“You know what I realized?” My voice comes out low, rough, thick with everything I’ve been holding back.
She shakes her head, eyes wide, breath caught in her throat.
“When I’m not with you, everything hurts. Especially my heart. It sounds cheesy as hell, but it’s true. It’s the only way I can explain it.”
Her lips part, and her eyes shimmer in the porch light. “I know.”
Her fingers—cold from the night air—brush over my mouth, a fleeting touch that undoes me.
“Sam, I’ve been such an idiot.” Her voice quivers. “I love you so much, and I should have told you long ago. I have no excuse other than I was scared—not of you or us, but of me. Of losing myself again. But I realize now…you and I aren’t Olivia and Pete. We never were. You’re different. You make me different. Every day, you make me a better person than I was the day before.”
Something inside me fractures and reforms all at once. The last of the doubt, the lingering ache, the worry, they all fade under the weight of her words.
I step up the final two stairs, cupping her face in my palms. “I love you too.” My forehead presses against hers. “And I swear to you, Liv, you’ll never lose yourself with me. You’ll only ever find more of who you already are.”
Unable to leave it at that, I need her to know it all, to feel it.
“And we may be in different cities right now,”—I brush a loose strand of hair from her face—“but you know what? My career, my restaurants, they’re important, yeah. Though none of it means a damn thing without you and your kids. If I don’t have you, none of it matters. My grandparents, Bas, Alec, they taught me that family’s everything. It’s the only thing that counts. And, Olivia…” I swallow, the emotion thick in my throat. “You are my family.”
Her eyes glisten, her lips trembling with a smile that hits me like sunrise. “And you’re mine.”
Her breath catches as I kiss her, slow and deep, the kind of kiss that says everything. The kind that seals a promise.
Her hands slide up into my hair, pulling me closer, and when I break away, it’s only to look at her, really look at her. The woman who’s seen me through grief, who’s given me a second chance at something I didn’t think I’d ever have again.
Then she kisses me, slow and deep, and every thought I had about restraint goes out the window. She wraps her legs around my waist, and I grip her tighter, losing myself in her warmth.
She rocks against me, her heat searing through the thin layers between us. My hands slide down, cupping the perfect curve of her ass, pulling her closer, needing her closer.
“Fuck,” I groan into her mouth, barely managing to form the words, “Alec and Paige are inside waiting for me to make dinner.”
She pulls back slightly, her forehead resting against mine, her breath shaky. Her lashes lift, revealing eyes dark and molten with desire. “When are they expecting you back?”
“Soon.” I catch her bottom lip between my teeth. “But I could be…another twenty minutes or so.”
Her grin is wicked, her gaze darting to the side door. “How do you feel about the garage? It’ll be chilly, but I bet I could warm you up real quick.”
My cock twitches and lengthens at her seductive grin. “I thought you’d never ask.”
She pulls me into the dark, cold space, and the moment the door shuts, she lunges at me. We’re all lips, teeth, tongues, arms, and legs as I pull her pants down and bend her over the workbench. Her luscious ass is up and out for me, begging to be palmed and squeezed as I ram my cock hard and deep into her.
Livvy’s on the pill, and I’m clear. We’ve already had the talk, but fuck, to be honest, I would be over the moon if I knocked her up.
We haven’t talked about kids, and it’s not a deal-breaker for me, but this woman is my everything. The love of my life. My heart and soul. If I could add mother of my children to that list, I’d crow like a cock.
By the dim light, I watch my dick move in and out of her sweet pussy, her beautiful ass matching my rhythm. Bendingover her, I roll her taut nipple with my thumb and forefinger through the fabric of her clothes, gently tugging as my other hand mercilessly rubs her clit.
She struggles to keep her whimpers quiet, and as much as I love having her come apart, it’s best to keep this on the down low. The last thing we need is Alec or Paige coming out to investigate the noise.
Talk about a serious mood killer.
She clenches and spasms around my cock, climaxing, and my release is upon me. My body tenses, every nerve ending alive. My orgasm rips through me at the same time Olivia wails my name. Fortunately, I have enough mental function to clamp my hand over her mouth before anyone hears her.
We cling to each other, her body pressed against mine, and I revel in how good it is to have her in my arms. She bestows heavy, languid kisses on me, and we murmur words of love and promises of a future.
“Sam.” Paige shifts on the sofa.
“Hmm,” I answer absently, eyes glued to my laptop screen, scrolling through the documents Bas’s lawyer emailed earlier.
