Page 97 of His to Love
He dipped his chin, locking his eyes on mine. “Yes. In part. I’m not going to lie about that.”
“How noble of you.” I pushed on his arms, needing to get away from him. “Let me go. I’m not discussing this while we’re in my bed.”
With one quick move, he had my wrists clamped together and he pushed me backward on the bed, my head flopping on my pillow. He shifted when my hips thrust against him and pinned me down by straddling my thighs with his.
“Look at me,” he practically growled. I pulled my eyes to his, his face inches from mine. If I leaned forward the smallest amount, I could have had his lips on mine. I shouldn’t want it so badly when I was so mad at him, yet I couldn’t deny my reaction to him, either.
I hated it and loved it in equal measure.
“What?” I snapped.
“You stopped being a job to me the moment I saw your picture.”
“What picture?”
“My supervising agent showed me a picture when they pulled me in to the job,” he said and dropped his head. I shivered beneath him as his nose slid against mine and across my cheek. “I need you to believe this. What we have, what we started growing together wasn’t false, and if you think back to the time we spent together, you’ll know it. You were caught in the middle, I know. Yes, I was sent here from DC to look into you and your family. The FBI heard you’d been called home and they wanted to know why, because a three-year investigation on your father’s business was tightening and coming to a close. When they learned that you were returning home, they thought you were going to be part of it. There were a few small missing pieces of a puzzle they were trying to put together and they figured you were the answer, somehow. We didn’t know your mom was sick. So, yes, they put me in place to get that information from you. But I need you to think back to all the time we spent together, the things we talked about, the things we did…” He paused and dropped his hips against mine. I could feel him, every inch. We were thigh to thigh, chest to chest, and even though there were blankets, bedding, and clothes between us, I still had to fight my reaction to him.
My hands went lax in his hold.
“You’re the only woman I want,” he murmured, his lips brushing against my ear. Goosebumps prickled on my skin. “You’re the only woman I’ve ever loved. I just didn’t want to tell you that with my job and your family between us.”
I closed my eyes, breathing in his scent, soaking in his touch. I was losing my fight against him.
“I hate you,” I whispered, even as my hips pressed into his. “I hate that I love you. I hate that you used me. I hate that when I needed you to be there for me when my mom was buried, I had just learned that you betrayed me.”
“I know.” His forehead dropped to mine as a ripple of pleasure rolled through me. “And I hate that I couldn’t be there for you. I wanted to hold you, to comfort you. I wanted to show you how much I love you.”
Love.
I didn’t know if I could trust him.
So I told him that and he flinched, pulling back from me until he sat up. Swinging a leg off of mine, he pulled me with him until we were both sitting and facing each other.
“I’ll have to work to earn your trust back, I know this. I just want the chance.” He leaned forward, his hand curled around my neck and then moved to the back of my head, cupping it in his large palm. His gaze softened, roaming my face. “I can’t stop touching you.”
I didn’t want him to.
“Tyson.” I breathed out his name on a sigh.
“You feel this. I know you do.”
The connection between us was electric. Undeniable. I was fooling myself if I thought I could stay away from him.
Still, with a self-control I didn’t know I possessed until that moment, I tugged away from his grip.
“I’ve loved you since I was just a teenager,” I said. I couldn’t help myself. I reached out and brushed a finger along his jawline, feeling the light scruff on his unshaven cheeks. I smiled, but it was sad and tears clouded my vision. “I don’t know if I can forgive you for this, or if I can understand all that you’ve done.”
“Blue.” His voice was pained, his expression anguished as he called my name.
I dropped my hand and shook my head. Sliding out from beneath the covers, I stood in front of him. He reached for me, but I stepped out of his reach.
“I’ll try though,” I finally admitted when the silence in the room became heavy and weighted.
His eyes snapped to mine and something sparked in them.
“You will?”
He stood and took another step toward me.
