Page 154 of The Love Position

Sophia raised a hand, and he started towards her, his strides determined and confident.

She ran to meet him, stopping, out of breath, a couple of feet away.

Isaac’s eyes raked over her. Concern, insecurity, then hope flitting across his features as she smiled at him.

Sophia wanted to fall into his arms, but all she could manage was a breathy ‘hi’.

He seemed as tongue-tied as she was, thrusting the flowers he was holding forward like a five-year-old presenting them to his grandmother.

‘These are for you.’

As she took them, her fingertips grazed his, and a tingle of electricity ran up her arm.

‘Thank you,’ she said softly. ‘They’re beautiful.’

Isaac swallowed. ‘Are you okay?’

Sophia nodded. Despite her inability to express herself with words, she’d never felt happier. It wasn’t just the exhilarating rush at seeing Isaac again, nor the way her body ached for his touch. It was the love that underpinned all other emotions, as constant as the tides and as deep and fathomless as the ocean.

‘I’m sorry,’ he continued. ‘I’ll never forgive myself for not noticing sooner that something wasn’t right. He wasn’t right. I was just so close to him, and—’ He broke off, shaking his head, his face pinched.

Reaching out, Sophia took his hand and squeezed. ‘I spent ten years living with Marcus and didn’t see what was right under my nose. It’s not our fault. People who do bad things are very good at hiding what they do, and we’re so trusting because it would never occur for us to behave the same way.’

Isaac’s nod was hesitant, as if remembering that he’d said something similar to her, many months ago.

‘Thank you for my present.’

His cheeks coloured. ‘I… I didn’t want to put you under any pressure, but…’ He took a deep breath. ‘Every word I said to you when we were abroad was true. I love you, and I want to be with you for as long as you’ll have me.’

Sophia’s heart was running faster than a sprinter, pumping so much emotion into her blood she didn’t know whether to laugh with joy or cry. Suddenly, the space between them was too much to endure. Dropping his hand, she threw her arms around his neck, holding him tightly.

‘I love you, Isaac. I don’t want to be anywhere else than with you.’

He hesitated for a millisecond, as if processing her words, then embraced her, kissing her neck and murmuring how much he loved her, over and over again.

Closing her eyes, Sophia melted into the heat of his body, letting her senses drown in his clean and spicy scent, the feel of his powerful muscles, the soft pressure of his lips on her skin, the texture of his words wrapping themselves around her heart. She’d found her home in Isaac’s arms. Here, she could be unconditionally herself and bathe in his love.

Tugging on his hair, she brought his mouth to hers, their tongues meeting with a jolt of electricity, sparking fires that blazed along every nerve.

The surrounding garden disappeared. There was nothing but Isaac and the burning need to have him covering her, filling her, taking her to places she could never have imagined before.

Breaking their kiss, he reached down and lifted her into his arms.

Sophia let out a squeak of surprise and clutched the back of his neck. ‘I’m too heavy!’

‘No, you’re not.’

Isaac grinned at her as he strode towards the house and Sophia grinned back, dazed with lust and happiness. Turning sideways to enter the back door, he kicked off his flip-flops and Sophia let hers drop to the floor.

‘Where are you taking me?’ she asked, breathless with anticipation.

‘Where would you like to be taken?’ he replied, walking her to the kitchen where a vase stood on the counter, already filled with water.

Sophia dropped the flowers she was holding into it, then focused on Isaac’s sparkling green eyes. ‘Well, I haven’t seen your bedroom before…’

‘Don’t you mean our bedroom?’

Biting her lip to stop a squeal of excitement escaping, she nodded.

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