Page 91 of Boarded Hearts

FELICITY

“Yeah, they’re tough but you absolutely aced your bachelors; there’s no way you won’t get through the bar exams.”

“Hmmm, I think your confidence in me might be a little misplaced, Kate.”

“A little like the lack of faith in yourself,” she responds, pushing off my desk.

“It kills me to think he kept you from living out your dreams. Promise me, you’ll always chase them from now on.”

Jon is the reason I decided to take Mark up on his offer and take the plunge and sit for the bar exams to become a human rights lawyer. I need to be with him, but no matter what happens, I know without a doubt the impact he’s had on me, my confidence, and my outlook on life. I want to make him proud, but I also owe it to myself, having abandoned my dreams for someone else’s all those years ago.

I grab my jacket from the back of the chair and my bag from the desk. Pretty much everyone has left the office as I head to the elevator and down to the lobby. Bright lights blind my vision as I push the doors open and head out into the night sky.

“Hey, Angel.”

Jon’s standing a few feet away, clad in black jeans, a gray sweater, white Nikes, and a backward cap. He looks delicious—no, better than delicious. Utterly beautiful. It’s neither what he’s wearing that picks up my pulse nor the white muscle car he’s leaning against. It’s the sight of his wide dimple-popping smile.A sight my heart has been craving.

I lurch forward and into his arms, his spicy cologne enveloping me in warmth against the frigid night air.“It’s just like that night you picked me up,” I whisper against his chest.

“Fancy some fried chicken?”

I snort-laugh, and it’s definitely attractive. “Fancy? Going all British on me, are you?”

Jon throws his head back and laughs. “Watch it, Mary.”

“You know what I fancy? Heading home and getting cozy.”

He smiles sweetly, his expression lighter than I've seen in a while, and relief washes over me in waves. “Me too, Angel.”

CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

JON

Ilay the woman I love down on our bed and slowly unbutton her blouse.

It’s taken thirty minutes to get from my apartment complex parking lot to our bedroom since we made out in my car for a good twenty and then in our private elevator for another ten. I feel like I’m floating, my body is thrumming with the need for her touch, the trace of her pale pink fingernails, and the caress of her warmth.

I need to be inside her, fast. But much more than that, I need her to know how much I appreciate everything she is. Her loyalty and resilience to walk with me even through the darkest tunnels of my existence.

“I’m so fucking sorry. Forgive me,” I whisper against her stomach. I nip and kiss around her navel before I travel lower and drag her skirt and panties down and over her hips.

“There’s nothing to forgive, Jon. I just want you to know, I’ll always be a safe place for you.”

“You make me feel everything that’s worth feeling.”

“Show me how that feels,” she says on a breathless whisper.

I lean across to dim the lighting in the room. I flick a second switch, uncertain of where I am in my playlist when Khalid’s “Better” starts playing through the speakers. Perfect.

“Lie back, Angel.” I’m not sure how much time passes, but I know for certain every minute is spent serenading my girlfriend. She comes undone beneath me as I nip and suck at her inner thighs and pussy, enjoying her sweet taste on my tongue.

“Jon,” she cries, and I continue to eat her out as her orgasm begins to overtake her body.

“What do you want?” I ask, licking the last of her off my lips.

“Everything. I want it all.”

I stand from the bed and push my pants and boxer briefs to the floor. I pull my sweater over my head and unbutton my shirt but leave it hanging open, too eager to get her back in my arms.

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