Page 40 of Love Over Time

I put down the toilet-seat cover, and I plopped myself on it. When I was fifteen, after I had decided to run away, I came back to the manor to steal from Tessa. Back then I’d been convinced she let me see where she kept cash stashed away in case I needed it one day. What had Tessa been afraid of back then? Why the contingency plan? What was she afraid of now? Something didn’t add up here. She was sick one day and then completely fine the next, dining with Jonathan as if they were old friends. What had happened? He’d held her captive all these years, and suddenly for no good reason, he’d grown a conscience and let her go? No, men with a conscience wouldn’t hire scumbags to rough up their nephews. Scott’s words echoed in my mind, and I shuddered. Had he lied to save his own skin? Had Jonathan really sent him to kill Henry? Too many questions and not one solid answer.

I sat there, taking the room in, searching for a better hiding spot than a medicine bottle. If Tessa was planning to escape, she’d need more than money. She’d need some kind of insurance. Then I saw it, the cracked tile under the cabinet. I cocked my head and lowered myself to the floor. Was this it? I crawled the rest of the way, with my gaze fixed on the loose tile. In the gaping hole underneath was another bottle of pills. I didn’t bother to look inside of it. Whatever was in it would no doubt get Tessa out of hiding.

“You want your things back, Tessa? You’re gonna have to come get them yourself. And while you’re at it, you’re going to help us prove Lisa’s innocence.”

I fished my purse from the bedside table and shoved the bottle and Tessa’s money in it. Time to go home. With my heart racing in anticipation of seeing Henry again, I peeked through the small opening between the door and the threshold. The corridor appeared empty, so I slipped out of the bedroom and rushed downstairs.

“Ms. Swift, leaving so soon?”

I rolled my eyes and turned to face the mayor. “Yes. I’m suddenly not feeling well. Must be the heat.”

“Oh. Can I get you anything? Here, have a seat.”

“No need, darling. Maybe you could assist with my car?”

“Oh, sure.” He ushered me out the front door.

Outside, a few cars were parked around the massive stone water fountain. Despite all the bad memories, this place was breathtaking, with its sparkling lights and tall trees lining the driveway all the way up to the gate, a half a mile down the gravel road.

“Are you sure I can’t get you anything else?” Jonathan handed me the keys to my Tesla. This little car was growing on me.

“Thank you for an incredible evening, darling. Give my regards to Francesca.”

He lowered his gaze for a moment and mumbled, “Of course, I will.”

Whatever he and his wife had going on wasn’t my problem. With a quick wave, I climbed into the car and drove off, making record time to the Cavalier Hotel. Henry had called it home, and I’d nodded in agreement, not thinking on it twice. Was he right? Had I finally found a home in Paradise Creek? No, not without Lisa.

The lights inside the lobby were turned off, and the curtains drawn. I parked on the street in my usual spot behind Henry’s beat-up truck. A bubble expanded in my chest and forced a giggle out of me. I deserved a little happiness, didn’t I?Don’t think. Henry’s waiting.

I crossed the threshold and flipped the deadbolt. A jazzy tune played over the speakers as Henry sat at the bar, still wearing that tuxedo like he was born in it. He looked hot and so comfortable in his own skin, while I was ready to jump out of mine.

“What took you so long?” He stood, his eyes full of promises when he looked me up and down.

“I couldn’t just leave. I had to thank our gracious hosts.” I placed my purse on the counter, took his glass of whiskey, and sipped. He bit the inside of his lip, his gaze on my mouth. A small jolt at my core made my legs press together. God, I was ready for him again.

He poured another two fingers in the same glass. “Is whiskey your drink?”

“Right now it is.” I took another pull.

“You’re nervous.” He sat, his hands on my hips.

I shook my head once and stepped closer to find my place between his thighs. Lips slightly parted, he surveyed my face as his long fingers slid up to my waist, the curve of my breast, the dip at the bottom of my neck, and finally landed on my clavicle, where he pressed firmly against the beat of my heart. His tongue touched the side of his mouth, and he swallowed. Was he nervous too?

“I’ve spent the last fifteen years trying to replace this thing I feel when I’m with you. But every girl, every woman I ever met always fell short.” He pulled at the lock of hair brushing my arm. “After a while, I convinced myself that whatever I’d felt back then wasn’t real. That I imagined it, made it up.” His thumb slid across my mouth, grazing my teeth. “Now that you’re here with me,I knowwhat we had was real. I missed you. All of you. Your stubbornness, the way you see the world like anything is possible, the way you fill a room with energy every time you walk in, even how you’re incapable of telling a proper lie.” He chuckled. An electric charge unfurled near my core. He cradled my neck and kissed me. His mouth was demanding, as if trying to make up for all the years when all we’d had was a chaste kiss in a dark tunnel. “I never stopped loving you. Please tell me you want to try.”

I sighed, a deep moan, a whimper that let out feelings I’d buried deep inside my soul the day I woke up under the mesquite tree and realized Henry wasn’t coming. I pushed his tuxedo jacket off his shoulders and let it fall to the floor, while my fingers swiftly unhooked the studs of his shirt. I wanted this man more than I ever let myself want anything in this life. I wanted Henry Cavalier, the man who could not only see me for who I was, taste me, touch me, he also loved me. Just me.

“I want to try.”

He stood. The barstool scraped the marble floor before it fell on its side. He pulled away long enough to take his shirt off and undo his pants. The hair dusting his broad chest did things to me, and I couldn’t wait any longer.

“Now, Henry.”

With his lips on that soft spot behind my ear, he pushed the folds of my dress up. His erection rubbed against me. Even through the wet fabric of my thong, I could feel the length of him. He slid his hands up the side of my thighs and lifted me onto the barstool. A part of me said we should slow down, but a bigger part wanted to be with Henry now. As my ass teetered on the edge of my seat, I reached behind me and took a condom out of my purse. Never in a million years would I have guessed that my return to Paradise Creek would end with me rolling on a latex over Henry’s steel-hard cock, while he watched me with those dark eyes full of want.

He didn’t bother moving my thong out of the way. Instead, he pinned me against the counter, ripped the delicate lace, and entered me. I gasped and met his gaze while the moment sank in.

We were finally together.

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