“You never felt this way before about this town,” I state.
“No…” She catches my eyes, and the telltale signs are there.
She never felt this way before, until I left.
God knows how many people she has watched walk out of her life.
I bite my lip before I almost blurt out the truth of why I left.
My priority is Ellie. I can’t let my attention waver from her. That girl is my everything.
But nine years ago, so was this one sitting in front of me. A girl then. A woman now who has walls and boundaries in place that she’s scared of letting slip.
“Your father handed you the short straw,” I tell her. “That’s why it feels as though you’re not getting anywhere.”
Another beat of silence passes before she says, “You’re right. When you were around, I didn’t want to leave.” She pauses. “All I wanted was for you to stay. And I trusted that you would.”
Trust is a big thing to Hart. I know that. She didn’t have much of it to give when we first met, but my honesty caught on to her.
Because Iwashonest about everything. My feelings toward her felt like I could take on the whole world.
And then the whole world came to a standstill when I was given the chance to be a father.
A tear rolls down her cheek, and it takes everything in me to not dab it away for her. “For a second there I thought you were different and actually kept to your word. But you proved to be exactly the same.” She shoots up from the chair and rushes over to the door.
“Hart.”
The door handle is tricky. I haven’t got around to renovating the study just yet.
“Hart!”
She tries the door more aggressively, tugging like she’s trapped in a room with a murderer. I take off after her, and my hand accidently locks around her wrist.
I feel the breath leave her body.
Feel the way she both tenses and relaxes around my touch. The familiarity is both nostalgic and dangerous, and it’s like she doesn’t quite know which feeling to lean into.
She tries to pull away.
I yank her right back to me—we’re not finished talking yet.
Her body flush against mine shatters everything, and before I know it, my mouth is colliding with hers.
I slip my tongue into her mouth. Hers is already there to meet me, welcoming me with warm strokes that send bolts of electricity fizzling through me.
One taste makes it impossible to stop.
So, we keep going.
I throw her up against the door and cage her against it, trailing kisses down the neck and collarbone I have missed so dearly. Fuck, her scent is everywhere, that same fresh floral scent I remember being obsessed with long ago.
“Fuck,” she pants between breaths she’s unable to get under control. “Why does this feel better than before?”
“Contrary to popular belief—age enhances everything.” I silence her with another kiss, slipping my tongue back into her hot mouth.
Everything roars to life, including my cock, which is already painfully hard.
I decide I don’t want her pressed up against my furniture anymore, but on it. And since the chair is the first thing in sight, I rip her away from the wall and set her down on it.
