Page 75 of Please Remember

I cry out her name as she moans into my shoulder while I fill her, but when I pull back, she's crying. It brings me back to the first time we made love since she returned. "Allie?"

"You were so patient with me," she says as sob escapes. "You never gave up, even when I told you to."

"I will never give up on you. On us. I love you, baby. I loved you before, I loved you when you were gone, I loved you when you came back, and I love you now."

Her lip quivers as she rests her forehead against mine. "I was so scared I wasn't coming back to you. I wanted so badly to come back, but I couldn't. Nothing seemed to work until tonight."

Wrapping my arms tightly around her, I hold her as close to me as physically possible. "I know. I was scared, too, but I had you. I was more than grateful for that."

I just hold her as she cries, needing a different type of release than what she just had. Then I stand, pulling out of her, and I carry her to our bed. Laying her down, I hold her in my arms until she calms, my own tears falling from the outer corners of my eyes.

"It's okay. We're okay," I whisper as I kiss the top of her head.

Sniffling, Allie pulls back enough to look up at me. "I know I forgot for a while, but I love you, Jackson. Even when I didn't remember it, deep down, I felt it. It was always there because you're my home."

It's the first time Allie's said those words in what feels like forever. The words break something in me, and I kiss her, my tears falling like a silent stream down my cheeks. My hands tangle in her hair as I lay her on her back, my tongue tasting every part of her mouth I can access. She tastes the same with the added saltiness from both of our tears.

"Say it again," I beg as I pull away to let us both come up for air. "Please, say it again."

"I love you."

As though she’s pressed the magic button, I'm ready to go, this time intent to savor her. Her legs open wide, giving me full access to slide into her again, and I inch inside, kissing her neck as she arches her back with the feeling of fullness. Every movement she makes, every kiss she bestows, every sound communicates everything between us.

"I love you," she whispers into my ear as I caress her chest while sucking on her collarbone. "I love you, Jax. I love you. I love you. God, I love you."

I kiss up to touch every inch of her neck and face with my lips. My touches don't stop the words she knows I need to hear because she can read me like no one else can.

"I love you. So much. I've loved you since I was seventeen, Jax, and I'lllove you forever."

"Forever," I murmur as I kiss right below her ear, my hips thrusting long and slow while holding her as close to my body as I can.

Her legs wrap around my waist, her heels digging into my ass to pull me as deep into her as possible. "Forever," she whispers back. "I love you. I love you. I love you."

Chapter Thirty-Two

Laura

Ihad trouble sleeping last night after hearing Natalie's confession. That she was the one responsible for Allie's disappearance. I didn't ask for any details because the less I know, the better. And Natalie did it for me. Because we're friends.

I can't rat out my best friend. As it turns out, Natalie is my only friend, just like I'm hers. I've officially lost Jax, and I know Allie will never allow me back into their little group. I'm out of all of their lives forever.

A familiar pounding on the front door had me groaning, and I answered it, telling the detectives I had nothing to say without a lawyer. They told me that was fine, read me my rights, had me turn around, and they slapped cuffs on me. The words, "You're under arrest for the assault and kidnapping of Allison Bennett" repeating in my head over and over again.

So, here I sit in an interrogation room next to a man in an ill-fitting suit, and I know he's a court-appointed lawyer. I never actually retained one after our last conversation, but I wish I had now.

"You're crazy," I say as Shields and Parsons sit down across from me. Shields with her hair tied up in a tight bun and Parsons with his fart-smelling face plastered on. "I never touched Allie."

"Walk us through what happened the night she was taken, Laura. What happened when you left the bar?" Parsons says.

How many times do I need to answer this question for them? I roll my eyes and rest my arms on the table, the cuffs still on. "I left before Allie was supposed to arrive, and I went home. I wanted to be alone as I cried because I knew that she'd say yes when he asked her to marry him. That he'd no longer be mine."

"He was never yours, Laura," Shields says.

"You know what I mean," I snap at her.

"Did you happen to run into Allie on your way home?"

The lawyer I don't know the name of nods at me. I sigh and shake my head. "No, I did not."

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