She strains toward my mouth and begs, “Please, don’t stop. Oh, God, I’m so close, so … ah!”
Her climax is a violent contraction that makes her shout hoarsely. She gasps, trembles, and jerks against my mouth as I brace her hips and eat her relentlessly.Jesus,she comes so fucking hard; my chest swells with the knowledge that it’s my hands and mouth bringing her so much pleasure.
“You’re so fucking beautiful, Gem. Can’t wait to get inside this tight cunt. Need to claim you. Need to cum deep inside this hot pussy.” My words are a rumble against the swollen flesh of her sex. “Mine. You’re fuckingmine.”
“I’m yours, Bentley,” Gem sobs, her body racked with the convulsions of her orgasm.
I crawl up her body, kissing her hard and letting her taste herself on my mouth.
She comes down slowly, crying and shaking. Her fists pound my chest as tears roll down her flushed cheeks. “Damn you, f-for leaving me, Bentley. And d-damn me, too, for not coming after you!”
Chapter 9
Gemma
“Hush,sweetheart. I’ve got you. You’re okay.” Bentley gathers me into his arms and cradles me against his chest. He rocks me gently, smoothing his hands through my hair and down my back.
“Seven g-goddamn years. Wasted!” I choke. “Because of w-what? Pride?”
He shakes his head, wiping away my tears with his thumbs. “Fear. I was scared, Gem. You know how I grew up. I was scared I’d never be enough.”
I nod. It’s the one thing he could’ve said that I understand on a fundamental level. I know the fear of not being enough. Not girly enough, not thin enough, not accommodating enough. Just notenough.
“And then with the accident …” He pauses, his mouth tightening with bad memories. “It was better for me to take the blame. I was already leaving town for college, so it was no biggie.”
It's one of my greatest regrets, letting Bentley take the blame. “No biggie? Bentley, it was huge. I was trying so hard to bethe daughter they wanted me to be, and I let you fall on your sword. We let you,” I say, knowing that Callum feels the same. “And what’s worse is that in all the years since, we’ve never set the record straight with my mother and father. They still hold you responsible for something that wasn’t your fault, and I’m so sorry for that. I’m sorry for letting them drive you away. Not away to college, but away fromme.From our friendship. From the potential of us.” I wave a finger between us. “From this.”
“No, I’m the one who’s sorry, Gemstone. Sorry for leaving without a word and pushing you away. It didn’t have to be the end of our friendship, but I wanted so much more than that with you. I thought we needed time to grow into ourselves and realize who we were without each other. I’ve spent years in Denver making a name for myself as an artist, thinking it was all I needed to be fulfilled. But it wasn’t because I didn’t have you. You fulfill me. I love you, Gem. Always have. Always will.”
My mouth drops open as I gape at him, searching his eyes for any sign of uncertainty and finding none. Oh, this man is wrecking me. This selfless, talented, wonderful man has laid himself bare and made himself vulnerable for me.
I know in some corner of my psyche that we unleashed something in each other when we met. Something unnamable but strong and enduring. A powerful connection that hasn’t been eroded by time or misunderstandings and has brought us right back here. To this moment.
Only Bentley affects me this way. I’m physically naked, but I’m also emotionally exposed to him. He seesme in a way no one else does.
“I love you too, Bentley. Since I was sixteen. Maybe before. But you’re right. Maybe we did need time to figure out who we were.I thought I was so mature back then, but my actions that night proved I wasn’t. I never thanked you for coming after me. I was hurting and angry, but if it weren’t for you”—I shiver as I remember the guy’s hands on me at the party—“things would’ve gotten messy. As it was, they got messy in a whole different way. And that’s on me.”
Bentley leans in, kissing me softly. “It’s on all of us, Gem. We were just kids. We’ve spent years seeking people’s approval. You with your parents. Me with any fucker who dared to look down on me for where I came from.” His mouth twists in a wry smile. “But no more, Gem. No more putting our self-worth into the hands of others. The only thing that matters is that we’re enough for each other.”
Tears prick the backs of my eyes again. He’s killing me here. “I don’t think I’ve ever heard more beautiful words.”
Bentley pushes my hair off my face and whispers hotly, “You’re enough, Gem. Just the way you are. You’re amazing. Your beautiful mind and gorgeous body make my dick so fucking hard. And so does your trust. Letting me draw you was a big step, and it's not a gift I take lightly.”
I shiver as the needy throb reignites between my legs. Gripping his face in my hands, I whisper, “And you’re enough, Bentley. You were enough back then, and you’re enough now. I don’t care where you came from or what you did or didn’t have because you’re still the best person I’ve ever met.” I pause, a smile pulling at my mouth. “And now I know those wicked fingers are talented in more ways than one.”
“Gem,” he growls.
My muscles clench. That deep rumble makes me feel like he’s already thrusting inside me.
He kisses me with a fierce desperation that steals my breath, devouring me with his lips and tongue. On and on, his mouth hard and demanding until I’m shivering and soft, and needy moans escape from my throat.
He works his way slowly down my neck to my collarbone, dipping his tongue into the hollow of my throat. He touches and tastes and licks and nips at every inch of my body, sucking hard on my nipples until they’re so sensitive, I think I might come again if he so much as breathes on them.
My pulse pounds in my throat. He’s so hard for me. The heaviness between my legs quickly becomes an ache only he can quench.
Finally, he moves back up my body, adjusting his weight on top of me and sliding his leg between mine. He’s so heavy and warm and solid. I’m not a small woman, but I feel womanly and feminine lying beneath his powerful bulk. God, how I love it.
Bentley braces his weight on his elbows and hovers above me, his hands planted on either side of my head and his eyes burning with lust. “I need inside you, Gemstone. Gonna make you mine. I’ve waited long enough. We both have.”