Page 37 of Fractured Frets

He threw me a sexy, saucy grin, and his eyes glinted in the soft light. “Hmm. I like you being a little bit jealous.” He nudged his leg against mine. “But it goes both ways, Mads. I want to deck any guy who looks at you. I’m just as insecure and anxious as you are. You’re so beautiful. A star. You turn every guy’s head when you walk in a room.”

I play-punched him in the thigh. “I do not.”

“You do.” So much seriousness set in his tone it struck each of my heartstrings with a hard thud. “I’m afraid I’m not good enough for you. That you won’t want to stay with me. Since Harper, every girlfriend I’ve ever had has dumped me. They didn’t like me, my music, my friends, and have hated that I didn’t spend enough time with them. Fuck, Mads, even you left me. You walked out on our wedding night. That fucking broke me.”

His heartache slammed into me, crushing my chest. I wrapped my arms around him, drew his head against my shoulder, and kissed his temple. “I never meant to hurt you.” But I had. And I wanted to do everything I could to reassure him that the past would never be repeated.

“This isn’t one-sided, Mads.” He draped his arm across my waist and hugged my hip. “I continually worry you’ll find someone better.”

“No chance.” I rested my cheek against his head. “We’re as bad as each other, aren’t we?” Trust was a two-way street, and we had to build it together.

“Yeah. We are.” He sat upright and tucked a piece of my loose hair behind my ear, then rubbed the back of my neck, soothing away some of the stress. “If it helps, I will text and call you every second I can. I will leave my phone on video every night so you can watch me sleep and see that I am alone, missing you like crazy. Being apart is hard, but we’ll get there. I promise.” He gave me a quick kiss on the lips. “I want a life with you—without all this stress and interference. I’m counting down the days until we can be together. I’m not looking forward to heading off again on Monday night. But until then, I want to spend as much time with you as possible, so you wanna get out of here?”

I brushed my thumb across the fine stubble shadowing his top lip. “Yes. Please.”

After saying good night to everyone, we drove back to Slip’s house and made our way inside.

At the top of the staircase, he captured me in his arms. Kissed me. As he cradled my face, he walked me backward into the bedroom. “Ti amo. I promise I will always be honest, faithful, and yours until the end of time. End of story.”

“I will too. Time is still subject to many things. But I love you and I’m committed to making us work.”

“That’s all we need.”

I peeled his T-shirt over his head and tossed it on the floor. “How about you show me how much you’re mine?”

He slid his hand down my chest and played with my breast, giving it a gentle squeeze. His touch shot heat straight to my core. He spun me ’round. Stepping in close, he pressed his body flush against my back, and whispered into my ear. “Mads?” His hand glided down my belly and cupped my pussy through my flimsy skirt. “I will do whatever you want. Whatever you need. You want me to mark you, come on you, get down on my knees and be your slave? Just say the words.”

He bit and tugged on my earlobe, sending goose bumps skipping down my neck and arms.

I wanted him to do all those things and more.

He unzipped my skirt and let it fall to the floor. He yanked off my tank top, unclipped my bra, then rid me of my panties.

I glanced over my shoulder. As he loomed behind me, he discarded his clothes. Oh yeah. Taking hold of my hips, he guided me forward towards the huge window that overlooked the secluded dark garden below. Towering bamboo covered the high fence line that surrounded the entire house. Small solar lights lit the path around the pool and garden edges. With only the bathroom light on behind us, our naked reflection was clear as a TV screen in front of us.

Oh, wow.

He placed my palms on the glass above my head. “Don’t move them. I want you to see how hot you are when we fuck. How fucking beautiful you are.” He kissed my neck as he circled his hands over my breasts, tweaking my nipples into hardened peaks.

His palm ventured lower, down my stomach, and dipped between my legs. Two of his fingers parted me, eased into my folds, and met my arousal. I moaned.

Mmmm.

My knees weakened as he glided up and down my wet pussy and circled my clit. My head fell to the side and his hot breath showered my skin. He nipped and licked and sucked my neck. I turned my head just so I could kiss him.

Sliding my hand down his thigh, I clawed my fingernails through the fine hairs on his leg. His muscles, toned and taut, blazed against my fingertips. Touching him made me melt, want more, succumb to his every move.

He nudged his erection against my butt. “I want you and only you.”

I wanted to believe him wholeheartedly. But I couldn’t get the challenge in Harper’s eyes out of my head.

She wanted Slip.

I didn’t want more complications added to the mix when determining my future with Slip.

But they just kept on mounting.

When would we get a break from all the chaos flying around us? When would the clouds clear and the stress disappear so we could forge a way forward?

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