Page 48 of Recklessly in Love

His brow furrows. “I’m a lot stronger than you. I don’t want to hurt you, even by accident.”

I roll my eyes. “Quit treating me like a china doll and fucking grab me, wimp,” I goad him.

Greg gives me the “Oh no, you didn’t” look, and I almost laugh. Almost.

“Fine,” he says in a clipped tone. And then he lunges.

In a flash, I have Greg pinned to the ground, my knee at his throat. He tries to shove my knee off, but I twist, cutting off his air. His face turns red, and he taps out.

“Third-degree black belt in taekwondo,” I explain, releasing him. “I’m not as helpless as I look.” I bat my eyelashes at him in the most menacing way I can manage.

“Holy shit.” He sits up, gasping and rubbing at his neck. As he climbs to his feet, I see a mix of emotions on his face: surprise, relief, and ... arousal? “Still ... what you did was reckless,” he says, but his voice has lost its edge, and he won’t meet my eyes now. “You shouldn’t take unnecessary risks. I couldn’t handle it if anything happened to you.”

And now I feel like a complete asshole. Greg wasn’t saying he didn’t think I could handle myself. He was saying he couldn’t handle knowing I’d have to. I soften, touched by his concern. “I’m sorry. If I knew you’d be this upset …” I trail off, chewing at my bottom lip.

He huffs a dry laugh. “You would’ve what? Not done it?” He shakes his head. “I think we both know that’s not true.”

I scrunch my nose and reach out, lacing my fingers through his. “Still. I am sorry.”

He nods and pulls me into his arms. “I know,” he murmurs into my hair. “And it helps that you’re even more capable of handling yourself than I knew. But that doesn’t stop me from wanting to tear Ned’s head off at the thought of him even looking at you wrong. So maybe just … be more careful? Please?”

I melt into his embrace at the earnestness in his voice. And even though I despise being told what to do, especially by a man … well, I’m finding I can’t deny Greg anything. And the idea that I mean enough for him to threaten his own family member like he did … it makes those three little words dance on my lips again.

But I bite them back. Though I do say, “I will, I promise.” I blink hard as the feelings Greg stirs in me bring tears to my eyes. It’s still all too much. So I do the only thing I know how to do to distract myself with a man. “And to show you I’m sorry, and I mean it …”

I press him away and unbuckle his belt, dropping to my knees.

Greg’s eyes darken. “You don’t have to do that, Joanie.” He makes to tug me up, but I can’t handle looking him in the eyes right now because my name on his lips sends a fresh wave of things I’m not ready to feel coursing through my body.

So instead, I withdraw his cock from his boxers and shove it down my throat. His head tips back, and I let those three words melt back into my mouth as he does. I let his moans fill the space in my head where my swirling emotions were. I let his gentle touch on the back of my head soothe the turmoil inside me. But nothing, not the taste or smell of him, the way he feels thrusting in and out of my mouth, or the hot spill of his seed down my throat can distract me from the realization that my heart is his.

Or the knowledge that this visit, this project has become more than a pitstop between what was and whatever comes next. Deep down, I know it’s now my path. And ready or not, I’m walking it with this man. He’s what comes next — no pun intended, for once.

I’m shaken out of my thoughts by Greg hauling me to my feet and kissing me with such passion that it nearly knocks me back off them. When he stops, he’s breathing hard, our foreheads pressed together. “Goddamnit, you drive me so fucking crazy,” he groans against my lips. And I know by his tone and body language that he doesn’t mean sexually. He means that a stellar blowjob wasn’t enough to distract him from what I did and how that made him feel.

“I know,” I murmur back. “I’m sorry for making you worry today.”

He nods, his nose grazing mine with the motion. “I know. But if anything happened to you …” He pulls back to look into my eyes, and I see fear at the idea in them. He shakes his head, and his hand reaches up to cup the back of my neck. His thumb swipes tenderly over my cheek. “I love you, Joanie.”

My heart nearly stops in my chest at his words. I reach for something, anything to say. Except “I know.” Because I’m not going to Han Solo him after that heartfelt confession, after what I did today.

Instead, I nod. “I’m …” I swallow hard. His thumb swipes over my cheek again, making my thoughts go haywire.

“I know you’re not ready to say it yet.”

I look up into his dark eyes with surprise. But I shouldn’t be. He gets me like no one has in a very long time. Possibly ever. And again, the knowledge that he will never ask me to be anyone but who I am nudges me toward giving in.

And yet, I can’t. Not yet.

“I’m not,” I agree. “But take me home, mountain man, and I’ll show you how I feel about that.” I bite into my bottom lip, willing my arousal to show through more than my feelings. Though I’m pretty sure he gets the message: I may not be ready to say it, but that doesn’t mean I don’t feel it.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

GREG

As much as I’ve enjoyed burying myself in Joanie in every way possible these last few days, I’m glad to be driving out of Alpine Ridge and into Seattle to meet with Sera while Joanie meets with the boundary map expert.

After talking to my lawyer, I better understand what my father can and can’t do. However, he’s also waiting for me to speak with Sera before responding to my father’s suit. Since she left a voicemail letting me know she’d finished her research, I suggested we meet for lunch to discuss it and catch up.

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