“It’s okay,” I breathe, leaning forward and softly pressing my lips to his forehead, his cheek—careful to avoid his lips. We haven’t kissed, and even though I want to so badly it hurts, I won’t make him cross that boundary. “Everything is going to be okay.”
His gaze trails along my face as if he’s making a mental map of every curve, every freckle. “Emmy,” he croaks, his voice rough like he hasn’t spoken in days.
“I’m here,” I whisper.For you, I’ll always be here.
When his large palm covers my hand and squeezes, I inch closer.
The longer I stare, the more I get lost in him. His expression is so pained, his muscles tensing against me and his skin burning hot. “You left me,” he rasps, his grip finding my waist and pulling me in tight. “I don’t know why I can’t—I can’t fucking breathe—”
“Shh ...” I tilt his chin up and run my tongue across the thumping pulse in his neck. A swallow moves down his throat. Bringing my lips to his ear, I tangle my hands in his hair. “I couldn’t leave you if I tried. Don’t you know that? You’re a part of me now. You’ve always been a part of me.”
A tremble vibrates from his body to mine, like a tangible current in our souls. It’s the most divine thing I’ve ever felt. Without thinking, I lean back, lift my hand, and drag my fingernails down my upper arm the way I once did to him. Specks of crimson illuminate my skin, seeping from my wound as if pulled toward him.
He lets out a broken groan as he stares, mesmerized.
“Do you see it?” I whisper, running a finger over my cut and tracing it down his warm neck. He wears me like I was made for him. “Do you see yourself in me?”
His eyes squeeze shut, his fingers slipping to my hips and digging into me like he can’t get me close enough. When his breathing gets hard, rough, he grinds me against him. A warm flutter zips between my thighs. He’s just trying to close the gap, but I want more. Doesn’t he know I want everything?
And in return, I’ll give him all of me.
I grab the bottom of my dress, sliding it a few inches up until it’s over my hips, then I wiggle and slip my panties off. His eyes snap open. He grits his jaw, his gaze trailing down my bare skin and leaving a shiver wherever it lands. But he doesn’t make a move to touch me. His body is stiff, and I wonder if he even can right now. Slowly, I reach between us and work his zipper.
We watch each other for a long minute, all the things I want to say to him racing through my head. I don’t know how to be sentimental. Not aloud anyway. Maybe that’s my biggest secret of all. Sometimes the feelings in my heart feel too large and delicate to release into the world. Sometimes it’s easier to say everything and nothing all at once.
Can I keep you?I silently ask from below my lashes, with nothing more than a heavy swallow.
Leaning closer, I blow on his skin and drag my nose against his stubble. I slide my palm to his chest. A solidthump, thump, thumpraces beneath my hand.
Will you let me into that place so deep your darkest secrets hide with ease?
The air thickens between us. Soon it’s a sweltering stream of sunshine coating our bodies. When I pull back and his gaze flicks between mine, there’s something I’ve never seen before. It’s exposed and vulnerable. It makes my chest pang in a way I’ve never felt. My lips part to breathe it in, and I swear I get high on Adam Matthews.
A shaky breath pours from his mouth, like he hears every word I can’t speak. Lifting his hips, he tugs his pants down. He tilts his head, skims his lips over my open wound. Then he presses his mouth to it so gently a tender ache swells inside my heart.
He’s inviting me in during his most exposed moment. Warmth seeps into my soul. For a moment, I’m lighter than someone so capable of darkness should be allowed.
I curl my hands around his neck. Then I lower myself onto him. My eyes flutter shut as he fills every inch of me. An agonized groan tears through him, and he angles his head to look at me. His hands find my ass and squeeze, but instead of keeping them there, he brings them higher, higher, until he’s cupping my face. He never breaks his gaze as I grind delicious circles, and my heart skips at the intimacy of it.
I’ve never been held like this during sex. I never expected something so small to be like an anchor keeping me bound to him.
After a second, I quicken my pace, and he drags one hand down to grip the nape of my neck; the other finds my waist. A long tremor ripples through his body, and hell, everything about him feels sogood. Mewls spill from my lips, one after the next, as the sensations build and build with every roll of my hips.
When I find his eyes, they’re hooded and consumed with raw hunger.
God, lust is scorching hot on him.
Throwing my head back, I grip his shoulders and ride him hard. Greedier than I’ve ever been. A rough noise rips through his chest, and he raises his hips, thrusting deep enough to make me gasp.
Soon, his hands drift to my hair, and he pulls my face to his. My rhythm slows, each movement more satisfying than the last. His eyes are intense as he holds me so close our parted lips brush. My breath fills his mouth, and he inhales each exhale like he needs them to survive.
And I think he might.
I think we both might.
It’s gradual the way ecstasy grips me this time, rolling through me in long, full waves. My nails dig into his shoulders, and moans fill the car as I ride him faster, chasing every drop of it.
He pulls my lower lip into his mouth, his hands guiding my ass and grinding my clit against him just right.
