Page 90 of Indigo Sky

"If he didn't, he's more oblivious than I ever realized," I said. "And, hey, Nate and I are working out our shit. So, take that as a good sign."

Her gaze finally met mine then, and I released a relieved breath.

"But you still don't trust him," she said warily.

"No," I replied honestly. "But I'm open to the idea. I just …"

"You need time—I get it." Her shoulder hung beside mine and she laid a hand over her face as she groaned. "God, I'm sorry. You probably think I'm absolutely insane."

"Nah," I said, threading my fingers between hers. "I just love you."

Her pulse quickened beneath my touch.

"But I-I'm here, comparing your old friend to my parents' marriage, and—"

"I still love you," I said, bringing her hand to my lips and pressing a kiss to the inside of her wrist.

"And I have completely ruined this freakin' night, and I'm so tired, and—"

"AndI still love you," I said, pressing another kiss to her thumb.

She released a calming sigh. "Yeah," she said, hushed, as she turned her head to bring her eyes to mine, holding me steady with the confession I'd been aching to hear. "I love you too."

To have those words come from her mouth and land against my chest—softly at first, only to explode upon impact—was all I needed to feel like my life was complete. As if, at thirty-one years old, I had reached the pinnacle of my purpose here on Earth, and I could've left, knowing I'd found pure and true happiness.

It was the lamest moment of my life, easily the sappiest, but as I pushed forward and thrust my lips against hers in a crushing, bruising kiss, I didn't give a fuck how lame or sappy it was. Because it was ours.

My tongue invaded her mouth without invitation, and she groaned in response, reaching her hands out to tug at the forever-disheveled lengths of my hair. Our heads realigned, dancing with choreography we both somehow had memorized, as she turned and straddled my lap in one swift, fluid motion.

I've been here before, I thought instantly, a memory rushing back from years ago—when we had been cocooned in the darkness of the club, the music thumping and every pair of eyes on us, but I hadn't cared.

I wasn't allowed to do this back then, I thought as one of my hands cupped her breast through her hooded sweatshirt.

Her back arched, pushing herself deeper against my grasping palm. I squeezed; she moaned. I grazed my thumb over her pebbled nipple, noticeable even beneath her bra, and her lips parted with a shuddering gasp. It was a delicious, tantalizing give-and-take as she ground her hips repeatedly against mine, and I chuckled against her lips.

"Are youtryingto make me come in my pants again?" I asked, unable to keep my grin from spreading wide.

"No," she said, faking innocence as her hands left my hair to grip my shoulders. "But if you wanted me to, I could."

"Oh, you think so?" I raised an eyebrow to accompany my smirk.

"Don't forget, I'm a professional," she replied, a coy glint in her eye.

"Yeah," I muttered with a snorted laugh. "A professional tease." I nudged my head over my shoulder. "Lie down."

Kate tried to fight her smile as her lips fell open with feigned shock and a horrified gasp. "Are you giving meorders?"

"Sweetheart, I might have to pretend we aren't something while we're working, but right now, in this room, you're mine," I said. "Now, go lie down."

Her cheeks flushed a bright shade of crimson as she bit down on her bottom lip before replying, "Yes, sir."

She stood from my lap and held my gaze as her fingernails dragged over my shoulders until they were gone. She ran her hands in a graceful, slow-motion dance over her hips, stomach, and the full, round swell of her breasts until reaching the zipper at the neck of her sweatshirt. One hand lingered at the base of her throat as the other dragged that zipper pull down, down, down until it was undone, both sides of the sweatshirt falling open to reveal nothing but her bejeweled navel and the black bra she wore underneath.

"Fucking hell, Kate," I muttered, shaking my head as my gaze dropped from hers to take in the sight of her smooth, flawless skin.

Fuck, the amount of time she must devote to ensure she looked so damn perfect … I could only imagine, and knowing that, at this moment, it was all for me was likely the closest thing I'd ever come to nirvana on this side of heaven.

The jacket fell from her shoulders and arms, dropping softly to the floor at her feet. Her hips swirled in a hypnotizingdance as she turned, her hands falling to her waist as she worked her sweatpants off her hips in slow, tantalizing precision, revealing centimeter after centimeter of her shapely, curved ass.

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