Page 73 of Claimed by Him

“Guilty.”

The dark-haired woman sitting on the other side of Clay let out a strangled sob. She was Mrs. Khaled’s daughter, Gwen. She’d gotten married last year.

“On the third count, in the murder of Darcy Fitzsimmons, how do you find the defendant?”

“Guilty.”

Darcy’s mom started to cry, and Mr. Fitzsimmons put one arm around her.

“On the fourth count, in the attempted murder of Rona Quick, how do you find the defendant?”

“Guilty.”

Clay put his hand on my shoulder, and Jalen squeezed my hand. It was done. The lesser charges that had been a part of the first case hadn’t been made part of the appeal in order to streamline things. Those didn’t matter. He’d been found guilty of the four counts that mattered. He’d spend the rest of his life in prison, where he belonged.

Most people would think that I’d be happy right then, but all I really felt was a sense of relief. It was over. I could go back to Colorado without any unfinished business here. My past was completely behind me, and I could move on.

Starting with my relationship with Jalen.

* * *

Jalen was stretchedout on the bed when I got out of the shower. He hadn’t asked why I’d felt the need to take one when it was still early and all we’d done after court was get something to eat, and I didn’t offer an explanation. Part of it was almost symbolic, a way of cleansing myself of the past, but another part was the need for some solitude while I figured out exactly how I wanted to approach things with Jalen.

By the time I finished, I decided that straightforward would be the best approach. Which was why I was now standing next to the bed, my towel wrapped around me, my stomach in knots.

“Thank you for everything you’ve done this week.”

Jalen turned to look at me, his eyes widening when he saw what I wasn’t wearing. He pushed himself up on his elbows but didn’t say a word.

“And I’m sorry. I’m not saying what you did before was okay, but it was wrong of me to expect you to accept everything with a smile. I should have made it clear that it was okay if you needed time to adjust.”

He shook his head. “What you went through–”

“Is in the past,” I interrupted. “And that’s where I want to keep it. No more looking back at what we did or said. We’ve made our apologies, and I don’t want to dwell on any of it. I think we have something amazing here, and I don’t want to lose it because I held on to something I should have let go.”

He moved across the bed until he was kneeling in front of me. “I don’t want to lose you either.”

I let the towel drop, heat flushing my skin as Jalen devoured me with his gaze.

“Are you sure?”

I could hear the need in his voice, see it on his face, but he’d proven this week that he could put my needs above his own. If I told him that I didn’t want him to touch me, he wouldn’t.

“I’m sure,” I said as I reached out. I carefully unbuttoned his shirt, surprised that my hands were steady. “No more lies or half-truths. I want us to be honest with each other about who we are and what we want. I want us to be able to trust each other with everything.”

He caught my hands as I finished the last button. “I want that too.” He raised my hands to his lips and kissed my knuckles. “I will probably fuck up again. You can pretty much count on it. But I will try every day to be the man you deserve.”

I leaned forward and brushed my lips across his. “That right there is more important than a false promise of perfection.”

He smiled at me. “Does that mean I get a reward?”

I smiled back as I pushed his shirt off his shoulders. “I think one can be arranged.”

My hands moved across his broad shoulders and down his arms, his muscles firm under my palms. Back up again and then across to his chest. I went slower this time, exploring each dip and curve. Just enough hair to show that he didn’t wax or shave, but not so much that it took away from the work of art that was his body. I could see the definition of muscle in his pecs, his abs, but he wasn’t so cut that it looked unnatural. He’d been blessed with good genes and took care of himself, but not so fanatically that he obsessed over working out. Some women might like the bulging muscles and veiny arms, but in my mind, Jalen’s body was perfection.

I scraped a nail across a nipple, and it tightened. I did it to the other one, and Jalen muttered a curse. I smiled and ran my fingers down his abs to the dark hair below his bellybutton. I loved how men’s bodies, with their v-grooves and their happy trails, blatantly pointed to the body part they prized the most.

I leaned forward and used my tongue to trace circles around one nipple, then the other. My hands were busy undoing his pants when he put his hand on the back of my head, applying pressure until I realized what he wanted. I worked over the sensitive skin with tongue and teeth, biting harder and harder until his entire body jerked.

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