Page 68 of My Heart Before You

Colin set her on the kitchen island, never letting his lips disconnect from hers. Pushing her hands against the lapels of his white coat back, he disconnected his arms long enough to pull them behind his body as the coat slipped to the floor. Their lips devoured each other’s, and she let her hands roam all over the cold, thin fabric of his scrub top.

“How did y—” she managed against his lips.

“I ran,” came the heated answer.

“Wh—” She didn’t get to finish that question either.

His tongue played with hers as a hand pulled at the end of her braid. With the hair tie removed, he made quick work of unbraiding before plunging both hands into her hair. She leaned back against his fingers with a pleasurable gasp as he laid hot targeted kisses on the exposed underside of her jawline, making his way down her neck.

“I had to see you.” His voice was flaming against her throat.

His words had her needing his lips on hers, and she roughly grabbed his face and pulled it to hers. The heat from inside his body was overcoming the short exposure to the harsh elements as her hands explored his torso. She fisted the fabric of his scrub top and it came free from being tucked into his pants. His hand grabbed behind his head and pulled it from his simmering body in one swift motion.

A gasp escaped her lips as Emilie began exploring his bare skin with her fingertips for the first time. The same need she had earlier in the day came back more forcefully. She didn’t realize how much she wanted this, how much she wanted him, and suddenly she couldn’t get enough of him.

Her hands explored the strong expanse of his back before tucking under his arms and weaving her fingers through the patch of darker blond hairs over his chest. When both hands settled over his heart, he stilled.

Colin pulled back enough to look at her. “Emilie, I . . .”

His stormy eyes seemed to struggle with the end of the sentence, and she was about to ask him what, but he removed the hand that was behind her back and used it to hold her face ever so gently as he kissed her lips as lightly as he had earlier that day.

She felt a world of possibilities open with that kiss. Secrets and mysteries and things she couldn't grasp seemed available to her if she would just reach out and take them.

“Colin . . .” she breathed against his lips.

Her voice sent him back into a fever pitch. Mouths and hands exploring wildly, she felt his hand dive under the back of her shirt and the pleasure was immediate. She must have groaned against him because he slowly pulled up at the shirt, and she leaned back to allow him to remove it.

His glossy eyes stared at her exposed skin before his mouth led back to hers. “So beautiful.”

She felt more than beautiful in that moment; she felt wanted and cherished and safe. He made her want things she didn’t think she could dream of again. He made it seem like anything was possible. That this was possible for her again.

Her reverie was interrupted by him trailing kisses down her throat. He placed a warm, broad hand behind her mid-back and she leaned into it as his kisses continued down her sternum and over her heart before lightly tracing the upper edges of her bra. She needed more connection with him so she wrapped her dangling legs back around him.

A guttural sound escaped his throat before he returned to her mouth. Her hands explored his muscled shoulders as one of his slipped under her bra. At her quick inhale, he paused, but her passionate kiss let him know she enjoyed the touch. His other hand teased at the top of her waistband as a few tentative fingers swiped against her belly an inch above her c-section scar.

This time she pulled back. She couldn’t let this go any further without telling him.

Before she could speak, Colin gathered her into his arms and breathed against her ear. “This isn’t slow.”

She softly pushed against his body to look him in the eye. “It’s not that. I’m not being fair to you.”

When she leaned back even farther, he dropped his arms to his sides. Gathering his hands up in hers, Emilie took a deep breath and let out a halting exhale.

“I want this.” She rubbed the back of his hands with her thumbs, looking at how small hers were in comparison. “I want you.” Her eyes flicked to his. “I want to be with you.”

Saying it out loud solidified what her body had been telling her for some time. Her already rapid pulse jackknifed at her words.

He went to speak, but she lightly laid a single finger to his lips. “Let me finish.”

Returning her hand to his, he held it this time, running slow circles over the skin inside her wrist. Even with the comforting touch, her ribs still squeezed inward and her breath trapped in her throat.

“The reason I wanted to take things slow is because I haven’t been with a man in almost four years . . .” She paused, gathering her strength, and swallowed against the bitter taste in her mouth before forcing herself to say the words. “The last man I was with was my husband. He and our infant daughter died in a car accident.”

She heard his quick inhale and glancing up, found complete compassion in his eyes.

“Oh, Emilie.” Sadness seeped into her name.

At his absolute acceptance of her pain, a single tear slipped down her cheek and hit the counter between them. In an instant, his arms wrapped firmly around her. She listened to his strong heart beating beneath his warm chest as he slowly brushed her hair with his hand. Colin never let the strength of his arms waver. After what seemed like an immeasurable amount of time, she felt his exhale as he let go of her.

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