Page 107 of What I Should Have Done

“I love you too, Scotch,” he bluntly silenced me. His palms cupped my cheeks, a calloused touch raising my cloudy gaze to his. Blinking through the tears, I inhaled sporadic breaths. Those three little words had never been spoken to me before. And in such a calm way. There was not an ounce of hesitation or uncertainty that coated his sentence.

“You love me?” I whispered, feeling so feminine, so unburdened. So unlike me yet feather light.

Mikey tenderly smiled and pressed a gentle kiss against my forehead. I closed my eyes as he pulled away, lingering an inch away from my face. “For the first time in my life, I’m not alone,” he began. Warm breath washed over my skin and I wrapped my arms around his waist. “You’re home. You’re my home. I’ll always come home.”

I inhaled deeply and tucked my face against his chest. “But you died.”

A soft chuckle rumbled in his body. “Even death can’t keep me from you. From loving you. Where you are, is where I want to be.”

Pulling away from his chest, I looked up at him suddenly so sure. “I love you, Mikey, and I’m sorry it took me so long to recognize it.”

He grinned. “Damn, I should’ve died sooner if that’s what it took to get you to admit that.”

“Oh, just shut up, Blondie. Besides, you're not allowed to do that again.” I playfully slapped him against his back.

“Dom may order it.” He tipped his head.

“Well, then fine. But…like…ugh…” I grumbled.

Fingers rested beneath my chin, and he tipped my head up. “I’m not going anywhere.”

I bit down on my bottom lip, warmth rising to my cheeks. “So, are you gonna put my name down on the papers? Oh, and that offer to move into your house after…”

“We can talk about that later,” he replied and captured my mouth with his.

Later sounded good with me.

Right now, I wanted to spend every second in the here and now. This moment with him. Every cell in my entire body lit on fire as he deepened the kiss. The roaring hot touch of a hand sliding down the side of my body fueled the flames ignited in my core.

Pulse racing, I slung my arms around his neck. Actually climbing into a vehicle would take too much time.

He needed to take me right here, right now.

Chapter 36

MIKEY

She was as needy as I was. How grateful I was that she didn’t hold any resentment over how things played out. Though guilt swam heavy in my belly for longer than I liked to admit.

“Get out of your head and make love to me, Mikey,” Scottie whispered, pulling away from the kiss briefly.

I smiled gently against her mouth, nipping at her lip. “That’s my girl.” Soft fingers whispered at the hem of my shirt, pulling it over my head. Amber eyes full of desire slid brazenly across my body, resting at my torso. Trembling, she reached forward and danced her hands across scars that once held so much pain and anguish. But here in her embrace, here with my world being consumed by hers, they held nothing but gentle whispers of love.

Tugging at the bottom of her shirt, I slipped it off and greedily took in the incredible sight before me. Goosebumps prickled on her skin as she pulled her hands away from my torso and unhooked her bra. Anticipation steeped hot in my veins, heavy like the static that pulsed low in my stomach.

I watched, lapping in the deliberate trail of her fingers slipping each bra strap off of her shoulders. Powerful. Stunning. An alluring enchantress she was morphing into as she finally let the fabric fall from her body.

A moan hummed in my chest at the sight of such indescribable beauty, and I stepped into her body, capturing her mouth. Skin against skin, I hooked my fingers into her hips, desperately holding onto her.

A quiet whimper tumbled between her teeth, vibrating against my tongue as I shoved it down her throat. How lucky of a man I was to be here with such a beautiful fucking woman. Never before had there been so much peace and calm swirling within my mind.

Hypnotized by her smell, by her taste, I ached to unbutton my pants. Her body writhing against mine bound me in a spell where she could have whatever she wanted. Heat rose in my muscles as her own fingers once more traced marred skin as if she found some solace in sharing that secret with me. Like a branch in a flood, my thoughts were no longer my own. Controlled by the desire to give her pleasure unlike before, I let the beast free from his cage.

No longer was he something I feared. No longer was he something I needed to keep chained up. He was a puppy in her arms. I was at mercy to her every whim. The control I sought came at the cost of losing it all to her.

As I pulled away from her lips, sliding my kiss down to her neck, her hands left my body and reached for the hair pinned behind her head. Within a moment, her tresses flowed like a waterfall cascading down her back and breasts that I was not about to keep hidden. Like butterfly wings, I glided my hands up her sides, her chest rising faster and faster, knowing what I was aiming for, and I paused. Waiting for her permission, despite knowing that it was already given.

And she guided my hand up the rest of the way. Lost to the feel of her breast beneath my palm, my other fingers tangled in her hair, she wiggled free of her pants and underwear in one fell swoop. I slid my tongue across her collarbone, and she bared her neck to me, inviting more and more.

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