“When I woke up in that hospital, I was terrified.” The quiver in his voice catches me in the chest. And so do his words. “It wasn’t just because I’d lost my legs and didn’t know what the fuck I was going to do. It was because I could no longer protect you. I looked down and saw your tiny frame cuddled up next to me, sleeping, and the fear rocked me so fucking hard. I was afraid that some bastard would come in trying to get vengeance for what we’d done, drawing a gun, and I wouldn’t be able to protect you. I couldn’t even protect Rubble, and I was standing. I didn’t know how I was going to protect my girl. And the thought absolutely terrified me.”
I remember seeing the fear in his eyes right before he freaked out and started screaming for them to take me out of the room. I’d thought he woke up from a nightmare. A flashback from the night of the shooting.
“My mind spun out of control. I needed you safe. I needed you far away from the danger. So, I told them to take you away.Then after you were gone, I laid there in that bed for days. All I could think about was how I wasn’t going to be able give you the life you wanted. You deserved to live your life and be happy, not be burdened by taking care of me. And I knew you’d stay. I knew you wouldn’t finish college, so I had to end it, saying things that weren’t true.”
It’s what I always wanted to believe deep in my heart, but he was so convincing.
“But then you showed up again.” He tucks my hair behind my ear. “I’d spent a year in my dark hell. The nightmares, the fear, the self-hate. Missing you so fucking much I couldn’t breathe. My mind had turned so dark. The anger and blackness lived in my veins, and I didn’t want any of my ugliness to touch you. I didn’t want to drag you into my hell. That’s why I fought it so hard. That’s why I tried to push you away. But I lost that fight. I love you so damn much, it was impossible to stay away.”
“Then why, Skully? Why did you shut me out again?” Everything had been going so well. We were happy.
“When I saw you dancing with Dagger, the jealousy hit me hard. I watched him spin you around the dance floor, dip you back and make you smile. He was doing the things I so badly wish I could. And the darkness took control. I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t handle the pain. That’s why, baby. Because deep down, I know you deserve better. But the moment you walked out the door, I realized I can’t live without you. You’re my heart, Madison.”
My breath gets caught inside my lungs. Every word breaking me apart and putting me back together. I can’t imagine what it’s been like for him. He’s a strong, dominant man. The VP of the Savage Knights motorcycle club. A man who people feared when he’d walk into a room. A man people respected and admired. And to lose his ability to walk, to ride—it has to be so incredibly difficult. And all along, he was suffering in his dark silence,alone. Believing I deserved someone better. Believing he was lacking.
“Madison, baby, if you’ll give me another chance, I promise I will fight to get well. I will spend every day fighting for you. Fighting for us. I’m gonna start seeing a shrink about the shit in my head. I’m gonna work to get stronger. I’ll talk to the doctors. I’ll do whatever it takes. Whatever I have to do to be the man you deserve, to be able to give you the life you want.”
And the broken little fragments begin to fuse back together. Shifting back into their home. The warmth healing the edges around my heart.
“That’s what you don’t realize, Skully. I don’t want anything or anyone but you. It’s not about what you can give me or what you can do for me. It’s not about dancing or how much money you make. It’s about the way you love me. It’s how your eyes light up when you look at me. How you make me feel like I’m the most special girl in the world. It’s how you make me feel confident and loved, with your words, with the way you touch me. From that first night we met, I’ve been in love with you. Starstruck not just by your looks, but by your heart. By the man you are inside. Nothing has changed that. And nothing ever will. You have me, Teddy. I’m yours. In this fight, and in this life. All I want is you.”
His hands grip my cheeks, and I see it. The flicker burning in his eyes. The spark of the man I remember.
“You have no idea how much I love you, baby. You’re my heart and my reason, and I will never let go again.”
“You promise?”
He shifts forward, pressing his lips to mine and the world fades. The warmth takes over as his word breathes into me. “Promise.” And then the kiss he gives me becomes the most incredible one we’ve ever shared. I can feel him. I can feel his love in the soft lick of his tongue and in the smooth caress of his lips. It takes my breath away.
“Can we go home, babe? I want to make love to my woman in our bed.”
That four-letter word: HOME. It’s what I’ve been searching for my entire life. And I just realized it’s not a place. It’s not a mansion or a house. It’s not a shelter to keep me safe. It’s him. He’s my home.
23
Skully
Her gasp has me turning. She’s staring at my wall, witnessing my obsession. Her eyes and face painted everywhere. Bluish-green eyes filled with happiness. Bluish-green eyes filled with desire. Eyes filled with worry. Eyes filled with wonder. Eyes filled with admiration. And now I’ll have a new set to capture. Eyes of forgiveness. Eyes of love. Eyes of promise.
“I needed to have you looking at me. Like I said, can’t live without you, babe.”
She turns and starts walking toward me. Slowly. It’s in her eyes. Swirling in her aqua depths. Her nipples are tight through her shirt. Her cheeks filled with heat. She’s so fucking beautiful.
My need for her burns so deep, I never would’ve survived without her.
She stops before me, and I feel like I’m a king. Like I hold the power to the one thing she wants. What she doesn’t realizeis she’s the one with all the control. I’ll do anything for this girl. Will die trying to make her happy.
“Are you gonna take me for a ride, Skully?”
She reaches for the armrests of my chair and climbs onto my lap. Her skirt rising up to her waist as she straddles my hips. I can feel how soaked she is. Her body is running hot, and that fever is pulsing into me.
“Take it out, babe.”
I grip onto her waist, keeping her steady as she lifts up, her eager hands almost trembling as she pulls me from my pants. The simple touch of her fingers has me shivering.
“That’s it. Now, show me what you want.”
She pulls her panties to the side, sinking down slow. Her head dropping back on her shoulders as she takes me into her. And with every inch, I’m sunk deeper with need. She’s so tight. So soft. Warm. Rocking slow like she’s coasting down a runway. Steady and so fucking sweet. Picking up speed as she starts to take off. Pressing on the gas. Her engine accelerating. Taking me higher. And I’m about to fucking launch.
