This was what things should have been like between the two of them months ago; that he'd been so patient as to wait on it, to keep his focus so entirely on her, through those long months was something that, even at this moment, amazed him. It would necessarily amaze others; not his folks or his sister; not his teammates; not his best friends. They had watched him as he had always single-mindedly persued his wants without concern for setbacks.

Drawing her closer, he caught her lips against his own. Eyes slid shut even as he nudged Drake away from them again (times like these he couldn't stand that beast).

"Yeah, lucky man," he agreed against her mouth, his hands once more roaming along her contours with a complete lack of the reserve he'd shown in the past.

Hey, the word boyfriend - and thus her as girlfriend - didn't mean just anything. It meant that touching and roaming and feeling were allowed. And by golly, he was going to take full advantage of those new terms.