Page 52 of My Secret Santa Clayton

“Never,” I replied, holding her gaze with mine, making every word a vow as I filled her completely, again and again.

Grace's moans filled the room, her hands clenching the sheets tight. She braced herself against my every move. Her hips met mine with equal fervor, her eyes locked onto mine as she surrendered to the intensity between us.

She was coming…she was coming, and I wanted to make her come again, but I couldn’t last.

Not like this.

Not with her pussy clenching around my cock, with her eyes gazing into mine, with those red lips parted.

I couldn't look away from her, not even for a second. I watched every shift in her expression, each sign of pleasure that crossed her features. Then it happened—her body tensed, and she cried out.

The sight pushed me over the edge, and I followed her down.

The release hit me like a freight train, powerful and all-consuming. In that moment, I knew—she was everything to me, always had been, always would be. Protecting Grace wasn't just instinct; it was my purpose. As I gave her everything I had, I knew this was what it felt like to come home.

I wouldn’t leave her again. Wouldn’t let a damn thing happen to her.

“Clay,” she whispered in the silence after.

I pushed myself up to kiss her, long and slow, my heart still racing in my chest. We rolled to our sides together, and I gently pulled out of her. Her eyes met mine, full of that same fierce intensity I'd fallen for years ago.

And I said it, no pretense.

“I love you.”

Grace stared at me, searching my eyes for…something, I wasn’t sure. I’d thrown her off, though I didn’t know why.

“You don't mean that,” she said.

“Grace,” I replied, “I never stopped. Not for a second. Ever since I left you…I've loved you, remembered you, wanted you.”

Sadness clouded her brown eyes, all wrong for the moment. She didn’t love me.Fuck. It gnawed at me. I wanted to ask, to understand what lay behind that sorrow.

But she said, “I love you too, Clay,” and I knew she meant it.

Before I could ask her what was wrong—what the caveat was—she pressed her lips to mine. The kiss became our world. Her hands found their way to my face, pulling me deeper into her embrace. My body responded without thought, readying itself for another round as I lost myself in the feel of her against me.

We could talk tomorrow.

Right now, we were in love.

TWENTY-THREE

Grace

It was so warm…warm and safe.

Until it wasn’t.

I opened my eyes in the dim light of dawn, the shadows of the room stretching long and thin across the floor. The chill crept under the covers, but it wasn't the cold that brought the shudder to my shoulders—it was the memories.

The faces of my dead informants hovered at the edge of my consciousness, eyes full of silent accusations. This crusade, their crusade, had spiraled into something uncontrollable, something deadly.

I let out a breath, feeling it shiver in the quiet morning air. The weight of guilt settled on me. They had wanted out, wanted to run away together, away from the threats and the violence. They were in love and now they were gone—all because of a war that seemed to have no end.

I’d promised to save them.

I’d failed, and now my life was on the line.

---