Page 52 of Rugged

I nodded and squeezed his hand. I could only imagine what it had been like.

“I love you.”

I didn’t mean to say it. It wasn’t even an appropriate moment. But those were the words that slipped out. The only offering I could think of that matched the enormity of what he’d shared with me.

What I meant wasI am here with you.

I see you.

I’m not judging.

I won’t reject you.

“Yeah?” The word exploded out of Johnny, and when he looked over, his eyes were bright again, glinting yellow-orange in the darkness.

“I mean–I didn’t mean…”

“Don’t you dare take it back.”

I let out a relieved laugh. “Okay. I won’t, then.” God, my heart felt so full my chest could barely contain it. “It’s just… fast. Too quick, maybe.”

“Don’t take it back. I know, like you said, it seems fast, but Lyssa, I felt something special the moment I met you. I knew you were the one. Can you believe that?”

I gulped in my breath. My eyes watered.

I’d never imagined someone might say I wasthe one.

God, my whole life I’ve been theotherone.

Johnny wanted me. Emma.

At least, I thought he wanted me.

What if what he really wanted was the Lyssa-version of me? Not the real me at all. What if he was disappointed when he found out I was boring old Emma? Nobody interesting at all?

I shoved those thoughts from my mind and met Johnny’s gaze. “I believe it,” I whispered, because it was almost true.

I wanted it to be true.

That was enough, right?

23

JOHNNY

Holy hell.I’d been missing so much in life before Lyssa. Before she told me she loved me. Now, I felt… fulfilled. My wolf was happy. Except my wolf and I were barely hanging on to control. What happened with that asshole at Cody’s was proof. I wanted to bite her. Mark her. Make her mine.

After we got back to the bunkhouse, I hadn’t even helped Lyssa away from the truck before I got inside her. I’d clicked off her seatbelt, pulled her out, spun her around, flipped up her skirt and fucked her.

Rough. Hard. Deep.

I made Lyssa forget that guy ever existed. Made her know she was mine. I was temporarily soothed when–and only when–I pulled out, spurted my cum over her perfect peach of an ass, then smeared it into her skin. I didn’t let her shower or clean it off. I could smell me on her.

It soothed my wolf, who was desperate to mark her.

This morning, we’d slept in, and then I’d taken her on a spectacular hike to a mountain lake where we’d had a picnic lunch. We’d returned and had a nice long shower together and planned to crawl back in bed for a nap, since I’d kept her up too late last night screaming my name.

Lyssa’s phone rang. I surreptitiously glanced at the screen to see if it was Chapman, but the screen readStan.

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