Page 75 of The Love Shack

“Do you have a condom?”

“I do.” No lie, she was gorgeous, and she really had to stop expecting him to carry on a conversation. He fished out his wallet, took out the protection and handed it to her.

“Er...”

Shoving down his jeans and boxers at the same time, he kicked them away. Once he straightened, he took the condom from her, then pulled her into his arms.

Thankfully, all dialogue ended there, because he didn’t think he could have strung two words together. Berkley stopped being shy, and probably would have taken over if he hadn’t been in such a rush himself.

The thing was, everything clicked.

Her quirkiness, his lust. Her demands, his delivery.

Her gasps and his growls.

It was all in sync. He’d had sex plenty of times, but he’d never experienced anything likethis. Like her.

Realizing how much he cared for her, that the inevitable had somehow happened lightning fast, gave him a sense of peace he hadn’t felt before. Like his past and his future had collided, and in the process every decision he’d ever doubted now made perfect sense.

When she clenched around him, when she arched and cried out, he felt it everywhere, especially in his heart.

For the first time in a long time, maybe the first time ever, it felt like he was home.

Held loosely in Lawson’s embrace, her heart still racing and her breath yet uneven, Berkley smiled. She’d done some foolish things in her lifetime, and she had more than her share of regrets. But this, with him, she would never regret, no matter what twists and turns the future took.

Talk about an eye-opener.

She rested half atop him, her cheek on his chest, and she heard the heavy cadence of his heartbeat as it gradually slowed. She was naked and didn’t care. Her hair and makeup were wild, and she didn’t care.

She’d been demanding—and noisy. And she didn’t care.

She cared about Lawson. About them together.

A few minutes passed. Lawson’s fingertips teased over the bare skin of her bottom. She liked it that even now, after they’d just expended all that energy, he still touched her.

Once she thought she could speak coherently, she tried to find a way to put her thoughts into words. She lifted her head and saw that his eyes were closed, his hair even messier. His mouth, so talented, wore the slightest of appeased smiles.

“Lawson?”

“Hmm?” His light brown eyes opened, sated, lazy, happy.

It filled her with contentment. “Even at the worst of times, I was glad to be alive, so please don’t misunderstand.”

Concerned, he brought his hand up to lightly touch her cheek, his fingers drifting over her skin before stroking through her hair. “And now?”

“Now I feel like I’m really alive.” That didn’t quite cover it, and she knew her words wouldn’t be adequate, but she gave it a try anyway. “I had no idea what I was missing.”

“You were missing me.” He brought her forward for a warm smooch. “So many times, I’ve thought that I never should have left you.”

“What?”

“Back when we were both still young. When the world wasn’t treating you kindly.”

A short, soft laugh of surprise escaped her. “You didn’t leave me.” How silly. “You got on with your life and I’m proud of you for it.”

“I left everyone. For a while there, after seeing you again, I felt bad about that.”

“You shouldn’t. I wasn’t your responsibility.”

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