CHAPTER FOURTEEN
MARIANNAFOUNDSIMON’Shand and led him silently back to the bedroom they had slept in. The unmade bed welcomed them back, the words from moments before still echoing in the quiet room. Slowly, he undressed at the side of the bed, and she did, too, sitting a little apart from him, as if they had done this thousands of times before. But they hadn’t.
She lay back in the covers in the warmth of the afternoon. Simon didn’t move closer. He leaned his forearms on his thighs and shook his head.
“I don’t trust myself with you right now, Mari,” he said. “I’m scared I won’t stop until I find what I’m looking for.”
“What are you looking for?”
“I’m not sure if either of us wants to go there.”
Marianna shook her head. “That’s where you’re wrong.”
He turned to her. His green eyes darkened, burning into her.
“Then I’ll just say it. I’m in love with you, Mari,” he said, his voice ragged. “If anything had happened today...shit.”
He winced and looked at the floor. “Today scared the hell out of me. If anything had gone wrong, I don’t know what I would have done.”
She drew in an unsteady breath. There had been so much to lose. She had felt it, too, in Goodwin’s office. But that was over. Right now, it was just them, untangling the layers of want and fear to see if they could find a new path.
“We start building right now, Simon,” she said, reaching for him, running her hands up the tense muscles of his arms. “I don’t want to waste any more time.”
Simon turned to her, his gaze hot, alive. His fingers brushed against her cheek. “None of my time with you is wasted. I can’t tell you how fucking crazy I am for you.”
“Then show me.”
His kiss came hard and fast, hungry, devouring. He rolled her onto her back and trapped her with his body, his hands rough, desperate. She moaned as he dragged his erection over her, wrapping her legs around him, tilting her hips. They were losing control fast. He reached between her legs, and he groaned when he found her wet. Then he raised up and buried his cock deep inside her in one hard thrust that took her breath away.
“Oh, Simon,” she moaned.
“This is what I want to do all night,” he groaned in her ear. “And tomorrow. And the next day.”
“Yes,” she breathed. She would never get enough of this man.
“Stay with me, Mari,” he growled, pumping his hips hard, driving deeper. “Don’t leave me.”
She gulped in breath after breath at each delicious thrust, too wound up to speak, grabbing for him, tearing at him, trying to get closer. Her legs shook as a wave of ecstasy built inside her, threatening to crash.
And then it did. Everything exploded, and he was crying her name, his hand deep in her hair, pulling her closer. He held her up as he came deep inside her. And then he was soothing her, his heavy body against hers, telling her how much he loved her. Finally, the words were in English, meant for her.
The words echoed inside, spreading their warmth. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath of the love he was giving. Let it sit inside her. Then she let the breath out, giving her love to him. In and out, in and out. His warm breaths did their magic on her neck.
“I love you, Simon,” she whispered, blinking away the tears that welled in the corners of her eyes.
“Then stay.”
She stilled. “For real?”
He nodded. “Stay with me for real.”
Hope. Trust. Love. She had long given up on all of these. Could she believe again? It didn’t take long to find the answer. Against her better judgment, she already did.
“Okay,” she whispered. “Yes.”
He kissed her collarbone softly and rolled to the side, keeping her close. When she met his gaze, he was smiling.
“Then it’s official. We’re ready for a new start,” he said, his eyes full of mischief.
