“What I see, baby, is that you just told my son he could have a permanent room upstairs so he wouldn’t feel like we were pushing him down into the basement.”
Shit. Shit. Shit.
“It was just the wrong choice of words. It didn’t mean anything,” I argue at once.
“Sweetheart, you can argue all you want, but you want this to happen between us. You want it almost as much as I do. Besides I love that you want Ty to feel comfortable here. That just makes me positive that being with you is the right choice—not that I doubted it for a minute. I have known what I wanted since I first let you get away. I spent months of my life terrified that I would never get the chance to prove to you that I could do better—bebetter. Now that I’m here, you have to know that I’m not walking away. I’m not letting you go without a fight, Beau Harper. I need you and I’m not going to rest until you need me just as much.” With his speech delivered he pulls back and smiles at me. “Now, eat up. I can’t have my woman starving herself.”
There’s a lot I could say in response to him. I end up not saying a damn word. First, I don’t really know what to say. Secondly, even if I did know, I don’t think Hunter would listen anyway.
I’m not really hungry, but of the options before me, I choose a turkey sandwich. I mentally put myself on auto pilot. I don’t know what to do, so for now, I’m just going to worry about everything tomorrow. For now, I just need to get through the night.
I think that might be easier said than done.
Chapter 16
Beau
I wake up feeling warm,comfortable, and relaxed all over. That’s not my norm at all. Usually, I’m tense as hell until I open my eyes, get my bearings and make sure all is as it should be. This is different. I feel safe. It’s a great feeling, but still immensely scary. Then, I feel fingers combing through my hair and recognize the sound of a heart beating in my ear. I close my eyes again, just as the warm sensation under the palm of my hand hits me. I squeeze my fingers closed, fighting against the way the warmth is hitting me. I gasp when I realize I’m holding onto something very large and wide, definitely warm, and hard—although soft enough to make my female parts tingle in ways they shouldn’t.
“Oh, God. Shoot me now.”
“Fuck, no. I’m waiting for you to finish what you started,” Hunter says, his voice sounding a deliciously sexy mix of sleepy and aroused and makes the inside of my thighs wet. “Although, small warning, babe. You keep squeezing my dick like that, I’m going to shoot my load much sooner than either one of us want.”
I jerk, instantly releasing him. “Um …”
I feel his hand slide along my neck. He puts just enough pressure against my skin to get me to lift my head to look athim. I know my cheeks are flaming red. I’m really not the kind of woman to blush—except apparently around Hunter. That sad fact fills me with anger. I just don’t know if the emotion is aimed at me or at him. I figure it might be a little of both.
“Don’t stop, baby,” he practically begs, his voice sweet, tender and more than a little sleepy. It’s beautiful and sexy as hell.
“This is a bad idea. You shouldn’t even be in my bed,” I argue, knowing that I’m on thin ice here and in very dangerous territory.
“This should have never stopped. The morning after we met, I should have woken you up in my bed, with my head buried between your legs, my tongue deep inside of you, as you came all over my face.”
I close my eyes, trying to fight the image his words evoke. I shiver again, but there’s nothing close to fear inside me.
Almost against my will my hand moves, sliding on his cock, keeping my grip firm. Immediately, I feel his warm, wet precum slide down on my hand. I whimper, biting my lip. I know I shouldn’t be doing this, but in a way, it makes me want it more. Everything about being close to Hunter is a giant red flag. Apparently, I can resist most anything but temptation and God, this man is that in spades.
“Hunter,” I whisper, sounding as lost as I suddenly feel.
“I know you’re scared. You have no reason to trust me, Beau, but I fucking swear that you are safe.”
I don’t believe him, but I don’t feel the need to tell him that. Instead, I try to concentrate on all the reasons why we shouldn’t do what Ireally, reallywant to. “Ty and Slider are here,” I remind him, my words coming out more like a whimper than a firm reminder of why we can’t do what we want.
“They were up all night. They’ll both sleep until we wake them. Right now, it’s just you and me, baby.”
“I’m scared,” I confess, and that admission is the hardest one I’ve ever made in my life.
He shifts to his side, leaning down, his mouth so close to mine that I can practically feel it. I lick my lips, trying to resist the urge to kiss him. “I hate that I hurt you. It may have taken me longer to clue into what we had between us, but I need you to know that I’m all in, Beau, sweetheart. I’m not going to hurt you. I will never push you away. I want you right here beside me. If I wasn’t serious, I would have never brought you into my child’s life. I want to build a life with you. Fuck that, I’mgoingto build a life with you, Beau. We’re going to raise Ty together and I’m going to give you more babies.”
I think my breath lodges in my chest. I can’t manage to say anything. I’m not even sure I can breathe. I just stare up at him like an idiot. I’m sure surprise, fear and shock are written all over my face. “Uh …”
Yeah, I was right. Speaking isn’t possible.
“Fuck it,” he growls.
My body jerks with his words.What does that mean? Is he giving up already?What feels suspiciously like panic hits me. Then, he pushes up. His body hovers over mine. He’s very careful as he braces his weight on his hands which are on each side of my body. I’m surrounded by him and I’m having trouble thinking clearly. “What … What are you doing?” I sputter.
“I’m doing what I’ve wanted to do since that horrible morning I woke up with my head in my ass,” he growls.
