“Okay,” I whisper.
His chest is still pressing into mine, his breaths still gusty. “What?”
I open my fists and slide my hands higher.
I go up to his chest and massage it, already slipping into my role of a good girl.
Hisgood girl.
Because I’mhis.
I always was.
“I’ll fix you,” I whisper again, digging my fingers into his steel-forged muscles.
His chest shudders.
His heart thunders beneath my palms.
“I’ll pay my dues.”
His mouth parts as his fevered gaze goes back and forth between my eyes. Then, “So you’re mine.”
Last night I had a qualifier on his statement, and it cut me so deeply to say it. Because it was such a lie. Tonight though, I can tell him the truth.
And smiling, I do. “I’m yours.”
But then he puts his own qualifier and I flinch. “Until I give you back.”
It’s okay though. It’s fine.
I’ll think about all that later.
Right now, I need to focus on this.
On finally realizing all the new things that I’ve just found buried inside my heart.
On him.
So I keep my smile in place even as tears sting my eyes. “Until you give me back.”
And then I make the first move.
For our third kiss.
CHAPTERTHIRTY-THREE
We’re kissing each other.
We’re devouring each other.
As if we won’t get to do this again.
As ifwe were afraidthat we won’t get to do this again.
Which is the truth, isn’t it?
Last night was a one-time thing.