Page 80 of A Taste of Chardonnay

“Then why are you pushing me away?”

Her question was like a jolt of reality. “My life is about to get much more complicated. I can’t ask you to jump into this with me. I have no idea what’s going to happen to Ron, and if I’ll be able to get a nurse who can actually handle him, or if I’m going to have to move him into my place.”

She shook her head, a faint laugh escaping her lips. “I don’t need you to ask me. I’m offering. Whatever it is, I’ll be at your side and not because I feel obligated, but because I spent years with you just out of reach, and I don’t want to live like that any longer. Don’t make me.”

“But everything with Gold Crest. You have so much on your plate already, I don’t want to add to it.”

She laced her fingers through mine. “Together, remember?”

I’d been doing things on my own for so long, the concept felt so foreign and strange. But her fingers linked through mine, and I already felt stronger. Felt like whatever the universe wanted to throw at me next, I could handle it, because I had Char at my side. I tilted her chin with my other hand, refusing to unlink her hold. She blinked up at me, those dark brown eyes full of resilience, patience and quiet strength. She didn’t push or demand; she just waited as if she had all the damn time in the world. Like she knew she was right and was just waiting for me to figure it out.

I wanted to, but I had no idea where to start, but there was one thing I knew without a doubt. “I’ve always loved you, Char. Even when I hated you, I loved you.”

Her mouth parted, a shaky breath escaping. I closed the space between us, resting my forehead on hers, letting her feel the truth in my words and my touch.

“And now?” she whispered.

“I still love you, but now I like you, too.”

A laugh burst from her too kissable lips. “That might be the most romantic thing I’ve ever heard.”

“Even better than those vampire books?”

She tilted her head, brushing her nose against mine. “You’re real and not going to bite me.”

“I can.” I nuzzled into her neck, grazing my teeth along her sensitive skin. It had been three days since I touched her last, and I never wanted to go that long again.

She grabbed my face, pulling me to her lips, but before I could get there, she stopped me. “I love you, too.”

My heart stuttered in my chest. It felt as if I’d waited my whole life to hear those words from her mouth, and now that they were out, I wanted to commit them to memory until they were as much a part of me as the oxygen in my blood and the beat of my own heart.

“Don’t push me away,” she said, and I answered by capturing her lips in one fell swoop, pouring every ounce of my soul into it. She moaned, pressing into me, and tightening her arms around my neck.

“I love you so fucking much,” I said, as I unzipped the coat and fumbled with the buttons on her shirt. Her hands joined me, fast and furious, as we ripped the material from her body.

Her cold fingers touched the expanse of skin above my waistband and a chill ran through me, but it was nothing compared to the inferno raging inside me. We were a tangle of hands, teeth, and lips as we rid ourselves of our pants. My cock hardened to a level of discomfort when I looked down at the pale pink lace. I hauled her up against me, her heated skin searing into mine, her hands sinking into my hair and pulling me closer. I placed her on my workbench, her legs immediately wrapping around my torso, her heel pushing into my ass.

“I’ve missed you,” I admitted. “So damn much.”

“Show me,” she said, biting my lip and causing an explosion of pleasure to slam into me. “I need you. Want you, desperately.”

She needed me. It was so stupid, such an insignificant word, but it felt so much bigger. I’d run from the statement before. Needing someone gave them power over me. It gave them the power to hurt me.

Normally, my chest would tighten; the unmistakable desire to create distance would overtake me.

This time, I wasn’t running.

Instead, I let the words sink in and settle deep inside me.

Because the truth was, I needed her too.

I ripped the lace panties aside and swiped my finger through her folds. Moisture coated my finger. She was wet for me because she needed me. I positioned my cock at her entrance, swiping the head through the slickness.

“Now,” she pleaded, fingers digging into my shoulder blades.

I thrust into her, and the two of us sighed as if we were filled with relief for finally joining together. She rocked into me, a quiet plea for me to move. I cupped her cheeks, bringing her lips to mine, kissing her with everything that I had before going slow and savoring her. I pumped into her just as slowly, dragging out each thrust with loving strokes.

Our foreheads rested against each other, our ragged breaths mixing and becoming one. The weight of the week washed away, and all that mattered was Chardonnay. I closed my eyes, letting the sensations flood through my body, focusing on the way her fingers dug into my hair, holding me closer still.

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