Page 114 of Over the Edge

“I’d get it,” he says then takes a deep inhale. “I need you to know that I’d understand if you chose him. But I really don’t want you to and maybe I’m a terrible person for saying this, but I can’t fucking lose you, Eve.” The words rush out of him in atorrent like now that he has his hands on me he can no longer contain them. And he’s saying my name in that way that makes me feel like the center of his universe. “Not now that I have you after so long. I can’t. Give me a chance.”

My hand falls over his. “I don’t understand?”

“Oliver’s single and you’re out here in the woods by yourself? Of course you’re considering it.”

“Garrett, look at me,” I say. “You said you wanted to be with me. Did that change?”

“I do, but that doesn’t mean you owe me anything. I want you to be happy and I want you to stay, but I won’t assume those are the same thing.” He shakes his head and squints his eyes shut as he spirals, that logical mind of his battling his desires.

“This is me telling you that me being with you and me being happy are the same thing,” I say calmly.

This man, who is so used to being left behind, thought it was happening again and ran to me in the pouring rain to tell me this. He thought he wasn’t enough, even though he’s the only thing keeping me intact. I make a silent promise to myself that even if it’s the last thing I do, I’ll make him see that he is worth staying for. Worth keeping.

My heart melts in my chest. I wish I could carve it out and hand it to him so he could see how completely it belongs to him.

“And I want to believe that. But he’s a guy you’ve literally written love songs about. He’s stable and good. Fuck,” he says, pressing his forehead against mine. “I hate that I like the guy, but I do. And the only reason I have to hate him is because he has a shot with you.”

“He doesn’t have a shot with me. That’s what I’m trying to tell you,” I insist. “And you’re right. I came here for something like that. But I was wrong, I was chasing disaster. Despite that, I found you. Maybe you’re not used to it, maybe I need to say it more, but Garrett, you’re the only person on my mind. Maybeyou’re used to people walking away. But I’ve told you a time or two that I’m a bit obsessive, and I’m completely and utterly consumed by you.” I reach up and swipe at a damp strand of his hair. “I’m pretty damn sure you’re my happiest possible ending.”

“You really think I can give you that? Your happiest possible ending?”

“Yes. There is no one better for me than you.” I barely utter the word before his lips crush against mine. His tongue coaxes my mouth open then glides against mine.

I pull back for a moment and slip off his glasses then tuck them into the collar of his shirt. His eyes are blown with lust and something softer. That part of him that is all mine. And I’m not sure I can grasp the reality of how precious that truly is.

My hands slide up his arms to land in his hair. I pull, and he grunts then nips at my lower lip before pressing a hot kiss behind my ear. He guides me backward until tree bark digs into my back as I thud against the tree. The bite of the uneven surface pressing through my clothes is a good type of pain, the type that keeps you in the moment.

I grind against him, and he hoists me up so my legs are wrapped around his waist and his hands are cupping my ass. Each time I circle my hips, he lets loose a new delicious sound.

“Eve. You’re everything. The best damn thing that’s ever fucking happened to me.” Garrett pants against the side of my neck. “I waited for so long. I used to think about that party all the time. And it nearly killed me when you showed up here, but I’m so glad you did.”

“The party?” I ask, still swept up in the press of him between my thighs. It takes a moment to register what party he’s talking about, then it shifts into place—the album release.

“Seeing you on that rooftop. I meant every single word I said at the farm. You were the most spectacular thing I’d ever seen.I was gone then, maybe even before.” His eyes search mine and he grows impossibly still beneath me as he waits for my reaction.

“I thought I annoyed the shit out of you,” I admit.

“You have always been the only person who’s terrified me to get close to because I knew the moment we did, I’d either have you or lose you forever. You’re not someone I could risk losing.” He reaches out and twirls a loose hair around his finger then slips it behind my ear.

I’m glad he’s holding me because if he wasn’t, I’m sure I’d have to sit down. That long? He’s wanted me for years. I can’t fathom it. I’ve always felt so temporary in all my relationships, like I was always on the verge of messing up and disappointing whoever I was with if I showed too much of myself. But for Garrett, who has known me through nearly two decades, to want me? It overwhelms me with relief.

“You have me. You won’t lose me,” I promise with a steady assurance that I’ve been longing to feel.

“Thank God.” His face nestles into the crook of my neck, and he takes in a heaving breath that reverberates through me.

I shift and the friction of the seam reignites the building ache to be touched by him. “Garrett. I want you here. I don’t want to wait until we get back.”

“Evelyn, are you saying…” Garrett starts to ask then trails off. His hand trails around my thigh to pull at the waistband of my pants.

“Yes,” I moan. I want all of him right now. I need to feel him too. I writhe against his erection to provide further confirmation.

“Baby, are you really going to let me fuck you against this tree?”

“Only if you hurry up.”

He eases me to the ground then grips my waist and turns me so I’m facing the tree and my palms land hard, pressing into thebark to brace myself. At the sound of his zipper, a mental image of him quickly comes to mind, and I arch my back, pushing my ass out in anticipation.Now.I need this now.

A hand settles on my stomach, slipping down slowly before landing on the button of my jeans. I shift, ready to lift my hands and tear off the pants myself.

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