Page 118 of Loud Unspoken Memories

“Does your family not stay up until midnight on Christmas Eve?” I ask.

“They wanted to give you some privacy. I’m not as discreet. I’m here for the show.”

Butterflies flutter around my stomach knowing he’s going to arrive any minute. Will he take me in his arms? Kiss me? Tell me he loves me?

I think back to when he told me about the butterfly effect, and I wonder just how it applies to us. Did a butterfly flap its wings in Connecticut, causing a shift in the wind that had me skidding off the road? Did a group of them migrating to Mexico create a disturbance in the atmosphere, instigating the blizzard that snowed us in? Did one of them—

My thoughts are cut short when the security system chimes, a sound I’ve learned means the front door has been opened. My whole body stiffens. This is it. Heat not coming from the fireplace burns throughout my body.

When Dallas steps into the living room and sees me, the rest of the world falls away. When he locks eyes with mine, and gooseflesh prickles my skin, I know with one-hundred-percent certainty that I love this man more deeply than I ever thought one could love. When his mouth turns up in a small smile, my heart thunders with hope. Hope that even though he’s had a true, mad, deep love, there is still room for more.

“Hey,” he says, dropping his bags as a sultry grin slowly overtakes his handsome face.

Without a second of hesitation, I run straight into his arms.

Chapter Forty-five

Dallas

She jumps into my arms, wrapping her legs around me. My eyes close at the feel of her. The weight of her. The mere presence of her.

When our lips meet, it’s like they never parted. Our soft and welcoming kisses soon turn desperate. There’s so much to say, but right now, I plan to do all the talking with my body.

I carry her back to my room, barely even registering the squeal behind me when my sister realizes what I’ve brought with me.

Setting Marti on my bed, I stand and stare at her for a moment. Is it possible she’s gotten even more beautiful over the past few weeks? Her hair is soft, flowy, a bit shorter perhaps. Her eyes sparkle with a glittery shadow on the lids. Even her smile seems brighter, and easier somehow. One thing that hasn’t changed is her scent. How I’ve missed that sweet vanilla aroma enveloping me. I’ll never smell it again without thoughts of her invading my mind. Now, she’s here. And I don’t ever want to be without her again.

Our eyes connect, the heat passing between us more intense than ever before. She says three words that set my world on fire.

“I want you.”

I get on the bed and climb on top of her. “You fucking have me.”

She reaches up, weaves her hands through my hair, and pulls my face toward hers.

We kiss until we’re breathless and desperate for more. Our hands tear at each other’s clothing, both knowing the thirst wehave for each other can only be quenched once I’m deep inside her.

I flip her over and unzip her dress, pulling it off her body in one fell swoop. Leaving her on her stomach, I work my lips over her shoulders, her back, the sexy dimples below her waist. I tug down her panties and work my mouth over the soft globes of her ass, continuing down to lick the backs of her thighs, her knees, her calves.

The sexy noises coming from her heighten my arousal and my cock throbs painfully. I want to take my time with her. Explore every goddamn inch of the body I’ve dreamed of every night for the last two-and-a-half weeks. But right now, more than anything, I need to be inside her.

I turn her onto her back, and I swear the way she looks at me makes me feel ten feet tall. I’m the king to her queen. The Clark to her Lois. The fucking yin to her yang. We belong together. I’ve never been more sure of anything.

“Dallas,” she begs. “Make love to me.”

The rest of my clothes are gone in seconds. I hover over her, my engorged dick pressing against her entrance. I run a finger down the slope of her nose, along her jaw, down a pulsating cord of her neck, amazed that she came all this way for me. That she took a leap of faith. That she’s… mine.

Before I sink myself inside her, there’s one thing I have to do. For weeks I tried to deny it. I ran from it like I’ve run from so many things. But the truth is clear. I can’t hide from it any longer. Because I know beyond the shadow of a doubt that I can’t fucking breathe without her.

I draw in a breath and say the words I never thought I’d say again. “I love you.”

She nods over and over, tears streaming down her beautiful face. “I know.”

It’s a declaration I didn’t expect. She, like everyone else, knew the truth even before I did.

I swipe a piece of hair behind her ear. “And you love me.”

She cups the side of my face. “More than you can possibly imagine.”

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