I slam the door and stalk around the truck like a damn leopard. She’s got me so fucked up in the head right now that I’m seconds from taking her in this damn truck.
But I’m taking her home right now and then my little firecracker and I are gonna have a long talk about what exactly she’s looking for.
I might have fucked up once but everybody deserves a second chance. Even bastards like me.
I slam the truck into drive and plan all the way back to her house what to say. Because she’s not sleeping alone tonight or any other night. This shit is done.
Chapter Five: Jeremiah
∞∞∞
“I’m not done talking to you yet, Midge!” I shove the door open and push past her into her house.
She whirls on me, her green eyes flashing like bottled lightning. “I don’t want to hear it! I’m tired and I want to go to bed!”
“That’s one thing we can agree on.” I stalk her across the room and back her into a wall. She growls and pushes at my chest but I’m not making it easy on her. I’m not backing down this time.
“Back off, Jenkins! I think you can show yourself out!” She’s a terrier facing down a hungry lion. All fiery bravado and spirit.
And I Iove when it’s focused on me.
My hand lifts and I touch her jaw, turning her to face me. “I’m not showing myself out, princess. You and I are going to talk or fuck. You get to pick but I’m not leaving you again.”
Her chin lifts and her glare is like a dagger. “I’m not gonna do either. You’re going to leave or I’m gonna call the cops.”
My eyebrow lifts and I chuckle. “Princess. That’s not gonna happen and I’ll tell you why.”
“Why?” she whispers, her soft pink lips trembling until she firms them up, glaring me down.
“You want me,” I whisper in her ear, watching her shiver and lean back into the wall. “Your legs are jelly right now because you’re so damn turned on that you can’t even stand without support. You know how I know that?”
She shakes her head, her eyes closing, her breath coming in stalled, panting gasps. I push into her so that she can feel how hard I am right now. She stifles a moan, her eyes flying open. Her pupils are dilated and lust sparks in the peridot depths.
“Because I’ve been rock hard since I left you three months ago. I can’t stop thinking about how you tasted. What you sounded like moaning and writhing under me. The feel of your soft skin under my hands and the smell.” I shudder and throw my head back, reaching for a shred of control before I nut in my jeans. My eyes are hot and heavy when I turn them back to her. “The scent of you in my truck. I can still smell it. I’ve cleaned that damn truck six times and I can’t hide it.”
She backs up and hurt shimmers in her gemstone eyes. “You want to erase it? Want to erase me, don’t you? You didn’t want what happened to happen again.”
I run my hand through my hair and then lean into her, needing that connection to her. Centimeters away from her and my brain turns to mush. “It’s not that simple, Midge. I needed to make sure that it wasn’t just lust. If I had given in to the way I was feeling and it was just lust, our friendship would have been over and I couldn’t bear to think about that. Ten years is a long time but it’s not long enough. I want forever with you. If I had fucked up and I wasn’t sure, if I hurt you badly, it would have broken me. I just needed to be sure.”
“You still hurt me.”
I can see it in her eyes and it’s like a knife to my gut. “I’m so sorry, Midge. I just needed to clear my head. If it makes you feel better, my sister Ruth agrees with you. She yelled at me for the longest time, saying I needed to contact you. But after the first few days, I guess it just felt harder than before. Like it was going to be impossible if I didn’t do it face to face. I needed to see you. And the job took a little longer than I thought it would. I meant to be home after the first month.”
“Three months, Jeremiah. I waited three long, agonizing months to find out what I did wrong. Do you know how much that hurt me? How many times I wondered if I disgusted you when we…”
I cut her off, stunned. “No, baby. No! I wanted you so much it physically hurt to leave.”
She chews on her lower lip and my dick jumps in my jeans. “I’m just not sure.”
“If you want to talk all night, that’s what we’ll do. But I can’t leave you anymore. It makes my gut burn every damn time. That song says it all. I should have listened to my gut. I knew deep down that you’re my one and only.”
“You just needed to be sure.” I nod my head, relieved that she’s finally hearing me out.
“That’s right.”
“And now you’re sure?”
“I am. I am so fucking sure. I’d marry you right this second if that’s what you want.”