Page 52 of The Wanderer

"I want this to be special." He hooked her knee over his thigh and slid into her, inch by exquisite inch. "I want you."

He wasn't just talking about the sex and they both knew it. But with him filling her and her body clamouring after another release, she didn't want to analyse or speculate. He'd said, 'I've missed you' which in the throes she'd assumed meant he missed the sex.

But his gaze told her differently and as he started to move, slowly at first, sliding in and out with the single-mindedness of a man hell-bent on pleasure, Hope knew something had shifted between them. Something momentous. Something that could give her the future she wanted no matter how much it terrified her.

His eyes never left hers as he started to thrust harder, the delicious friction making her heart pound like a jackhammer. He grasped her hip with one hand, the other cupping her cheek, the heat generated from their sweat-slicked bodies making her face burn.

His mouth tightened as his eyes widened and she knew he was close. With a saucy move, she slid her upper leg tighter over him, changing the angle of their pelvises and he groaned, driving into her like a man possessed.

When she strained forward to kiss him, he slid his thumb over her lips and held her face in place so he could see her when he came. With two more thrusts he stiffened, his face contorting with pleasure, his groan so deep it reached down into her soul and tugged something free.

He knew it too, because he'd seen it in her eyes, seen every damn thing she was feeling.

But instead of running like he had every other time, instead of closing off like she expected him to, he brushed a tender kiss across her lips before wrapping his arms around her and holding her tight.

In that moment, Hope knew she'd made the right decision in taking another chance on this guy.

He could be her future.

Time to make it happen.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

"You sure know the way to a guy's heart." Logan swiped a chip through a puddle of ketchup in the middle of their newspaper feast. "Who knew fish and chips could be just as delicious lukewarm?"

"I prefer them hot." Hope wrinkled her nose as she popped a piece of fish into her mouth. "You haven't had real fish and chips until you've tried the ones from our local shop in the village where I grew up."

She rubbed her stomach and made appreciative moaning noises that had him hard in an instant. "Just the right amount of salt and vinegar, and piping hot. So good."

"I'd rather have lukewarm if it means I could have you first."

A blush stained her cheeks as she flashed him a coy smile. "I think I could get used to that too."

A shadow passed over her face and her smile faded. "I'm glad you contacted me." She dabbed at her mouth with a napkin. "I think it's a good idea we talk."

Just like that, his appetite vanished. Crazy, considering that's exactly why he'd called, but now that the time had come, he found the words lodged in his throat like a fishbone.

"Yeah, we do need to talk." He gestured at the newspaper between them. "Finished?"

She nodded, so he balled up the remains of their supper and stuffed it into the trash. He pulled back the tabs on their sodas, passed her one, and downed half of his. It did little to ease the tightness in his throat.

"I saw my dad," he blurted, not surprised when her eyebrows shot up. “I went to one of his shows, then caught up afterwards."

"How did it go?"

"Awkward. Tense." He shrugged, the memory of his father's eagerness and his recalcitrance making him want to wince. It had been painful but cathartic and if it enabled him to move forward with Hope, it had been a good thing. "But something I needed to do in order to confront my past and move on."

"Good for you." She nodded, tenderness softening her features. "It can't have been easy." She gave a short, sharp laugh. "I moved a zillion miles away to get away from my folks."

He wanted to ask about her background, about her desire to leave her family behind, but if he lost momentum now he'd never say what had to be said.

"Facing my dad made me realise a few things."

"Like?"

Curious, her head tilted to one side as she studied him, causing a lock of hair to tumble over her face. His fingers itched to reach out and tuck it behind her ear, but if he touched her now his brain would fry as it usually did whenever he touched her, and he had to focus.

"That he wasn't the selfish asshole I pegged him for. That he had reasons for leaving." He huffed out a breath. "That while we’re probably more alike than I care to admit, I'm not going to make the same mistakes he did."

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