Page 70 of Untroubled Heart

“I think I might want a little trouble in my life.” He stares deep into my eyes. “Callie, I’ve wanted you since the moment I saw you,” he says, his finger flexing against my jaw. “But now that I know you, I’m not sure I can let you go.”

It’s everything I’ve ever wanted to hear in my life. A reverence I’ve always craved. “So don’t.”

Mason tilts his head, his beautiful, mismatched eyes caressing me with an air of devotion. I step back, tugging on his hands to follow.

“Don’t let me go,” I say, with such confidence it may as well be a demand.

“Are you sure?” he asks, even as he stops to shut my front door, then continues to let me lead him to my bedroom.

“Undoubtedly.”

With a relieved smile, his body aligns with mine, his arms encircle my back, and he embraces me. He holds me so tightly, there’s no room for second-guessing. I have to believe his earlier words; he doesn’t want to let me go.

My body comes alive with his touch, my hands running over his biceps and shoulders, aching to consume every part of him.

I make no effort to move, just let him hold me as he needs to, my own body sinking into the comfort of his arms. I’m not sure I’ve ever been held like this, so simply yet longingly. I’m not inexperienced. I’ve had partners beyond my ex, but it’s amazing that Mason can still give me so many firsts when it comes to intimacy, to love.

His face turns into my neck. He takes a deep breath and runs his nose along my skin, making it prickle. The sensation travels to other places on my body—over my chest, down my spine, between my legs.

“I love the way you smell,” he whispers, then presses a kiss to the side of my neck.

I reach behind him, closing my bedroom door.

The room feels dense, surging with untapped energy that I don’t know how to explore. Again, I’m filled with those questions: Where does it all go from here? What do I want or expect from it? What does Mason want?

“Where’s Navie?” he asks quietly, searching the room.

“Upstairs,” I say, watching my fingers as they brush over the fabric sitting against his hard chest. My insides turn to mush not only when he pays attention to me, but to my daughter as well.

“Hey,” he says, a hand under my chin, tilting my face until I can look him in the eyes. He tucks loose strands of hair behind my ear, pressing a kiss along my jaw. “Just because I’m in your bed, doesn’t mean we have to do anything further. I’m down to snuggle,” he says playfully, leaving another kiss behind my ear this time.

His other hand plays with the hem of my tank top, his fingers lightly drawing across the skin at my waist. “Don’t underestimate how much your company means to me.”

My fingers run over his arms, up and down like a slippery slope that matches my thoughts. How long I dreamed about the feeling of being so deeply wanted, not just in body but in mind and soul. Of all the places to have found that sense of fulfilment, it feels too good to be true with someone as exceptional as Mason. His charm, his generosity. The ability to hold so much wisdom and opportunity, untroubled by the implications. The power and status of his family don’t go to his head. His money doesn’t make him entitled. Instead, he’s soft and intentional. Hard-working and charismatic. Nurturing to the point of extreme safety. It’s him who underestimates his effect on me.

“I wasn’t expecting to have these feelings for you,” I confess, making him grin.

“Do you want me to apologise? Cos I’m really not feeling sorry about that.” His fingers grow more curious and daring as they trail from my waist to my stomach, teasing the waistband of my shorts.

“You have feelings too, though, right? This isn’t just—”

He places a finger against my lips, halting the question. “This is not a fling to me. This isn’t casual. I more than like you. Anything you want, anything you need, I’ll prove it to you.”

“If I asked you to kiss me, would you?”

A smile tugs at his mouth. “Always.”

I grip the sides of his T-shirt, tugging upwards until he lifts his arms, letting me take it all the way off. His gold chain looks sinful against the smooth muscles of his chest.

“If I asked you to touch me, would you?”

His eyes flutter shut as he swallows. “Always.”

My hands go to his belt buckle next, slowly pulling the end from the loops. “If I asked you to make me yours? To fuck me, and hold me afterwards?”

“Then I’d be unstoppable in resisting you.”

I take my hands off him, moving to the hem of my tank top instead, and in one swift motion, I tug it over my head, leaving me standing before him in nothing but my cotton sleep shorts. He knows what I want. The rest should be his choice, and I almost need it to be him to make the next move.