Sure, we’ve hugged before, but it’s never been more than a fleeting, casual embrace.
Never anything like this.
And I know that whatever fucked up shit I’ve done to her lately was clearly a step in the right direction.
“Thank you, Noah,” she whispers.
I hold back a groan as my name leaves her lips.
Fuck, just how many times have I fantasized about holding her like this? How many times have I imagined feeling her body against mine like I am right now?
It would be so easy,sofucking easy to drop the façade and take her right here and now like my body is aching for me to do, but I need to exercise restraint.
I can’t kiss her like I want to.
I can’t let my hands wander down to her ass and squeeze her through her leggings like I want to.
I can’t strip off her clothes and bend her over the sofa while I pound into her from behind before I wrap my hand around her?—
Nope.
I can’t think like that.
I can’t let my thoughts wander when she’s so close and my resolve is this close to breaking.
She trusts me, more than anyone else.
She came to me when she could have gone to a number of other people.
And I won’t break that trust.
Well, no more than I already am.
For now, I’ll just have to be her friend and hold back the impulses I have when I’m with her as myself.
I can do this.
For her, I can do anything.
“Don’t ever thank me, little one. I’ve got your back.”
She pulls away and looks up at me, a small smile gracing her lips that does nothing to ease the temptation to kiss her.
Her green eyes sparkle and I get lost in them for a moment, so fucking thankful that she’s in my life.
I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t in love with her, and it’s been painful, not having her with me.
But I wouldn’t change a thing.
Not. A. Single. Thing.
Because I’m pretty sure this was always the way things were meant to go.
We have to get through the hard times to get to a good place.
We have to travel through the dark to get to the light.
“I knew coming to you was the right thing to do.”
