I should break it off right now. Send him on his way. But I won’t because it’s already too late. I’m in love with him. Some people never get to experience true love. I’ve found it twice. I should be thankful I wasn’t destroyed the first time and can still give and receive love.
Caleb does love me. I feel it every time his eyes meet mine. Every time he holds me. I take a deep breath to calm my racing heart. I can do this. I’ve survived other hard things.
Feeling like I’ve run a marathon, I head to the bathroom to throw water on my face.
“You okay?” Caleb asks from the open door.
I nod.
“I took Woody out to do business, and he’s settled in the living room with a snack and water. Everything is locked up. I’m not leaving your side tonight. Is that okay?”
I nod.
To my surprise, he steps away from the door and pulls his T-shirt over his head. Then unzips his cargo pants and lets them drop to the floor with his briefs. He stands before me, every scar exposed, every doubt and fear written on his face.
“Shower with me?” he asks.
Nodding, I slide the shower door to the side. He steps in front of me and lifts the hem of my shirt pulling it over my head, then pushes my sweatpants down and I step out of them.
Inside the shower stall he adjusts the temperature then looks down at me.
Sliding my palms up his chest, one palm lightly skimming the edges of his side with the burns, I hold his gaze with mine. Cupping his cheeks, I urge his lips down, whispering, “There isn’t a single part of you I don’t want, crave, or love.”
Ever so gently he wraps me in his embrace, kissing first my lips, then cheeks, eyelids. He rests his forehead against mine as I slowly stroke up and down his back from burned hip and side to shoulder.
Breath whooshes from his lips as he exhales. “Grace. My angel. I— you’re healing me in ways I didn’t think I needed or would ever experience. You make me feel whole again.”
“You’ve always been whole, Caleb. You give of yourself for others. You take risks to serve and protect. Your injuries are not failures. They’re the price you paid for your dedication and compassion. Don’t hide them from me, from anyone.”
Cupping my butt in his palms, he lifts me, aligning his body to mine and leans me again the shower wall. “Wrap your legs around me.”
Stroking one hand up and down my arm, he kisses a path along my shoulder and up my neck.
“Did you mean it? When you said you loved me?” he whispers at my ear.
“Yes.”
“It’s fast. Are you sure?”
I grin and shrug. “When you know, you know. I love you, Caleb Rourke. It’s okay if you don’t know how you feel. For now, I’ll take what I can get. And I want you. All of you. Just the way you are.”
“I know, Grace. I know exactly how much I love you and want you in my life. But... what I do. It’s part of me. I can’t imagine doing anything else.”
“I understand. You’ve made me realize how much I miss my pottery. How empty I felt. Because we always worked together, shared the studio, I felt I had to let that part of me die with the loss of Guy. You’ve shown me that I didn’t have to forsake anything. I just have to let the old and the new memories learn to coexist. I think we are meant to heal each other.”
“God, I love you, Grace.”
“Make love to me. Right here, right now.”
Notching his cock at my entrance, he meets my gaze, confirming the full extent of what we’re about to do, the chance we could be taking with pregnancy. “Are you sure?”
“I’m sure. Are you?”
“I’ve spent years going from one battlefield to the next, then fire after fire trusting my instincts. I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life. I love you, Grace. I want a life and a family with you.”
“I’ve been tethered to the past unsure of how to move forward. I love you and want the same with you. I’ll be your anchor. You’ll be my wings.”
CHAPTER 15
