“I don’t trust you,” March then said. It hurt, even if I expected it.
“I know,” I said anyway. “You don’t have to.Itrustyou.” And that had to be enough, at least for right now.
Suddenly he was in front of me, his hand around my jaw.
Suddenly there were barely two inches between our chests, and the rhythm of our breathing matched.
Suddenly March’s other hand was around the side of my waist, and he was pulling me inside his room.
The door behind me closed—maybe he pushed it with his foot. But my back was against it the next second, and March was there still. March was everywhere around me, overwhelming all my senses, and my hands found their way onto his naked chest. His heart beat as fast as mine underneath my palm.
Hearing it, my skin didn’t feel as tight as a moment ago.
“Tell me, then. Tell me to my face. What is it that you want?” he whispered against my lips, and I had raised my head a little, too. “I’ll know if you lie. I’llknow.”
“I want…”
Words escaped me. I knew if I said anything other than the truth, hewouldknow. I knew he would never let me stay—and I needed to stay.
Butwhat wasthe truth?
I licked my lips. Tried to pick it apart. Said, “I want to belong to you so I don’t have to belong to me.” For tonight—and maybe for tomorrow, too. This was the only truth I knew to put into words right now.
March closed his eyes. Breathed in deeply, held the air in his lungs. He still held my face and my waist. His heart stillbeat faster than mine, which had calmed down somewhat by his proximity.
I wanted to give him time, except I couldn’t really wait much longer. The suspense was killing me, so I said, “March.” His eyes opened, pupils dilated. “Will you have me?” A simple question. That way he could sayyesornoand there wouldn’t be any more wondering.
But March searched my face like he was trying to memorize it, instead of deciding my fate for me. Because that’s what this felt like. I was at his mercy.
“You’re trying to escape yourself,” he said. “I will not be where you go to hide.” Yet he still stayed there, his hands on me, his eyes on my face, red and brown and beautiful.
Time’s Teeth, he was making this really hard on me—but I wasn’t about to give up. I couldn’t—where would I even go, if I wasn’t here?
So I licked my lips and said, “You say you’ll know if I lie, right?” He nodded, jaw clenching. “Here’s my truth, then: I never feel more at ease being me than when I’m standing next to you.”
Surprise registered in his eyes. He looked at me like he was shocked for a second, and whatever he saw in my face softened his expression.
“There. That’smytruth. Tell me yours and be done with it,” I added. But my knees were still shaking and they wouldn’t stop until I knew if he wanted me to stay or leave.
March raised his brows. “My truth?” he asked, and that little grin that crept up his face was different. My heart skipped a little beat. “My truth is that I miss you, and I want to hate you because of it, but somehow that only makes me miss you more. It’sthatsenseless.”
Even though he smiled, I knew he was hurting.
Something inside me was missing. I felt the clear space where it had been before.I knewI wanted to hurt with him,but instead the only pain I felt was from the size of that emptiness.
“Kiss me, Heartling.” So that maybe that way we could both stop. Maybe that way we could both escape.
For once, March obeyed. His lips crashed against mine.
The way the world fell away within seconds must have been magic. My arms wrapped around his neck and I fell against his chest, completely surrendered. Ihadtold him the truth—the entire truth. I was never more comfortable than when he had his arms around me tightly like this. It was never easier to be me. I was just glad he believed me, considering he openly told me he didn’t trust me.
His tongue in my mouth tasted likeeverything.I’d never thought about the Everstill much before but I was sure this was better. His lips were soft, his teeth gentle as they grazed mine. His hands moved up and down my back, then he squeezed my ass, pressed me hard against himself with a moan that I felt all the way to my bones.
There was nothing in the world like March, if I’d had doubts until now. Nothing at all.
Then he let go of me all of a sudden.
I wasn’t able to stand by myself without losing balance, so I fell against the door and watched him, surprised, aroused, burning with need. Holy Hour, he looked better than anything my eyes would ever witness. Tousled hair, naked torso, and that bulge in his pajama bottoms from his hard cock…
