I only had the wherewithal to shake my head into the mattress and submit to whatever fate David had planned.
He made a noise of pure lust. I braced myself, but his hand fell away and he fed his cock into my pussy again with a loud groan. “Goddamn,” he rasped and powered into me. He filled his need, showing me how much my body could take. His balls-deep thrusts leveled me onto the bed and ground me against the mattress until another orgasm threatened.
“I can’t, it’s too much,” I whimpered.
“You can,” he said, unrelenting.
I gripped the bed with white knuckles, and despite my protests, my body sang for him. With one hand clasped over my shoulder, he continued fucking me, through my orgasm and after it, until he came vigorously again, filling me with his heat.
He crumpled onto my back, heaving, and buried his mouth into my neck. “It’s all for you,” he whispered hoarsely, his breath tickling my ear. He slid his hands up my arms and settled them over mine at the edge of the mattress. “You’re everything,” he said, repeating it as he unhooked my fingers and laced them with his. “Don’t shut me out, baby. I need you. I need this.”
The sheer need and hints of sadness in his voice brought tears to my eyes that I didn’t have the energy to fight. With my body limp on the mattress, I shuddered underneath him, hiding my face in the pillow.
“Shh,” he said, stroking my hair with one hand. “I’m so sorry she came here. Forgive me.”
He lifted off me and kissed my shoulders tenderly. Once I could move again, I took my time turning onto my back. David sat against the headboard, breathing heavily, watching me with steepled knees. “It’s over with Maria. I swear, Olivia. I didn’t know she’d come here. I didn’t know that all these years, she thoughtshewould be the one. I told her it’s over. I took her keys away. Please. Don’t leave.”
The pained expression on his face killed me. I only wanted to kiss it away. I climbed onto his lap and straddled him. Being sore and swollen made it uncomfortable to sit on him, but I didn’t care. I wanted us as close as possible. He answered with an all-consuming hug, clinging to me like I was a buoy in stormy waters.
“I know it’s complicated,” I said softly. “Everything is so complicated. But I need to know. Do you still love her?”
He drew back to look me in the face and exhaled a short laugh. “Love? What makes you think I love her?”
“After three years, David? You just told me she has keys to your place, and . . .” I forced the depressing words out, barely managing a whisper. “I heard you out there. You told her you love her.”
“Just now?” he asked. “Olivia, I love her as a person, I won’t deny that. But I’ve never beeninlove with her. I didn’t love her or any of them, my sweet, sweet girl,” he said, squeezing me. “It never occurred to me . . . if I’d known you thought that, I would’ve told you from the start that I didn’t love her.”
I believed him. But I could also understand if Maria had thought she was getting more than David had to give. Wasn’t I the same, falling blindly in love with a man who could change course at any moment?
“I’m sorry I locked you out,” I said.
“I’m sorry I was so rough with you,” he said, sliding his palm up my back. “I’ve never been that out of control. You reduce me to a fucking animal.”
“I like it,” I said with a small smile. “I like that you need me like I need you.”
He nudged my chin up with his nose and kissed the underside of my jaw.
“And I actuallylikedbeing restrained,” I added softly, eyes up to the ceiling. I’d never entertained the idea, thinking I’d hate being at another person’s mercy.
“I knew you would,” he murmured.
“How?” I asked.
“You want me to take control.”
“But . . .” I’d gone through great measures to ensure I was in charge of my emotions. “I always like being in control.”
“Not wanting to give up control is not the same as wanting to be in control.”
I nodded, awed by his ability to pinpoint how I felt better than I could.
“You’d tell me to stop if it was too much?” he asked.
“Yes,” I promised. “But it’s not.”
“Sometimes, you have to let go, and let me take over, Olivia. I want it, and I’m not just talking about sex.”
I shuddered involuntarily. To agree would be so easy, but I forced myself to see the reality of what he was saying. Letting him take the reins and giving myself over to him was too tempting. It edged me closer to the brink of completely drowning in him. “I know you want to be gentle with Maria,” I said. “And I’m sorry if I’ve cost you a friend. But I’m terrified you’ll suddenly change your mind and this will all go away.Terrified.”
