Total pages in book: 99
Estimated words: 92957 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 465(@200wpm)___ 372(@250wpm)___ 310(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 92957 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 465(@200wpm)___ 372(@250wpm)___ 310(@300wpm)
I slide my hand on the side of his face, cupping the rough scruff and holding his gaze. The man I once thought invincible has a vulnerable side. “I love you,” I whisper. “And I already forgave you. But you’re more than welcome to spend the rest of your life making it up to me.” I wink at him.
His eyes dance at me, his lips quirk up, and he tosses me over his shoulder like I’m a sack of potatoes. I squeal when his palm slaps my ass affectionately.
Even with me draped over his shoulder like a trophy, he takes the steps two at a time. The door to our room slams shut, the sound of locks being thrown final.
The air is thick with barely resolved tension, the weight of truth, confessions, and revelations rocking our world, but not so much we aren’t still us. He’s desperate to earn forgiveness, while I’m desperate to find solid footing again. I have my family back. I know who I am.
Now I need to know who we are.
He tosses me onto the bed, the air around us charged with raw, desperate need. We’ve been through the wringer, both of us, and our battles are hardly over. I lie on the bed as he towers over me, his eyes like thunder. Heat emanates from him in waves. “I’ll show you how much you mean to me,” he says in a hoarse whisper.
I swallow hard. “You already have.”
He kneels on one knee beside me, bracing himself with his palm on the bed. His gaze travels over me as if he’s only just found me, or he’s afraid I’ll vanish. “I hurt you,” he whispers. “It doesn’t matter that I thought you were someone else. None of that matters now. I heard what you said, and I feel the weight of what I’ve done.”
I swallow hard and lick my lips. My voice is soft but confident when I reply. “Love is messy. Both our families have proven that, haven’t they? But I love you anyway, and for everything that you are. I’ve known from the first time I opened my eyes in your world that you weren’t just any man. You’re fierce and dangerous and flawed. But you love me, you love your family, you’re steadfast, and it’s why… I love you. When you love someone, you forgive them.”
I see the moment when his restraint breaks. His eyes burn like flames as he stabs his fingers in my hair, fisting it as he pulls me closer. Our lips clash desperately, his body pressed against mine, caging me beneath him. His kiss is urgent and demanding, and I sigh with relief at the familiarity. A deep well of longing is wrapped in that kiss, a need to find oneness and raw vulnerability.
His tongue licks mine, sending fire through my veins. My hips rise to meet him.
He growls against my lips, his voice thick and rough. “I’ll put my baby in you. I want to make you mine in every way possible.”
I give myself to him fully, without reserve, without regret. “Yes,” I whisper, holding his gaze. “Make me yours. I want to hear you say my name.”
Holding my gaze, he whispers the words I’ve longed to hear. “I love you, Polina.”
Our hands are frantic and desperate as we tug off my clothes and his, fabric thrown on the floor until finally, our naked bodies press against each other. I sigh at the touch of his hot, rough palm on my body. My eyes flutter closed as he lowers his mouth to my neck and kisses a trail from my collarbone to my breasts. He takes his sweet time, bridling his urgency, as he cups each breast before he drags my nipple between his teeth and suckles.
My hips undulate, and wet heat pools between my legs. My mouth drops open in a gasp as he holds my body between his hands and continues to torture and worship my nipples. I sigh into him at the feel of his hot, hard erection pressed against my naked skin.
He smells like snow-capped mountains and a field of grass, earthy and clean. I savor the sight of his powerful, muscled body and tanned skin. His weight presses on me, and I feel as if I’ve been swallowed whole. Every moan he elicits is met with his own growl of need as we move together, two lovers who’ve been through hell and back and won’t ever let each other go.
His lips meet mine as he parts my legs with one knee, his hungry gaze on my body making me feel wanted. I want him inside me so much I can hardly breathe.
I love the weight of him on me, his large hands exploring my naked skin with a branding touch. He kisses first one breast, then another, before he pushes my legs apart. With unabashed hunger, he draws in a deep breath as if drinking in my scent. With a moan of pleasure, he laps my inner thigh. My pussy spasms, and he hasn’t even gone there yet.