“My son?”
“I hurt for the years you’ve lost, but any man who’s even a sliver of you would fight for a second chance to have you back in their life. He might not have known you personally, but do you think your brother would keep you from still being ‘there’ in memories?”
My breaths come fast, deep and rough. The emotion I’m fighting winning the battle. I’m not sure I deserve her words or the acceptance and love she’s giving me. I lied to her and still she sits in my arms making me feel better. How the fuck did I get this lucky? And worse, what will I do if she finds out about the rest? About Ray and the real reason I started staying close.
Worries for another fucking day.
“You need to heal, too, honey.” She continues when I keep my silence.
I lean my head back against the couch. She moves with me, not lifting her head and offering her silent support. She has no idea how much her presence has eased the pain a little. She’s got no clue how much she means to me, either. Not yet. I tighten my arms around her and bring my head down to kiss her shoulder. She shifts, and I loosen my arms enough for her to push up and look down at me. Her hands move to brush her fingers through my hair with one hand, the other cupping my jaw the way she loves to. I know she’s right. I need to do this. But not just for the reasons she mentioned. I need to make peace with that part of me in order to give her what she deserves.
Only everything I held out believing I could ever have is right here.
The man I’ve kept locked away for far too long and the woman who loves him.
I move quickly, shifting so I frame her beautiful face in my hands and bring us so close that when I speak my lips dance across hers.
“If I do this …” I drop my forehead to hers and breathe in her scent. “I can’t do this alone.”
“Tell me what you need, honey.”
“You.”
“That, you’ve got.”
“It’s not going to be pretty.”
“Healing never is, my sweet Zeke.”
Hearing her call me by that name, part of the old me that fits the man I am now. Now that she knows the real me, I don’t think I want to hear anything but that. Even though that doesn’t feel like me anymore, Coop is still a close second. Before I can stop myself, I tell her just that, earning me the blush I’ve come to crave.
“Do you think you can get away? I don’t want this to touch Riley, Liv. I don’t want her ever to know that kind of pain in her life. She can know them, and I want her to, but not yet.”
“You tell me when, and I’ll make it happen. Riley loves sleepovers with Ella, and Grace will also be on hand to help.”
“We have to travel. Are you sure you’ll be okay leaving her?”
She gives me a small kiss. “You’re just as important to me as you are to her. Your happiness is on the line, honey. She, my little bean, she’s got so much of that inside her she will be excited for our adventure without needing to know more. She likes the people she loves to be happy.”
That’s the second time she’s given that to me. A clue to where her heart is. She hasn’t said it. Hasn’t answered me from when I asked earlier. She was serious that she wanted to be there for what was hurting me before making it about something else. I still feel it, though.
“You ready to tell me yet?”
She winks, sassy thing. “Make me.”
The fear that fell from my shoulders just moments before when she said she would be by my side through this is replaced with the red-hot need to get this woman—my damn woman—naked and show her without words what she means to me.
Our mouths meet a moment later, and I swallow the groan that comes from her. The sound goes directly to my cock. Her scent fills my senses and makes me hungrier for her. Hands under her ass, I effortlessly stand from where we were sitting and start moving us toward the wall. When her back softly presses against the cool surface, she gasps, and I lose her mouth. Works out perfectly, though. My hands move from her ass, supporting her body with my own when I trail them around her body and up toward her tits. Her head hits the wall when I graze her nipples through her shirt.
“No bra?”
“I was in a hurry,” she confesses with a small shrug and blush to her cheeks.
“This shirt important to you?”
Little frown lines form between her eyes as she looks down at the baggy plain black shirt covered in splotches and bleach stains.
“Uh, no? It’s just …” She stops talking and lets out a gasp when I reach up and rip the cotton right down the center. Her full tits bare for me, making my mouth water as they jiggle and move in sync with her rapid breathing.
I grab her hands and place them on my shoulders, moving my own back to her ass. With a wink, I press against her and push her up the wall. Understanding what I want, she uses her hold on me to push up … putting those delicious tits right where my mouth wants them.
“Oh yes,” she mews when my mouth covers one pointed nipple, drawing it deep and sucking her the way I know she likes. Deep pulls and lots of suction. She goes wild, just like she always does, loving my mouth on those sensitive nubs.
My mouth pulls deep before I lift up just enough to be able to talk against her tit and drive her a little crazy while I do.
“You ready to say it yet?”
“Hmm?” she whines, trying to push me back on her tit with one of her hands moving behind my head.
“You ready to tell me?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she responds smartly, looking down at me and smirking.
That’s fine.
I’ve waited this long to be on the receiving end of those words again. I don’t mind working for them a little longer. My heart feels like it’s beating wildly at the thought of what I know is coming. I want those words from her more than I can express. It feels like I won’t be able to get a full breath until I have them, but having her and getting them at the same time? That sounds like something worth a little pain to get.
Turning quickly, I hold her to me as I walk into my bedroom. Before she can blink, I have her in the air, landing softly in the middle of the mattress. She squeals adorably when she flies. When she lands, her shirt flaps fall perfectly to the side, letting me see her tits bounce. She reaches one hand up and pushes her hair out of her face, watching me as I start to strip down. No doubt my expression contains raw hunger. She adjusts, getting cozy, and continues to watch while I undress.
I jerk when my pants and briefs drop, and the cool air hits my fevered skin. My hard cock springs free and points right toward her. I rip my shirt over my head and stand tall for her to continue her lazy feast of my body.
“Pants off, Liv,” I demand, loving how her eyes get brighter and a little wild when she’s turned on.
“Make me,” she retorts.
Well, fuck me, that mouth is hot when she talks back like that.
My hands are in the waistband of her pants, hooking her panties at the same time, and they go flying over my shoulder in one swift movement. Her shirt still lays open and forgotten under her body. Not in my way, but something I plan on using. My hands go to her hips, and I flip her before she can react. She lands on her stomach. I grab the shirt and start to slide the material down her arm, but stop shy of freeing her from the ruined top. I move quickly, and when it hits her wrists, I wrap it around her so she can’t get free yet.