her. We were breathing nosily, Vivian’s arm covering her eyes.

Suddenly she shoved me. “Get off me, dickhead,” she hissed. I pulled out of her, my dick cursing me for taking it away from the only place it wanted to be.

She rolled over to face the wall. I quickly took off the condom and tried to find some place to put it. I thought about going for a three pointer into the wastebasket across the room but knew, given the look on Vivian’s face that would completely set her off.

In the end I wrapped it in some tissue and put it underneath her Cosmo magazine. I only hoped she found it after I had left.

“What’s the problem, Viv?” I asked, frowning. I should have known nothing with this chick was ever easy. I gently rolled her onto her back and I leaned over her.

“What did you say to me?” she demanded.

My frown deepened. “I asked you what your problem was.” Vivian pulled the blanket up to cover her tits and I wanted to mourn the loss of them.

She slid over to the edge of the bed and sat up. “No, before that.”

I ran my hand through my hair. I really needed to get it cut.

Focus, Cole, focus! You’re walking into a minefield!

“Uh, um. . .” I stammered, not sure what she was getting at. Sex fried my brain. It wouldn’t be functioning at full steam for at least twenty minutes. This was a dangerous time for yours truly when confronted by an angry female of the Vivian Baily variety.

“You said you loved me, dumbass!” she yelled, her eyes narrowed and her mouth pursed.

I grinned. Oh now I remembered.

“Yeah, I did,” I said, running my fingers down her face. She smacked my hand away and glared.

“How can you say something like that? During a time like that? Are you stupid as well as narcissistic?”

I was so confused. Weren’t those three little words what every woman longed to hear?

I wanted to tell her so I did. I thought she’d be overjoyed. I thought it would bring us closer.

I sure as shit hadn’t expected her to kick me out.

Because that’s exactly what she was doing.

“You need to leave. I can’t deal with you right now.”

What?

“Hold up! Vivian, calm down a sec,” I started but she was shaking her head furiously. And then she was getting dressed and covering the body that I had just worshipped and adored.

“No, you can’t come in here being all sugary and wonderful. You can’t sweet talk me and tear me down like this. And you sure as hell can’t tell me you love me while f**king me! You’re messing with my head, Cole! I can’t let you keep doing this to me!”

She was getting seriously worked up. I jumped out of bed, not worried about the fact that I was still naked and semi-hard.

I grabbed her by her upper arms to try to stop her from walking out of the room.

“I’m not messing with your head, Viv. I meant it. Okay, so maybe it was bad timing. But I love you. I really do,” I said softly, running my hand through her hair.

I didn’t often do tender but I was trying. For her I’d do just about anything.

Vivian shook her head again. What was so complicated about this? Why the f**king drama?

“This is just like you, Cole! You can’t use sex; you can’t use me, to hide from the stuff going on in your life. This has always been our problem, can’t you see that?”