Page 58 of Where the Darkness Goes

I stop short at the revelation, his pained eyes telling me it’s the truth. “Why didn’t you tell me that?”

“Because I was a teenage kid who had no idea how to handle his feelings, let alone explain them to you. Because I didn’t want to scare you off. And because…” He reaches out his hand, but stops short of touching me. “Because I was in love with you and terrified you didn’t feel the same way.”

“You were in love with me?” I demand. “Since when? You should’ve told me.”

“I was going to tell you. I was. But then…” His head suddenly seems to hold the weight of the world as he sinks down onto the bed. “There’s so much that happened back then. So much, and it just all felt so heavy. You were here, and you were happy, and I couldn’t tell you I loved you without telling you everything else. And that killed me. It kills me to think you ever felt like I didn’t want you.” Pinching the bridge of his nose between his fingers, he releases a heavy breath. “Or that I only wanted you because someone else did.”

“I told Mark I couldn’t see him anymore,” I whisper, divulging the truth I’d planned to keep to myself a while longer.

He stands and steps toward me. “You did?”

“Of course I did,” I say, breathless. “He’s a nice guy. A really nice guy, but…” I meet his eyes, trying to say so much with just a few words. “He’s not you.”

CHAPTER THIRTY

GARRETT — PRESENT DAY

“Do you still want me?” My voice is shaky, but it’s nothing compared to the vibrations I feel inside my body. Every part of me is in tune with her. I can’t think of anything except for the words she just uttered—he’s not you—and the fact that she’s in my bedroom right now, staring at me in a way she hasn’t stared at me in years.

“I’ve always wanted you. I never stopped?—”

I don’t even let her finish the sentence. I can’t. I need her. I grab her, cupping her face. I try to be gentle, to savor, to worship, but it’s impossible when I have her here after I’ve dreamed of this—a second chance—since the day she left.

I press my lips to hers, claiming her mouth over and over again. She is mine. She’s always been mine, and I’ve always been hers. I can’t wait any longer. I lay her on the bed and run my tongue down her chest while I unbutton her shirt again, kissing each new inch of exposed flesh. She smells sweet, like coconut, and tastes like heaven. I’ve missed her taste, her scent. I’ve missed her.

I close my eyes, pressing the moment into my brain so I’ll never forget it.

“You have no idea how bad I want you,” I whisper, refusing to take my lips from her skin. She sits up, pulling her bra over her head before grabbing my shirt and tearing it off me.

Neither of us can stand to wait another second when all we’ve done is wait for years. Everything was slow motion, but now the race is back on.Full speed ahead.

I want to remember every second of this, save it in my mind so I can replay it later. “Are you sure about this?” I whisper, needing confirmation. I couldn’t live with it if she regrets it in the morning.

In answer, she pulls my mouth to hers and kisses me deeper. “So sure. I need you.”

I nip at her jaw, then her neck and shoulder, pressing gentle kisses after each bite. I make my way across her skin, marking her and soothing her in quick succession.

I’m feral when I reach her chest, reveling in the fact that this is real. It’s no longer in my dreams. And god knows I’ve had plenty of dreams just like this.

I flatten my tongue, tracing it up and over her breast, slowing when I reach her nipple before sucking it into my mouth. Her back arches, and she releases a guttural moan from deep in her chest.

“Mm-hmm. I remember what you like, my good girl.”

She strokes the back of my head, mouth open in answer, pure longing on her face. “Garrett…”

I pull her into my mouth again, holding eye contact this time. I want to see her fall apart for me.And oh, she does.My girl responds immediately, arching her back higher, pressing up off the mattress. I smile against her, swirling my tongue across her nipple as my hand moves to take care of the other one.

She drives me mad, making sounds I’ve only heard in my dreams for so long, cries that can only come from those lips, moans that haunt me.

I pull back, and she stills, watching me as I slowly trail kisses along her ribs. I kiss each little hollow, inhaling deeply as I go, burying my face in her skin. I can’t get enough of her.

I could die happy like this, in her arms. I drag my mouth down her bare stomach, scraping her skin with my beard. Tomorrow, when she gets dressed, she won’t be able to unsee the proof that we were together tonight. That she was mine. That I’m still the only one who can make her feel this good.

When I reach her shorts, I tug them down. She lifts her hips to help me as I ease them over her hips and off her legs.

Starting at her knees, I nip and kiss my way up her thighs, her cries growing more impatient with each one. She loves to see me like this—wanting her, needing her more than air—and I’m happy to make it happen.

“Please…” she begs again.

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