I gently elbowed him in the gut, causing him to grunt. “First of all,” Colt began, “every relationship is a failure except the one that works. You and I work.”
“You don’t know that. Our relationship is barely longer than a mayfly’s gestational period. It was stupid. This whole thing was stupid.”
I attempted to duck under his arm to get away, but he wouldn’t let me. His hands went to my arms to gently turn me around to face him.
“Look at me,” he said quietly.
“No.” I pinched my eyes shut.
“Mia,” he said, laughter in his tone. “Will you please look at me? I want to say something to you.”
“So say it. I don’t need to look at you to hear you. You don’t listen with your eyes.”
“But you’ll see the truth in my expression. Please, babe, open your eyes.”
Finally, I lifted my eyelids and tilted my head back to stare at him. His hands came up from my hips to cradle my cheeks.
“You should always speak your mind. There will be times that I don’t want to hear it. Times that I disagree with you. Times that I agree with you. There will be times that I know you’re right, but wish you were wrong. Or I’ll know you’re wrong but wish you were right.” One of his hands left my face to brush against the bandage peeking out from my tank top.
“This? This wasn’t a whim. It wasn’t bullshit. If you don’t buy that this is real or for the long haul, then I don’t know what I can do to prove that it is. Time is my only proof, I guess. I know the only thing that will make you realize it’s legit is by showing you. So you can do whatever the fuck you want to and try to push me away.” He pressed his forehead to mine. “I won’t go. You want to call me a criminal. Fine. I am. You want to tell me you don’t want babies with me because you don’t want them to grow up to be criminals? Well, I get it. But I don’t see myself that way even though it’s true. It’s all true. You don’t know shit about this way of life yet because all you’ve been exposed to is Dev and you’ve seen Richie’s burned, tortured body. Give me some time and I promise you you’ll see it all differently.”
“Colt,” I whispered.
“My name is James,” he said, his tone raspy. “James Stewart Weston, and when I marry you, you’ll be a Weston. And when we have kids—because damn it, there needs to be tiny yous running around in this world, they’ll be Westons too. There needs to be more light in this shit-as-fuck world. And the only way I know how to leave it a better place is to give it a piece of you. Because you’re all fucking heart and I know that. I know it in my soul, Mia. I swore I’d protect you and keep you safe. That goes for our family too. I’ll protect you,” he repeated. “All of you.”
The tears that had been hovering finally came with an intensity I couldn’t hold back. Nothing could contain them, and I let out a heaving sob.
From that moment I knew that whatever Colt was, whatever life path he was on, I would be there for him.
I would ride beside him as his woman, forever.
“I’ve been alone so long,” I whispered. “I didn’t even know what a family is supposed to look like.”
“It can look however you want, honey. But don’t say no because you’re scared. Don’t say no because you think you’ll fail. You can’t fail, not with me. I choose you and I will not leave you.”
“Everyone leaves,” I said, my tears blurring my vision. “They don’t mean to, but they do.”
“Not me. I’m not gonna die and leave you alone. Whoever has the rights to my soul will have to drag me kicking and screaming. You give me too much to live for. So whatever shit we have to get through now, we will. We’ll endure. Together.”
His words left me breathless, like a powerful aphrodisiac. This strong, brave man—I knew he couldn’t protect me from everything. He couldn’t shield me from all that life would throw at us. That wasn’t the point. The point was he’d be with me through it all.
“I need to feel you,” I whispered.
His hands dropped from my body so he could step away. His eyes were dark.
I leaned against the edge of the counter, widening my legs ever so slightly.
He swallowed. “I don’t—I can’t—be gentle.”
“I’m not asking for gentle.”
He took me into his arms and our lips crashed together. We tore at each other’s clothes in a mindless frenzy. I was still in Colt’s boxers and my tank top so it took no effort to slither out of them. His hands went to my hair and his lips found mine again as he started walking backward.
I pulled my mouth from his. “Where are you going?”
“Trying to get you upstairs. You’re walking naked through my house, you know.”
“I thought it was our house?” I asked with a grin.