Page 55 of Love Over Time

“Henry.”

“I’m right here.” I took over, maintaining the pace she had set for us. Heat grew between us every time my hips rose up to meet hers. She didn’t slow down but met my thrusts one for one.

I kept at it until we both climaxed and she relaxed on top of me. The pressure in my chest let up. No other woman would do for me. No other place or other life. I wantedthiswith Nikki. She was worth every risk.

“I love you,” she whispered on my lips when she broke the connection. She took another minute to catch her breath and then jumped out of bed.

Yeah, maybe one day it would feel like she wasn’t leaving me. “Me too. But you can’t just have your way with me and scoot out. Where are you going?”

She spun around, standing in the middle of the room, gloriously naked. “I got a pass to see Lisa. I gotta go.”

“Let me come with you. I owe Lisa an apology.”

She beamed at me. “She’d loved to see you. Meet me downstairs in thirty minutes.”

“Is that thirty minutes for real or an hour like before?” I asked, but she left the room without answering.

I went to the bathroom and discarded the condom. Because of Nikki, I had these things stashed everywhere—in the back pocket of my jeans, in the car, behind the bar, and even in the shower.

An hour later, I sat at the bar, still waiting for her. Shaking my head, I watched as she descended the stairs, wearing skinny jeans and a top that matched the sapphire necklace we’d found in my mom’s security box. My pants got tight, and I reached behind the counter.

She laughed. “We don’t have time for that.”

“What?”

“I know you keep a stash of condoms back there.” She ran her fingers up my stomach and kissed me. “We gotta go. And you’re making us late.”

“Me?” I followed her out of the hotel. The street bustled with activity now that all the stores had reopened.

“Yeah, you.” She fished her keys out of her purse and threw them at me. With a wink, she climbed in the passenger seat of her car.

I took Main Street out of town and got on the 303 toward Goodyear. Traffic wasn’t bad. We made our way through the city at a decent speed. In an hour flat, we reached the place where Lisa had spent all her adult life. When I pulled into the visitor parking, Nikki turned to me, her face pale, eyes wide.

“We’re going to get her out of here.”

She nodded. “I know. I just wished I had better news for her today.”

At the front desk, we went through the process of signing in. On Nikki’s request, Dom had also put me on the visitors list. Offering a small smile, she wrapped her fingers around mine as we took our seats. “I was hoping you’d come.”

“I’m here, Nikki. Whatever you need.”

“Thank you.” She leaned in and kissed me. Almost immediately, an officer came into the waiting room and called our names, making her flinch.

“Cops make you jumpy?” I teased.

“Shut up.” With a big grin on, she stood and faced the officer.

I squeezed her hand and followed her in. She kept her stride shorter than usual, her fingers cold and clammy between mine. I couldn’t imagine how hard this was for her. It pissed me off to see her like this, dealing with the guilt of not being able to save her sister. A guilt I was very familiar with. Both Mom and Lisa had been in prison for fifteen long years. We had to end this now.

Nikki sat facing the glass, rubbing the inside of her wrist. When Lisa came out, my stomach sank. This woman was not the Lisa I remembered. At eighteen, Lisa had been given charge of her ten-year-old sister. She had no choice but to grow up fast. But this, this was someone else. She looked old and defeated.

Lisa hesitated for a moment before she took her seat. Her gaze darted from Nikki to me. I’d bet she had a million questions running through her head right now. Like what the hell was Nikki doing with the guy whose family put her in jail and ruined both their lives? I’d wondered the same thing myself.

Nikki picked up the speaker phone, and Lisa did the same. Her lips moved, but I couldn’t hear what she was saying.

“Yeah.” Nikki slanted a glance at me. “That’s Henry.”

Lisa spoke again, and Nikki blushed. “Yeah.” She offered me the phone, and I took it.

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