Page 57 of Bad Guys Need Love Too

He looked like he might argue, but she stopped him by slapping a palm over his mouth. “Never mind. I don’t want you to answer that question. I just want you to shut up and listen.”

She felt his smile against her skin, so she took that as a sign that he’d finally let her say what she needed to say. So, she just pulled her hand off his mouth, opened her own and let the word vomit fly. “Look, I know this is crazy, and we haven’t known each other that long—well, I guess it’s more accurate to say I haven’t knownyouthat long—but for some reason, I justknowthis is right. I can’t explain it, but Ifeelit. You’re the reason I’ve never trulyloved another man. I think I was waiting for you, even though I technically didn’t know you yet. Or, my heart was waiting, at least. Ren, I love you. And not in a small way. In a big, messy, complicated, I’d-give-you-the-last-Reese’s-in the-package kind of way.”

He opened his mouth, but shut it again when she held up her index finger and gave him a stern glare. “That’s not to say I want things to go on exactly how they have been, because we did this whole thing backwards. We skipped the whole dating process, and I want to experience that with you. So, we need to walk this relationship back to the beginning. But that won’t change the fact that I love you and want to be with you as much as possible.”

When she was finished, it took her a minute to understand why he wasn’t saying anything. Duh. It was because she’d told him to shut up. “Nowyou can talk.”

“So, back to first date status?” he asked. “Kisses, handholding, and wooing. No sex, right?”

She frowned. “Let’s not be too hasty with that one. Dating, but like, dating as if we’re both sluts.”

His laugh was music to her ears. “Sounds good to me.”

“That’s it? You don’t have any other questions or concerns?”

“No.”

She blinked at him. “No? That’sreallyit? After everything I just said?”

He shook his head, eyes sparkling. “No. If you want us to date, we’ll date. I’ll date thefuckout of you. And, yes, we have some things to work out. But I don’t care about any of it. Because if you love me half as much as I love you, that’s all I need. I’m…happywhen I’m with you. That’s uncharted territory for me. But I like it. So, whatever you want to do is fine with me.”

Her eyes filled with tears, because, damn it, that was beautiful. “You’re happy?”

He rubbed the back of his neck. “I mean, I don’t have much to compare it to, but I sure as hell think so. All I ever wanted when I was a kid was to find a place where I felt safe. A real home, you know?”

She nodded as he brushed her tears away with his thumbs. “Yeah. I know.”

“Turns out it wasn’t a place I was looking for, after all. It was a person. You’re my home, Lark Shaw. And as long as I have you, everything else will be fine.”

Words failed her. She was too emotional to speak anyway. So, she just snagged him by the shirt, yanked him down, and kissed the hell out of him.

When they broke apart, she couldn’t help but tease him a little. “You know, if we were in a romance novel, this would be the part where the bad boy convinces the good girl that they belong together forever.”

“And how would I go about convincing you of that?”

“Oh, you can’t.”

A frown line knit his brow until she added, “Because I’m not giving you a choice. You’re my happily ever after. And if you resist, I’m breaking out the cuffs.”

His eyes darkened at the mention of the cuffs. “God, I love you.”

“Don’t you forget it.”

And he never did. Not in all their time together.

But that never stopped her from cuffing him to their bed every now and then.

EPILOGUE

YOU WANT TO KNOW MORE? WHATEVER FLOATS YOUR BOAT. HERE YOU GO…

As it turns out, the fairy tales that end in happily ever after leave out a shit ton of good stuff. Ren and Lark’s story is no different.

Because of how their relationship started (and, you know, all the stalking and illegal activities), they had more to figure out than most couples. Ren had no idea how to date anyone, but he was eager to learn. He used his genius IQ to read everything he could get his hands on. He read about dating, being the best partner he could be, and how to open up about his feelings (which he hated, but was more than willing to do if it meant that Lark felt more connected to him).

Lark even made him a TBR list of her favorite romance novels. He read every single one of them and committed all her favorite parts to memory. Those taught him more about love and wooingthe woman of his dreams than all the self-help books from so-called experts he could ever read.

Surprisingly enough, historical romance was his favorite. Lark even convinced him to watchBridgertonandOutlanderwith her, and he might’ve enjoyed them even more than she did. (But they both agreed to never tell Tenley about it. She’d havewaytoo much fun with that knowledge.)

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