“Sure, I’ll be a vampire as long as you stop having sex dreams about your brother’s friends.”
I swear I hear her eyes roll as she hangs up the phone.
Part of me considers sitting here a while longer to contemplate the exact words I’ll use to tell him I miss him. Clearly,‘I’ve missed you’isn’t enough. Not after he told me he loved me and I went running for cover.
I need something more, something significant. That said, if I lay here another second, I’m going to talk myself out of going, and I can’t do that. I need to get this over with, lay everything on the line, and let the chips fall where they may.
Dragging in a deep breath, I float through the house, pull open the front door, step out onto the front porch, and stare at the man I’ve been in love with for years. The man that I’ve longed for since the day I left. The man I don’t know how to make things right with again.
My stomach aches just seeing his face. His handsome, strong face. Maybe I’m making a mistake. Maybe I should be back inside and curl myself back in bed with my memories instead of facing my deserved rejection.
Why did I let my legs move?
His expression is stoic, unreadable, flat-lined. He doesn’t want me here. He hates me. He’s taking care of my mother and I as a favor. That’s it. A favor. He told me he loved me in the truck because he does, but in a platonic way. And the thing he said about his truck seat always being mine… that’s just confusion on his part.
I need to protect myself. Why did I come out here?
“You’re gonna freeze,” I say, realizing I’m still wearing the nightgown I tossed on after my shower.
Way to look desperate, me.
“Nah, it’s a warm rain.” He rocks back in the chair and glances my way, his dark eyes drinking me in before piercing through me. “Can we talk?”
Talk?Okay. He wants to talk. Maybe this is the part where we’re real. Where I’m real. Whereeverythingis real again, and we’re back in time doing things that make sense… like they used to.
“Yeah, I guess we could talk. I mean,” I twist a strand of wet hair around my index finger, “I like talking.”
“Okay, then I’ll start with I’m sorry.” He turns toward me in the rocker, his gaze on mine heavily. “I shouldn’t have been so rough with you.” He blows out a breath and looks away as though he’s trying to find the words in the pouring rain. “I,” he glances back, “hated you for leaving. I truly did. You were everythin’ I wanted. The way you looked, the way you acted, the way you listened. Shit, I don’t know if you know, but people don’t fuckin’ listen anymore. No one gives a shit. You did. You cared, and I felt it.” He groans as he rubs his calloused hands together. “You cared, and then you left, and I was alone, grievin’ you, knowin’ you were just a phone call away, a flight away, a text away. It was torture holdin’ on to hope that you missed me too. It was fuckin’ torture, like a wound that was beyond mend, but I still couldn’t stop lovin’ you. I couldn’t stop missin’ you. Icouldn’t stop imaginin’ you with me at every turn. At the station with cookies. At the grocery store pickin’ all your favorite snacks. In the truck next to me… where you belong. Shit, I didn’t think you were comin’ back. That day, the pain was insane. The day I realized you’d most likely become someone I looked back on, never someone I looked forward to ever again. I hated you for that. I hated you, and I loved you all at once. And now you’re here, and all I want to do is pick you up, throw you in my truck, and drive away. I want to hide you from the world and make you my own. I want to kiss your lips and never let you go. I want to hold on to the only thing in my life that mattered.”
He never talks like this…ever.His words hit me like a solid wave of emotion, spilling over the top of me, filling me up, driving me toward him, desperate for his touch, desperate to close the gap between us.
“I’ve loved people before, Brooks, but not like this. Never like this. I’ve missed you.”
He stands from the rocker and his big, rough hands meet the back of my neck before he pulls me in for a long, hard, mind-numbing kiss. The kind of kiss that stops time and space. The kind that leaves you breathless and yearning. The kind that takes every worry you’ve ever had and replaces it with physical sensations that restart your brain again.
It’s perfect.
The strength of his hand on the back of my neck, his fingertips in my hair, his wet, hot mouth, his teeth tugging at my bottom lip, his nose against mine, his breath on my face.Why did I wait so long for this?
Rain falls heavy, splashing against the gravel driveway, pouring down the gutters as the sticky-cool humidity surrounds us.
I thought I’d remembered how perfect this was, but even with the best of intentions, I’d forgotten the nuances of histouch. I’d forgotten how completely safe and warm it feels to be in his arms. I’d forgotten how wanted and needed I felt when he touched me.
His free hand lands on the small of my back and he pulls me in tight until I feel the hard edge of his cock against my stomach.
I reach down and grip it through his jeans. He’s so hard and big.
God, I’ve missed this. His size. The way he manhandles me. The way he growls low in my ear as though he’s losing control. The way my panties soak as my entire body starts aching.
His lips move from my lips to my neck, and his teeth scrape against my shoulder before he bites down with a rumble in his throat. “Tell me what I need to hear, baby.”
Baby.
I sigh. I don’t hate the way he says baby. I love it.
He hooks his thumb in the strap of my nightgown and pulls it off my shoulder soft and careful, exposing a breast. I stare up at him, tall and strong, covered in ink. “What do you need to hear?”
“I need to hear you say you’re mine. Tell me you belong to me. Beg me to touch you like you used to.”
