"Yes," she whispers, her voice cracking. She wipes the tears from her eyes and turns in front of me. I don't move. I like having her close, caged in my arms.
She stares at my chest, and I can tell by the expression on her face that she's trying to figure out what she wants to say. I keep quiet because I really want us to be on the same page…but I need her to get there on her own.
She lifts her face and the softness in her eyes cracks my heart wide open."You're sorry?" she asks timidly, her eyes wide with hope.
"More than I could ever tell you."
"And you aren't with Avery?"
"Never. Avery who?" I answer, pulling a small smile from her lips.
She looks at my chest again, trying to find her words. Releasing my grip on the counter, I wrap my hands around her neck, my thumbs caressing the sides of her jaw. At first she looks startled, but then her body relaxes and she catches me off-guard when she grips the bottom of my shirt, fisting it in her hands.
“Ask me, Harley."
Her eyes blur with tears and I can see the slightest quiver in her bottom lip, but my brave girl doesn’t back away. “You want me?” she says, so softly that I barely hear it.
“I want you more than I’ve ever wanted anything in my entire life." I’m laying it all on the line. There’s nothing else I can do. I have to open myself up to her and hope to God she believes me. I’m trying with everything I have to display every emotion I’m feeling on my face right now.
“Ask me something else, Harley.” My voice is firm when I repeat myself, but I can hear it cracking when I say her name. Her eyes close, causing a few more tears to leak out. I lean forward and gently kiss them away. Her body shudders at the contact and I rejoice.
Do it, pretty girl. Ask me.
“ASK ME SOMETHING ELSE, Harley."
I can literally feel the emotion rolling off of him. He’s nervous. What is he afraid of? Does he think I’m going to reject him? Because I’m fairly certain I’ve already proved that I have absolutely no willpower when it comes to him.
Okay, to be honest, that’s sort of what I was prepared to do when he showed up at my door tonight. And even when he held me hostage against the sink—which was totally fucking hot, by the way—I was prepared to give him a very polite send-off. Then, he opened his mouth and started saying some of the sweetest things—things I’ve wanted to hear for as long as I can remember. I should have known I wouldn’t be able to hold my ground, not when the only man I’ve ever really wanted was bearing his soul to me. And who am I kidding? I don’t want to hold my ground because I want him too.
I. Want. Him.
I take a deep breath and let that sink in for a second. This is happening. This is really happening. Wait a minute…what does he want me to ask him? Because I can think of about a million things to ask…kiss me? Make love to me? Get naked with me? Marry me? Okay, it may be too soon for the last one, but you can bet your ass that if I thought there was a chance in hell he’d say yes, I’d ask. No joke.
I’m watching him watch me and he seriously looks like he could throw up. I’ve probably been quiet for too long; I guess I need to put him out of his misery. If he wants a second chance, then that’s what he’s going to get. But first…
“I’m sorry,” I say, fighting back a smile. Gah, this is so mean of me but I can’t resist. “I can’t.”
His eyes close and he drops his forehead to mine. His shoulders rise and fall on a shaky breath. He looks completely defeated.
“I can’t ask you to marry me.” His head snaps up and his eyes are shining. A huge smile lights up his entire face. “It’s too soon. We should probably just date for a while. Don’t you agree?" His hands are still wrapped intimately around my neck and he tilts my face to his.
“You’re amazing, you know that?" Just when I thought my tear ducts were starting to dry up, another tear trickles down the side of my face. Tyson extends his thumb and wipes it away.
“And for the record, I would’ve said yes." His eyes shimmer with emotion I can’t quite place and we both start laughing. This is such a great feeling. Never in a million years did I think I would be standing here—like this—with Tyson. My Tyson.
The way I feel right now, I wish I could bottle it up and save it for a lesser day, but I know I can’t so I need to make the most of this moment. Letting go of his shirt, I slide my hands around his back, pulling him to me, and the smile on his face fades. In its place is a look of pure need.
My eyes flit between his and then they drop to his mouth…his perfect mouth. The mouth that I’ve dreamt of kissing for years. His tongue flicks out, wetting his bottom lip, and I drag my eyes back to his. “Please kiss me,” I whisper, hoping that this time I’m going to get what I want.
He gently tugs me forward until the front of our bodies are melded together, and my heart starts racing on contact. I close my eyes, wanting to memorize everything about this moment. I don’t ever want to forget the rhythmic way his soft thumbs brush across my jaw, the steady beat of his heart against my chest, the way his breath feathers across my face as he dips his head lower, or the way I feel his hardened length press gently into my belly. This moment can’t possibly be any more perfect. At least that’s what I thought, until I feel his lips brush against mine for the first time.
Now it’s perfect.
His soft lips brush against mine once…twice…and a third time before he pulls his head back a fraction, waiting for me to open my eyes. I lift my heavy lids to find him watching me with open wonderment, and the words that flow from his mouth make my heart soar.
“I’ve been waiting for this kiss for the past five years, and I want you to know that it hasn’t completely happened and it’s already the most amazing kiss I’ve ever had." With those final whispered words, he proceeds to rock my fucking world.
In an unbelievably smooth motion, he pulls my face back to his, tilting it slightly to the left. My lips part and the moment his open mouth descends on mine, an entire swarm of butterflies take flight in my stomach. Our tongues intertwine, sliding against one another in the most natural way, and I swear…I swear I just died and went to heaven. I don’t think anyone has ever kissed me in such an intimate way, but something inside of me snaps and I instantly want—no, I need—more.