“It’s okay,” she whispers.
She gently lifts Julian from my arms and kisses my forehead.I watch her as she settles him into his crib, then I stand and move in behind her.
“They are pretty fucking cute. I’m just saying,” I whisper in her ear. She snickers. “They also have a pretty hot mom.”
She laughs. I kiss her neck, and she moans.
“Honest question. How long do you think they’ll be asleep?”
“An hour, tops, I bet.” She smirks.
“I better make this hour count.”
“Count for what?” she asks, quirking an eyebrow.
Before I answer, I turn her around and crash my mouth against hers. She giggles as I grab her hand and lead her out of the room, closing the nursery door behind us. Walking down the hall, I can’t help myself. I pull her close, pressing her back against the wall beside the bedroom door. I cup her face and kiss her again, hungry and demanding. Wanting to explore her body, I slide my hands over the lingerie she’s wearing now. A thin black dress, mid-thigh, clinging to every curve, and the sight of it makes my cock strain hard against my sweats. My mouth waters.
I slide my hands down to the hem of her dress and start to pull it up. She looks up at me with those soft eyes, full of want. Her hands press against my cock, and she giggles.
“We haven’t done this in a while,” she says, teasing.
“No, we haven’t.” I smile at her. “I think we should head in there.” I tilt my head toward the bedroom.
She nods, and I take her hand, leading her inside. Once she’s through the door, I turn and close it behind us. I move her back until she’s leaning against it, then brace my hands on either side of her head, boxing her in. I kiss her again, slow and deliberate, before breaking away to tug her dress over her head and toss it to the floor.
She grabs my shirt and pulls it over my head.
I hook my fingers into the waistband of my sweatsand drag them down, boxers and all, kicking them aside. She slips her thong down her legs and steps out of it.
I smirk as I take her in. Her body hasn’t changed at all. If anything, she’s even more beautiful than I remember. Her skin is soft, warm beneath my hands, warmer than my memory, though that might just be the cold we’ve been living in lately. I let my gaze linger, really seeing her, and I notice how much she has changed over the last year.
The good changes. The scar on her stomach from giving birth to our kids. The quiet protectiveness in her eyes that wasn’t there before. And then there’s the ache I recognize too, the weight of the last year spent alone in this room. She won’t say it out loud, but I see it.
I grab her hand and pull her to the other side of the room, pushing her gently onto the bed. She settles back against the pillows the way she used to, almost every night back when I was home a year ago. The want is still there. The waiting too. It’s written all over her face.
She props herself up on her elbows, and I look down at her, wishing I could take the hurt away. I know it won’t be that simple. It will take time. But for tonight, she’s perfect. The woman I fell in love with. The woman I never want to leave again.
I lower myself over her, pressing my forehead to hers. “I’ve missed you so much, Vanessa. I never want to leave again.”
“I don’t want you to,” she says, the pain lingering in her eyes.
Her gaze trails down my body, and I know exactly what she sees. The small scars from the last year. She traces one with her fingers along my left arm, and I let out a slow breath, bracing myself for pity.
“Those bastards,” she whispers, but anger laces her tone.“Did they torture you like Gino said they did?”
I nod, unable to find the words. “It’s alright. I’ll live.”
“Mateo, that’s not the point,” she says, her voice tight. “They hurt you. They did unspeakable things to you.”
“I know,” I whisper.
Her eyes harden. “I want to kill them. Truly. What did they do to you?”
I smile softly at her. “Who knew you’d get feisty about my health.”
She gives me that deadpan look of annoyance I love. “Of course I’m feisty. There were way too many days where I thought you were dead.”
“I know.” My voice is quiet. “There are things I’m not ready to talk about yet, but I’ll tell you this. They tried really hard to get information out of me. They did everything but kill me. They tortured me, questioned me, tried to force me to confess to things that never happened.”
