Page 146 of Catching Sparks

His exhale is shaky as he brushes a kiss over my nose and then across my mouth. “I love you. With everything I am.”

I chase his lips, kissing him three times. “I love you with everything I’ve ever been.”

“There’s more we have to talk about,” he says.

“Just let me kiss you for a minute. Then, say hello to your horse because he might have missed you even more than I have.”

His lips part on a low laugh, and I sigh, so damn happy to hear that sound again. If that’s the only thing I heard for the rest of my life, I wouldn’t mind it for a second.

EPILOGUE

GARRISON

I didn’t think I would get another night on Steele Ranch. In the house that I never thought would ever feel like home to me, but now I know will always hold that meaning. It feels like I never left, the random collection of furniture the furthest things from what lies inside my expensive penthouse collecting dust and all the better for it. Poppy’s perfume is strong throughout the entire place, and it’s the greatest welcome back I could have asked for.

Her stuff is still strewn all over the place. Shoes scattered along the entryway and on the wire rack, a throw pillow from her place on the couch, and a denim jacket hanging over the back of the couch. It’s not messy, but it’s as though she made herself at home. The house looks lived-in.

“You’ve stayed here, haven’t you?” I ask, casting her a soft look.

She tucks her teeth into her lip and nods a single time, almost like she’s uncomfortable with me knowing about her living arrangements for the past two weeks.

“Good. I like the thought of you being here. It’s safer than your place,” I say.

“Are you making a dig at my house, Mr. Black Card?”

“Oh, it’s Mr. Black Card again, is it? Alright.”

Her eyes come alive with that mischievous glimmer I love so much. “Shall I bring back Sir Douchealot while I’m at it?”

I drop a hand to my belt and yank my shirt from where it’s tucked into my pants. She watches my movements, lips parting. Having her look at me like that does things to me that no woman has ever done before her. Like make me consider falling to my knees before her. Something I’ve done multiple times only for her.

“You’re pushing me, Poppy. Have you forgotten that I’ve spent two weeks away from you? I’m one smartass comment away from tipping over the edge into feral territory,” I warn.

She flashes me her teeth. “Lucky for me, I love you a little feral.”

“Get in the bedroom. Now.”

Popping a hip, she cocks her head at me and smirks. “Or what?”

“Or,” I say, beginning to unbutton my shirt, “you’re going to miss out on what I’ve planned for our first night together again. You’ll spend the night with your face in a pillow and your flaming red ass in the air instead.”

Desire swells her pupils, filling her eyes with black. “I need to shower. I went for a run this morning.”

“Then get in the shower, honey. But you’re not going alone.”

With a squeak, she spins and takes off down the hall. I laugh so loud it fills the house as I follow her, shedding my shirt and leaving it on the floor beside the tank top she’s thrown off. My slacks join her leggings, and my socks fall beside hers.

By the time I reach the bathroom, the shower is already on, steam starting to fill the room. I’m painfully hard as I pull open the glass door and step in behind her.

She’s beautifully naked beneath the water, a sudsy loofah in her hands and her hair dark and wet down her back. I’m ravenous for her, and when I steal the loofah from her hands and press it between her big tits, I can hardly contain a groan.

Chin tipped back and eyes on me, she sucks in greedy breaths and keeps her hands at her sides. The prettiest flush covers her chest, over the freckles that have only gotten darker in the summer sun. Her nipples are hard and pointed with those damn silver bars between them that I’ve missed flicking with my tongue.

“I’ve dreamed of you every night that I’ve been gone,” I admit, moving the loofah down her belly and beneath both breasts.

“What did you dream about?” she asks on a breath.

“This.” I avoid her nipples again, bringing the loofah up to her shoulders, massaging the soap into each one before bringing it beneath her arms. “Holding you again. Riding the horses together. Taking you to all of my favourite places and watching you fall in love with them.”

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