The doors slide open moments later and we’re out, Whit’s fingers curled around mine as he practically drags me to the suite’s double doors, he’s so fast.
“I’m never letting you out of my sight again,” he says once we’re inside the suite, the both of us panting from the exertion. “Take your sweater off.”
I remove it with trembling hands, my entire body shaking. He’s scaring me, he’s so intense.
“The dress,” he says once the cardigan is gone, his voice short. “All of it. I want you naked.”
I do as he says, his urgency frightening, until I’m standing in front of him without a stitch of clothing on. The hotel’s heating system chooses that moment to click on, and the rush of warm air over my bare skin sets gooseflesh rising, my nipples hardening into aching points. My knees are practically liquid and I lock them, sucking in a breath when Whit brushes past me, walking deeper into the room.
I start to turn but pause at his sharp voice.
“Don’t look. Face the door.”
I inhale, paying attention to my breathing, desperate to keep it measured. In and out. In. out.
In.
Out.
He’s rustling around in a suitcase or a dresser, I can’t quite tell. I don’t know what he’s looking for. A strap to smack my ass? In his eyes, I probably deserve it for wanting to get away from him.
He pulls something out of a bag. Or a box. I’m not quite sure. I hear his soft footsteps approach, his rich, masculine scent surrounding me, until he’s right there, directly behind me, his breath touching my bare shoulder.
“I have a present for you,” he says, his voice low and full of promise.
“What is it?”
“Open it and see.” He reaches around, his hand in front of me, clutching a pale gray velvet box. I stare, afraid to open it, though I couldn’t explain why. “Summer.”
He sounds exasperated with me and so I take the box, opening it with trembling fingers. I flip back the velvet layers, revealing a necklace that takes my breath away.
The diamonds glitter despite the dim light. Delicate flowers form a thick diamond chain, fanciful and gorgeous and terribly expensive, I can tell.
“I absolutely cannot take this,” I whisper.
“You can and you will.” He reaches for the box, plucking it from my fingers and gently pulling the necklace from it, undoing the clasp. He winds it around my neck carefully, the weight of the stones heavy on my skin and I close my eyes when his fingers brush against my nape, connecting the clasp. “It’s white gold. Twenty-four carats worth of diamonds in a flower design. I saw it and knew immediately that it belonged to you.”
“I don’t want to know how much this cost,” I whisper, reaching up to lightly touch the heavy diamonds.
“You’re worth every penny.” He kisses the side of my neck and my eyes pop open, my gaze catching on our reflection in the mirror on the wall across from where we stand. “What do you think?”
I stare at the two of us, my gaze going to the diamonds circling my neck. It’s exactly what I described to Monty, when I said I wanted a heavy necklace, like a collar, so I could feel the weight of it and know that I’m owned. That I belong to someone. This necklace isn’t just a gift.
It’s a claiming. Whit Lancaster owns me.
I belong to him.
“I wanted to wait. I wanted to give you this necklace and say these words to you later. I wanted to spend the next week lavishing you with my undivided attention and take you all over Paris. I wanted to buy you whatever you wanted and eat with you and drink with you and fuck you everywhere I could, but you keep trying to pull away from me. And I can’t let you go,” he says, his voice full of agony as he presses his cheek against mine, turning his face toward me so he can breathe in the scent of my hair.
I’m breathless with anticipation, unable to say anything for fear I could ruin the moment. I can tell he wants to say more and I wait, dying to hear his next words.
“I’m in love with you, Summer,” he whispers, his mouth right at my ear, brushing the sensitive skin. “I have been since I first laid eyes on you all those years ago.”
“You have a funny way of showing it,” I say, my lips curling into the faintest smile as I try to contain the joy that’s rising within me.
Whit loves me.
He’s in love with me.
“I was an idiot. I still am. But I will do my damnedest to prove to you that I love you. Every single day for the rest of your life, as long as you let me.” He rests his hands on my shoulders, squeezing them gently, and my gaze finds his in the mirror once more. “Look at you. You’re so beautiful. I’ve missed you so much. I searched for you everywhere, when all along Monty knew you were here. I only asked him about six months ago if he remained in contact with you. Did you know that? He wouldn’t reveal shit to me at first, either. Said he didn’t trust my motives.”
It's reassuring that Monty didn’t just blab to Whit where I was the first time he asked. “I wouldn’t trust your motives either.”
“We arranged all of this, and while you may feel tricked, and you’re angry at both of us for not being truthful, I had to do it this way. You would’ve run if you knew I was here. You would’ve never agreed to see me.” His hands slip down my arms, his light touch making me tremble. “Say something. Tell me you want to be with me. Tell me you forgive me for being such an asshole. Just…anything, Summer. Please.”
I don’t believe I’ve ever heard this man say the word please before in my life.
And he just did. For me.
I turn to face him, tilting my head back so our gazes can meet. “I love you too.”
He inhales so deeply, his chest brushes against my naked skin and he leans in, pressing his forehead to mine. “Thank Christ.”
I frown. “Did you think I would tell you no?”
“I didn’t know what to think.” He closes his eyes, shielding the vulnerability in his gaze. Too late, I already saw it, and I’m clutching it close to my heart. “You love me.”
“I love you.” I reach up, press my mouth to his. “I’m in love with you. And I don’t want to marry you, Whit. Not yet. Let’s just…be together first. We can do that later. Or maybe never. I just want to enjoy my time with you without all of the responsibilities the Lancaster name brings with it.”
Such as heirs and duties. Like he’s part of the royal family. It’s ridiculous, but there are expectations set upon him from birth that he won’t be able to dodge forever. If we got married, they would want babies right away.
And I don’t want babies.
Not yet, at least. We are far too young. And I’m not about to trap him either.
“What about school? I know it’s important to you,” he says.
“I only said that because you weren’t saying what I needed to hear.” When he opens his eyes and frowns at me, I continue, “you declared your love for me. That’s all I ever wanted.”
“It’s real. My feelings for you. They overwhelm me. I don’t know what to do with them,” he whispers, his hands finding my breasts, cupping them. “I love you so fucking much.”
“Show me how much you love me, Whit.” I touch his face. Slide my hand along the front of his chest. “Show me.”