My stomach rumbled, reminding me I hadn’t had anything to eat since I’d taken an early lunch. “It’s not exactly an olive branch, but I suppose it’ll do.”
“You can go back to hating me tomorrow.” She leaned against the wall and took a bite of her sandwich.
I stared at her, wondering if that’s really how she thought I felt about things.
“What?” she asked, wiping at the corner of her mouth. “Do I have mayo on my face?”
“No. I just can’t believe you said that. Do you really think I hate you, Pey?”
“Don’t you?”
The light from the lantern was just bright enough for me to catch the flash of hurt in her eyes before she looked away. I reached up and cupped her chin to turn her face back toward me. “No. I’ve never stopped…”
I caught myself before I slipped. Being this close to her, inhaling the sweet scent of her perfume, old feelings bubbled up to the surface.
A tiny wrinkle appeared between her brows. “Never stopped what?”
Fuck it. I didn’t have anything to lose anymore, not after I’d lost what mattered most. I plowed ahead, tearing down the internal barriers I’d constructed to protect myself. “I’ve never stopped loving you. Not even when you let me walk away. Not even when you didn’t fight for us.”
Her eyes shimmered as they filled with tears. “Let you walk away? What are you talking about?”
“I waited for you to stand up for me. To believe me when no one else did, but you never showed. Did you really think I was the one who spray painted that building?” The evidence had been stacked against me when they found three half-empty cans of spray paint in the back of my truck, but I’d been innocent. Anyone could have tossed those cans in there at any time, but since I wasn’t willing to tell the sheriff where I’d been that night, I didn’t have an alibi.
“You were with me that night.”
“That’s right, Pey. Your dad would have locked you in your room until you turned thirty if he knew you’d been sneaking out to meet me. I didn’t expect you to admit we’d been together, butI thought you might have stood up for me.” I’d been left on my own to figure out what to do. When one of the most influential men in town painted a target on my back, I didn’t stand a chance.
“I didn’t know what was happening. My dad said you were caught red-handed. You never even said goodbye.”
“That’s because he made damn well sure I didn’t get the chance. He might not have known everything that happened between us, but he knew enough that he wanted to get me out of town. He made a deal with the sheriff. If I left quietly, he wouldn’t press charges.”
“I’m so sorry. I thought you left me.” Tears streaked down her cheeks. “I would have told him the truth if it would have saved you.”
“What about now?” I asked. Fifteen years of locked up emotion surged through me as I looked into her eyes. The anger dissipated. How could I be mad at her for giving up on us when her dad had played her just as easily as he’d played me?
Her palm rested on my chest, right over the heart that had only ever beat for her. “Now I feel like we’ve wasted so much time.”
I couldn’t hold back. My hands moved up to cup her cheeks. I tilted her head to more easily capture her mouth with mine. It was time to sweep all the regrets of my past away. Time for Peyton and me to pick up where we left off.
The heat between us built with each touch, each moan, and each kiss. I’d dreamed about this moment for too long and now it was here. She was different, yet the same. We fell back into the same easy rhythm we’d always had between us. It was like we were back in high school and couldn’t get enough of each other.
Her palms slid under my shirt and I sucked in a ragged breath as her fingers touched my skin. She was mine again, rightback where she belonged, and I was going to remind her how good it had been between us… how good it could be now.
I took our kiss deeper, tangling my tongue around hers while I peeled her shirt up and over her head. My cock strained against my jeans as she yanked my shirt off and pressed her tits into my chest.
“Fuck, Peyton,” I growled into her mouth. “I’ve missed you, baby.”
“I missed you too.” She laid back on the tarp, pulling me down with her. “Take off your pants. I need you inside me now.”
Chuckling, I did as I was told. She’d never been shy about telling me what she wanted. I was glad to see that hadn’t changed. Kneeling over her, I tugged her pants over her hips, taking her underwear with them.
“I wish I could see you right now.” Bending over her, I trailed kisses across her belly while I reached behind her and unclasped her bra. “You’re so beautiful, Pey.”
“You don’t need to be able to see me.” She put her hands under my arms and tried to tug me up for another kiss. “A lot’s happened in fifteen years. My butt got bigger, my hips got wider, and my belly grew.”
“And you think I give a shit about any of that?” I ran my hands over her stomach and held onto her thick hips. “I love you just the way you are. Always have, baby.”
“You sure you’re not just saying that to get laid?” She tried to tease, but I heard the insecurity underneath her laugh.
