“Shh.” His thumb caressed my cheek as he stopped my words in their tracks. “Don’t do that to yourself. What you went through was vile. You’re the strongest person I know.”
Staring at him, I could see he was sincere and hope bloomed in my chest, helping to snuff out the darkness.
“You m-mean you still want to be with m-me?” I stuttered in amazement, but I also needed to hear him say the words aloud.
Huntley sighed and a tender look glistened in his eyes. When he spoke, there was no hesitation. “Baby, I love you so much. I will always want to be with you.”
I bit down on my lip and then released it. “Even with my scars… inside and out? Because, Huntley, they’re not pretty.”
His other hand came up and he cupped both of my cheeks in his palms. “That’s where you’re wrong.Everythingabout you is beautiful, River.”
The love he had for me was still shining bright in his eyes even after everything I told him. Maybe we did have a future. My broken pieces started to heal even more but there was one thing we hadn’t talked about.
“Tell me,” he said softly.
He knew me so well.
“I’ve never…” I gulped, unable to get the words I needed out.
Now he was shaking his head. He again knew exactly what I was thinking. “It doesn’t matter.”
I looked at him in confusion.
“Of course it matters,” I told him.
He still held my cheeks and looked deep into my eyes. “Sweetheart, I’m just trying to say that if I have to jerk off for the remainder of my days, but I still get to kiss you, hold you, and have you in my life, then that’s all that matters.”
My eyes widened and I sputtered to speak.
Then instead, I started laughing hysterically.
Laughing. I was actually laughing at a time like this. The man in front of me would be the only one who could have made that happen after reliving my horrible past.
Huntley raised his brows.
Once I regained control and could stop laughing I said, “That’s going to go down in the history of the craziest, most absurd, romantic lines ever.”
The man looked sheepish for all of two seconds before he laughed along with me.
“But I don’t want you to,” I whispered, putting an abrupt end to his laughter.
He searched my eyes trying to decipher what I was saying.
“I want to get there with you.” Taking a deep breath, I pushed forward. “I trust you and you make me feel things I never thought I would. I want you to be able to make love to me.”
Huntley sucked in a breath. “You need to know that if or when we get to that point, it will be the first time. It will be a moment made from nothing but love.”
I hiccupped, the aftermath of my sobs still controlling my body.
Suddenly my guy’s eyes turned stormy, anger swirling intheir depths. Huntley dropped his hands from my face. Why wasn’t he touching me? I needed to feel him again. He grounded me, made me feel whole.
His jaw clenched. “I hate to ask but I need to know. What happened to the bastard?”
I blew out a breath. I hadn’t finished the story and he needed to hear this next part so he could move on.
“After I left your mother, I felt stronger. She did that.” I ran my hands up and down his legs trying to soothe him as I soothed myself. “I guess I just needed one person to care, to give me strength again. I went to a shelter and they helped me call the police.”
His eyes explored mine, asking for more.
