My smile grew. “I thought that was the point.”
“The point was to makeyoufeel beautiful. Powerful.” He bowed his head. “Not to make me fuckin’ weak and defenseless like that.”
“You’re not weak, amore mio. You’re everything but.” I wrapped my arms around his neck. “Please don’t ruin this for me. I thought last night was the best sex I’ve ever had, but this… Please tell me you felt it, too.”
“I did. Probably even more. It scared the hell out of me. Did it, at least, work? Did you see how beautiful you are?”
“I did.” It was as if a whole new world had opened its doors to me. I was only stepping in, but it felt so good to just be in there. “I do.”
“I love you so much, Maggie. More than I ever should.”
I swallowed, somehow scared, too, now. Not of moving forward, but of ever having to go back. “I love you, too.” That was all I could say, but I felt and meant every letter.
“Whatever happens, don’t leave me.” His eyes glittered. “Tell me you won’t ever leave without letting me fix whatever it is first,” he said, his fingers stabbed in my arms. “Please.”
He was struggling for no reason, and I wished I’d known exactly what to do to make him feel the same way he made me feel. Grounded. Confident. I would never leave him. I, too, would choose him over anything else. I, too, loved him more than I should ever have.
I leveled my gaze with his, putting all my love, all my trust, all my resolution in my eyes before my voice. “I won’t.”
Scene 39
Maggie
I wrapped a towel around myself as I stepped out of Mike’s bathroom, my muscles still tickling from the Jacuzzi water. I walked to where my dress was dropped on the floor and picked it up. Mike’s jeans, belt, and boxers were on the floor, too, and the memory of him coming with me went bright in my head, sending a tightness between my thighs.
I rolled my eyes. Thank God he agreed each of us showered alone. I was dehydrated, famished, and my legs wobbled so much I could barely walk, let alone hump. Put me in the shower with him and it would have been all over again.
Tugging at the zipper didn’t work. Mike did rip it off. My shoulders slumped as I looked for an alternative. A folded red fabric on top of the scrambled bed sheets caught my attention. A man’s T-shirt. Mike’s.
I smiled, slipping the soft cotton over my head. Smelling the collar, I looked at myself in the mirror, the red material soothing on my skin. The fragrance that lingered—his fragrance, distinctive and overwhelming— made my heart flutter.
I took the elevator to the kitchen. A soft melody streamed from the central sound system. Dark orange sunlight sifted through the windows and onto the hardwood floor. Mike was at the counter, his wet hair tied back, his naked back to me. The rim of his black boxers peaked out from his jeans.
Dirty pictures played in my head. Pictures of me, holding him from behind, inserting my hands in the back pockets of his ass-hugging jeans, and then sitting on that counter, my legs apart.
I tsked my tongue, and he turned his head. “I didn’t hear you come…in.” His smile tightened on his lips the second he laid eyes on me. Quickly, he returned to what he was doing and cleared his throat. “You had a nice bath?”
“Yeah. Thanks for the T-shirt.”
“It looks…good on you.”
By the shake of his head, I knewgoodwas an understatement. I approached the counter. “What’re you making?”
“Gnocchi,” he answered without so much of a glance at me. “The housekeeping staff comes here weekly to clean the house and stock the kitchen in case I show up or have guests over. I wanted to grill some steaks, but I didn’t find any, only chicken. I know you don’t eat that, so I changed the plan to gnocchi and shrimps.”
I laughed as I remembered each time Kyle had forgotten I didn’t eat chicken and tried to change my mind. Whereas Mike…
“Sorry. I know I’m rambling. I just need a distraction,” he said.
“That’s not why I’m laughing.” I moved my fingers along the counter instead of his abs. “I could use a distraction, too. How can I help?”
He chuckled. “By staying away from me.”
I giggled. “How’s that even happening?”
“No fuckin’ idea. I have zero energy left, but…” Mike pivoted a little, gesturing at the front of his jeans.
A huge bulge in his jeans stared me in the face. “Fuck.” I retreated to the breakfast table at the far end of the kitchen. “I did not need to see that.” My ears concentrated on the song playing now.
