Page 61 of We'll Meet Again

“I’m not certain I deserve you.”

That gave him pause. In his mind, there was nothing she was not worthy of. He hardly believed he was in her league, so it surprised him to hear she saw it the other way around.

“What are you talking about?”

“I just…you’re so good to everyone and I’m…not,” she said. “I mean, I’m not sure I’d have offered to help you babysit tonight if our roles were reversed.”

“So?”

She blinked. “What d’you mean, ‘so’?”

“Darlin’, if you and I were exactly alike, this would be one boring relationship,” he said. “I offered because Iwantedto, not because I expect you to do the same.”

She frowned. “So youdothink I’m selfish.”

“Not what I said,” he replied quickly. “I mean, the only reason I had the opportunity to offer to help was because you helped your sister first. You also came to check on me when I missed training, and took me line dancing to cheer me up. You’re not selfish, Billie. Far from it. You’re…impressive.”

The words spilled out of him faster than his mind even formed them. Like they really were coming straight from his heart. They seemed to satisfy her as well if that smile on her pretty pink lips was any indication. He needed to get back to them as soon as possible.

“Well…that’s quite nice to hear, thank you,” she said.

He moved his hands up to cup each side of her face. “Good.”

A light sigh escaped her mouth and her eyes held his gaze. “Can you go back to kissing me now?”

He didn’t answer with words, only his mouth, reclaiming hers with all the passion of a man returning from war. He was that desperate for her. When her hands slid up under his hoodie his brain nearly short-circuited. He knew he was in trouble if a touch that light almost had him coming undone.

“Want this off,” she hissed, tugging his hoodie up now, and only parting from him just enough to slip it over his head. It hit the floor and he saw her frown when she realized he had a t-shirt underneath. “Must you wear so many layers?”

“In this cold?” he shot back. “Absolutely.”

She rolled her eyes. He cut her some slack and took his shirt off himself. She studied him with a fire behind her eyes, unlike anything he’d seen from her before. She had seen him shirtless a couple of times, but this was different. This time she could look at him without shame or guilt. She could even reach out and touch him, which she did, her warm palm sending an electric shock up his spine when it made contact with his bare chest.

“Fuck, you’re amazing,” she said, almost under her breath, and her hand slid down to his abdomen, her fingers just barely grazing his scar. Every muscle flexed under her touch, every part of him longing to be nearer to her.

He took her chin between his thumb and forefinger, tilting her head back so he could look her in the eyes. She drew in a sharp breath at the sudden intensity, but he couldn’t hold back any longer.

“You want me, darlin’?”

“Yes,” she breathed.

“Tell me how much. I wanna hear you say the words.”

He heard her breath get shorter as her chest heaved. He felt her racing pulse at her throat. He watched her mouth part and her eyes darken with desire.

“I want you, Ethan,” she said. She peeled her tank top off over her head, leaving her in just her bralette, her hard nipples peeking through the powder blue lace. “I want you to touch every part of me you can reach.” She rid herself of the bralette too, and he thought his knees might buckle, especially when she ran her fingers over her gorgeous breasts. “I want your mouth here.”

He yanked her close and lifted her into his arms, her legs wrapped around his hips. He remembered that feeling from their night at the bar. He’d gotten himself off to the memory of it. She was so hot that night, he’d almost given in. Now he was free to go as far as she would let him. He took one pebbled nipple into his mouth, and she gasped. He wanted her to make that sound again, so he flicked his tongue over the tip. She shivered and held him closer.

“Keep going, baby,” he urged her. “Tell me what else.”

“Put me on the couch,” she sighed. “Wanna feel you on top of me.”

He obeyed, laying her down gently. He kept his mouth on her breasts, cupping one with the hand that wasn’t at her waist, kneading until she whimpered, pushing her chest towards him for more.

He started a trail of hot, open-mouthed kisses up her chest and all the way to her throat, nipping slightly at the soft skin of her neck. His knee pushed her legs apart; she rutted her hips so her center grazed his thigh. She shuddered.

“Been thinking about these thighs, baby?” he murmured into her neck.

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