Page 75 of Rafe’s Future

Apart from the few lovers she’d had in her past, she’d also shared hotel rooms, safe houses, and cramped quarters with colleagues. Some operations were held in conditions so dire she wasn’t afforded the luxury of modesty.

This was nothing like that. This was Rafe. The man who knew her history. Her sins. Her scars. The parts of herself she’d spent decades keeping locked away from the rest of the world.

He looked at her now as though none of those things mattered.

Lena reached for him, and he came back down beside her. The next part happened slowly.

One kiss became another. His hands moved over her with patient learning, rather than taking. Lena didn’t let herself hold back or show restraint. Instead, she let the warmth building inside her take over.

She’d never known what it felt like to be cared for without a cost. What it felt like to trust someone fully and let them see her completely.

Rafe sees me.

He understood the kind of woman she was, and miraculously, he wanted her regardless.

Lena let her head fall back onto the mattress as his hands and mouth worked her body into a frenzy. When the tension inside her began to rapidly build, she held onto him for dear life.

Her fingers tightened against his shoulders, the curved edges of her trimmed nails digging into his skin. Rafe murmured her name, his voice low and reassuring.

The pressure inside of her finally broke free.

A low, keening sound filled the room as Lena’s climax swept through her in a powerful wave. She closed her eyes and surrendered to it, relishing in the feel of Rafe’s arms as he held her through it.

When she finally opened her eyes, she found him watching her with a smile. Lena couldn’t help but return it.

“Don’t look so pleased with yourself, Brit.”

Rafe threw his head back and laughed with utter abandon. It was the most beautiful sound in the world.

He brushed a strand of hair away from her face before leaning down and kissing her slowly. Lena brought a palm to rest above his pounding heart.

For years, she’d believed peace was something that came from eliminating every threat. She knew better now.

This is true peace.

Rafe’s arms around her. His heartbeat beneath her touch. The warmth of his body beside hers. It was the first time in maybe forever Lena allowed herself to stop fighting the desire for a future.

Love wasn’t a weakness. It didn’t make her less capable. It gave her something worth fighting for.

And as she rolled herself over Rafe’s body with the intention of taking more control, she realized the life she truly wanted was one with him.

Rafe had spent a lifetime learning how to control himself. His breathing. His reactions. His instincts.

Most of all, he’d become a master at controlling his emotions. It was a skill that had kept him alive more times than he could count.

But lying with Lena now, feeling her hands move over him with the same deliberate care he’d given her, Rafe discovered there was one thing he had no desire to control.

Her.

Not in the way he controlled situations or took command with his team. This was different. This was trust. Two people who’d spent decades keeping their guard up for self-preservation who were finally realizing they no longer had to.

Not with each other.

Not anymore.

Lena straddled his hips, leaning down to kiss him. Rafe felt something inside him snap loose. His arms tightened around her as he pulled her naked form closer. The kiss turned deeper. More urgent.

The last of his restraint disappeared.