Page 84 of Face Me Off

She steals my damn breath.

My fingers ache to touch her. But I don’t know what to do. We’re in this strange holding pattern, tiptoeing around land mines, and I do not want to make a fatal mistake.

“Maddy,” falls from my lips in almost a whisper. Whether intentional or not, we step closer. My breath increases. I press my hands against my jeans to keep from touching her, but when she sucks in that bottom lip, I cave. There’s no thought, just action, as I close the distance and pull her against me.

“I’ve missed you so goddamn much.”

“I’ve missed you, too?—”

I don’t give her time to respond before my lips are on hers. Her sigh of surrender is the sweetest sound I’ve ever heard. She melts into me, her hands fisting in my shirt as I deepen the kiss. It’s an apology, a promise, and a plea all rolled into one.

I pull away reluctantly, my palm cupping her cheek. My thumb brushes over her freckled nose, and she blinks up at me, those green eyes hazy with want. Damn, what this girl does to me.

“Why are you here?” she asks softly.

“I’m here because I made a mistake.” My voice remains steady despite wanting to swoop her in my arms and run off. “Fuck, Maddy, I’m sorry I blew up. I should’ve handled everything better.”

“We both could’ve. And I’ve been thinking a lot. It’s unfair for me to hold you accountable for something that happened when we were seventeen. That was a painful time. For both of us.”

My heart fucking leaps. Leaps! Not so much for her forgiveness but for her getting me like no one else.

“I love you. More than you’ll ever know. You may need more time, but I want you to know I’m here. Whenever you’re ready. I’m willing to go the distance for us. It doesn’t matter what our future holds if you’re in it. If that’s me struggling in PT school with you making incredible art by my side, then sign me up. I’m ready. I want this. I want you.”

Tears prick her eyes. “I love you too, Ryan. So damn much.”

Her words knock the breath out of me but also fill me with hope.

“Let’s go somewhere away from here,” she says.

“As lovely as that sounds, I can’t right now, Toots. I came to talk to your parents.”

“My parents?” She pulls back, biting her lip. She glances behind her and back to me. “You don’t have to do that.”

“But I do.”

“Why?

“Because I love you, Madison Grace Grimes. For us to move forward, I need to talk with your dad. It’s long overdue.”

She puffs out a breath. “Just to warn you. I didn’t leave them on good terms.”

My mouth twitched. “One more kiss for good luck then?”

Her smile is breathtaking. “Only if you promise to take me to Malibu.”

“My dirty good girl.”

Then our lips meet, and everything feels right. One hand wraps around the base of her head while the other slides down the length of her body. Her leg wraps around mine as my hand inches lower. I’m about to squeeze when a throat clearing breaks us apart.

Shit!

Accosting his daughter isn’t how I wanted to approach the man who controls my family’s future.

“What the hell is going on?” The vein in the side of Mr. Grimes’ head throbs as he turns a menacing glare to Maddy. “Madison?”

She returns the same scowl, and I sense that something terrible had gone down before my arrival.

“Sorry, sir. I am actually here for you.”

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