Page 53 of Hero's Heart

Dinner was delicious, truly better than anything she could remember eating in months. Callum was a little embarrassed when she gushed over it, but she could tell he was proud.

She offered to clean up since he’d cooked, but they did it together with the same easy camaraderie they’d had between them the whole day. Given that, it should’ve been easy for her to communicate what she wanted, but instead, once they were done with the dishes, she found herself folding and refolding the kitchen towel, trying to find the words.

“You okay?” he asked.

“Yeah. Why?”

“You’re folding that towel to within an inch of its life.”

He was right. She was letting her nervousness get the better of her. She replaced the towel on its rack and turned toward him.

It was now or never. She had no idea how to seduce him, no fancy products to help her. So she walked over to where hewas casually—and way too sexily—leaning against the counter, forcing herself not to stop.

She kissed him.

He froze as her lips brushed his, featherlight and questioning, her courage trembling on the edge of retreat. When he didn’t immediately respond, she started to pull back, unsure what to do. It wasn’t like she had the most experience kissing.

But then he took over. His hand found her waist, steadying her, grounding them both, and then he slid his other hand to her cheek, tilting her face upward. He claimed her lips with an intensity that made her toes curl.

She pulled back and found all her courage. She wanted more than just a kiss, and he needed to know that.

“I want you, Callum. Take me to bed.”

Chapter 18

Callum stood frozen, his heart pounding as he faced Sloane in the dimly lit room. Her cheeks were still flushed from the kiss, her eyes searching his face for an answer. He wanted nothing more than to pull her into his arms again, to give her what she was asking for—what theybothwanted. But he hesitated, the war raging within him.

She took a step closer, her voice steady yet vulnerable as she repeated her request. “I want you, Callum. I’m asking you to take me to bed.”

A surge of longing shot through him at her words, so strong it nearly knocked the breath from his lungs.

“Sloane, we can’t…I can’t do this.” His voice was strained, tinged with both restrained passion and regret.

Confusion flickered across her delicate features. “Why not? I thought you wanted me too.”

Callum ran a hand through his hair in frustration. “It’s not that simple. You’ve been through hell these past few days. You’re still recovering from trauma. I don’t want to take advantage of you when you’re in such a vulnerable state.”

“But…”

He took a deep breath, holding her gaze intently. “Sloane, you have to know I want you. Probably more than I should. But your first time should be special, with someone you truly care about. Not a heat-of-the-moment decision.”

Sloane lifted her chin, a spark of defiance entering her eyes. “Callum, I understand you’re trying to protect me. But I know my own mind.”

She stepped closer, her voice growing more impassioned. “If you respect me, then you have to trust me to make my own choices about my body and my heart. I’m choosing you. Not because of trauma or impulse, but because of how I feel when I’m with you.”

Callum’s breath caught at her words, his objections crumbling. She was right—if he respected her autonomy, he had to trust her to know her own desires.

“You’ve shown me more care and kindness these past few days than I’ve experienced in years,” she continued softly. “I want you to be my first. Not in spite of what I’ve endured, but because of the safety I feel with you.”

Callum studied her upturned face, so open and vulnerable in this moment. He saw the quiet strength that had gotten her through hell. Sloane knew her own mind. If this was truly her choice, he wanted to honor it.

But still…

“Angel, I just think…”

“Do you want me, Callum? That’s all I really want to know right now. If you don’t want me, if I don’t…do itfor you, then that’s fine. I would never want you to do something you don’t want to?—”

Notdo itfor him?

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