"You're lucky you got out when you did." Colleen's hand finds mine again. "Most people don't. They stay until there's nothing left of them." Her voice softens. "But you? You saw through his bullshit. You left. That takes strength."
"Doesn't feel like strength."
"Well, it is." She squeezes my fingers. "And now you've got Julian. A good man who actually deserves you."
I manage a weak smile. "Yeah."
"So don't let Daniel rent space in your head. He's not worth it." Her eyes hold mine. "Enjoy Julian. Enjoy being free. And for what it's worth?" She grins. "I always thought you were too good for that pompous asshole anyway."
A real laugh breaks through. Small, but genuine.
"Thanks, Colleen."
"Anytime, sweetheart. Now eat your salad before it gets soggy."
The rain hammers against the windows.
Julian sits on the edge of the bed, eyes tracking my every movement as I sway to the rhythm in my head. I slip off my cardigan—slow, deliberate. His throat works as he swallows.
"You're killing me," he murmurs.
"Good."
The jeans come next, pooling at my ankles. I step out of them, watching his pupils dilate in the dim lamplight. Thunder rumbles somewhere distant, and I peel my shirt over my head.
The teddy underneath is soft against my skin, the white one I bought special for him, delicate lace tracing patterns across my skin. His breath catches.
"Liza…"
I crawl onto the bed, straddling his lap. His hands find my waist, fingers pressing into bare skin like he's afraid I'll disappear.
"You're so fucking sexy," he whispers against my collarbone.
I thread my fingers through his hair and kiss him—hard, hungry, trying to erase everything else. But even as his mouth moves against mine, even as his hands roam and I lose myself in the heat of him, Daniel's face flashes behind my closed eyelids.
You're a slut who can't be trusted.
Julian's touch is gentle and sweet. Everything Daniel's wasn't.
Things are about to change around here.
I kiss Julian harder, more urgently, desperately trying to drown out Daniel's poisonous voice echoing in my head. My fingers tighten in his hair as I pour everything into the kiss—all my fears, all my need, all my desperate hopes that this moment can erase the others.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Julian responds in kind, his mouth hot and insistent against mine, his breath coming faster. His hands slide up the curve of my back, fingertips tracing my spine with achingly tender precision, leaving trails of heat on my skin. When he reaches the delicate clasp at the top of the teddy, he pauses for just a heartbeat—a silent question—, and I arch into him in answer. The clasp gives way with the softest click, and the white lace teddy falls away from my body, slipping down my shoulders and pooling between us.
Rain batters the glass. Thunder shakes the walls.
We make love slow and urgent all at once, our bodies discovering each other's rhythms and responses, learning the secret language that exists only between us. Every touch feels both tender and desperate, as if we're trying to memorize each other through our fingertips.
Julian's hands map the curves of my body with careful attention, committing every detail to memory, while mine trace the firm lines of his shoulders, his back, the beautiful tattoo on his arm.
His lips find the sensitive spot below my ear, the hollow of my throat, and I gasp his name into the storm-dark room. He whispers my name back like a prayer, like an incantation, like I'm something sacred and precious that he's afraid might disappear if he doesn't hold on tight enough.
And I cling to him desperately, my fingers digging into his skin, pulling him closer, deeper, trying to lose myself completely in this moment with him—trying to replace every terrible memory Daniel left on my body with something pure, real and hot as fuck.
Afterward, we lie tangled together, his arm heavy across my waist, my hand on his chest. We smile at each other, and his heartbeat steadies beneath my palm.
