“Okay, sunshine,” he murmurs and follows behind me.
I look back and see his face guarded. His eyebrows are furrowed, and his lips are thinned. He looks almost scared.
When we get to my room, I sit on the bed next to him, but he pulls me onto his lap, straddling him, so I’m facing him.
“Roman,” I say, at the same time as he says, “Cecilia.”
We just stare at each other.
“You go first,” I tell him.
He looks like he’s going to decline but thinks better of it.
“Cecilia, I’m so sorry if meeting my family was too much or too soon. I don’t want to lose you. Please don’t end things. You’re everything I could ever want, and I won’t let you go.” The last bit comes out fiercely, and I believe him. He’ll never let me go, and that warms my heart.
His grip on my tightens as he speaks, and I can feel how serious he is.
“Roman, that’s not it at all. I wanted privacy to discuss what you told me earlier.” His face freezes, then he sighs.
“I’m sorry if telling you I love you was too soon. It’s just how I feel. You don’t have to say it back but know that I mean it. I’ve never brough a woman home to my family. Fuck, I’ve never even called a woman my girlfriend. I don’t know how to do this, but I know how I feel.” His eyes shine with truth. I can hear the sincerity in his voice.
“Héroe, that’s not it at all.” I smile and lean closer. “Yes, you took me by surprise, but only in the best way. I wish I could’ve told you how I felt when you did, but you were pulled away.”
Hope glimmers in his eyes.
“Roman Montclair, I love you. I love you so much. You’re my hero in every sense of the word. I know it’s only been a few months, but I can’t imagine life without you. You’ve become so important to me. An integral part of my happiness. I love you, and I don’t ever want to let you go.”
I smile as he beams.
He’s perfect.
We’re perfect.
Chapter 36
Cecilia
He captures my lips between his soft ones and kisses me with a fervor he hasn’t before. It’s all-consuming love. It’s uncontrolled and commanding.
His tongue demands entrance, and I gladly oblige, parting my lips for him. With every swipe against mine, electric shocks run down my spine.
His hands roam. Up my sides. Over my back. Through my hair. They control me. Pulling me into him.
His hips roll, grinding into my core. Each movement sending shivers up my spine.
And every few seconds, he pulls back to tell me, “I love you.”
And with every whispered word, my decision solidifies.
Tonight’s the night.
Chapter 37
Roman
Cecilia pulls back and looks at me with strong eyes. She steels her back, tapping into her strength.
“I want to have sex with you,” she says definitively.
