Shifting onto his back, he pulls me with him. I lift my leg and move to straddle him. I’m still wearing the sage green dress I picked out for our date night. He slips the fabric up my thighs, then over my hips. After lifting my arms in the air, he removes my dress and tosses it aside. The warm air of Holt’s apartment soothes the remaining parts of me still carrying the chill of the night.
I rock my hips, grinding against Holt’s hardened muscles. Pressing my palms to his chest, I stare down at him, knowing I’ve never loved anyone the way I do him.
He sees me in a way no one ever has.
“I just realized something,” I say in a low voice, unbuttoning his shirt.
“What’s that?” he rasps. His vibrating hands run impatiently up and down my thighs, sending an electric jolt straight to my core.
I moan, quickly sticking my tongue out to swipe across my lips while gathering my bearings. I tuck my bottom lip under my teeth then bend forward. The little knot in my lower stomach tightens, knowing in just a few short weeks or months, I won’t be able to bend over as easily as this.
I plant a kiss on his mouth before hovering my lips over the shell of his ear. His breath dances across my neck, and I fight for self-control when I whisper, “You kept a secret from me, and you know what happens when we keep secrets, Mr. Capuleti.”
His heated breath brushes against my skin with more force when his hands move to cover both my ass cheeks. He squeezes them before I sit up. A yelp makes its way out of my throat when he tosses me back onto the bed and settles between my legs. With his knees bent, he begins unbuckling his belt and unzipping his pants. His blue eyes shine in the late-night city lights pouring through the window. Once he’s freed his cock from his pants and boxer briefs, he falls forward, pressing one hand into the mattress beside my head. I raise my chin, craving him.
He places a soft, gentle kiss to the tip of my nose.
“We’ll get to your punishment a little later, Wallflower,” he drawls in a deep voice. “But right now… right now I intend on showing you just what you mean to me, and that I’m never letting you go.”
“So,” I tease. “What you’re saying is that we’re stuck with you forever?”
His devious grin fades only for a moment, noticing how I saidweinstead of justme. His smile quickly reappears, lighting me up from the inside out.
“Forever,Wallflower.”
He sinks his cock inside me, and I arch my back, gasping as he fills me. I moan, never feeling more loved or worshipped than I do in this moment.
I guess I was wrong.
Love can be trusted.
THIRTY-TWO
HOLT
One month later
The scent of freshly brewed coffee hits my nose the second I open the door, and while I’m craving caffeine, I’m craving something else more.
I find her sitting in the corner near the bookshelf littered with old, worn leatherbound books. She’s sitting in the aged, light brown, leather armchair, with her laptop resting on the edge of the round, wooden table in front of her. Her blonde hair is pulled into a high messy bun, and her pretty mouth is twisted in thought. She’s resting one hand over her growing stomach. This sight of her makes me fucking weak in the knees. I place my hand over my heart, knowing if I was to die right now, I’d die happy knowing this was the last thing I’d get to see.
It’s been one month since the encounter with Rhys on my yacht and, as promised, he’s been silent. So have I. Nearly losing Selene put a lot of my priorities into perspective. At times, it’s been difficult to wrap my head around the truth and how I’ll never see justice served to Rhys’s father. But the thought is only momentary.
In the end, I guess Rhys’s father did get justice. He’s deadand long forgotten. Even Rhys doesn’t carry out the same desire for vengeance. At least not on the level of his father.
But knowing he’s dead has made it easier to move on.
Selene’s focus lifts from her laptop screen when she sees me approaching, and her mouth stretches into an effortless smile.
“Hey,” she greets in a sing song voice. “About time you showed up.”
“I’m so sorry, Wallflower.” I bend to plant a kiss on her mouth, stealing her smile. I wrap my hand gently on her jaw, tilting her face up. “I got stuck in a meeting with the anonymous column staff.”
“How’s that going?” she asks, sitting back in her chair.
I sit in the chair across from her, with the small, wooden table and her open laptop between us.
“Fine.” I sigh, pinching the bridge of my nose. “Now that I’ve hired a new copy editor whose sole job is to vet the articles submitted to be published.”
