Page 43 of Love You Always

“Talk to me.” His voice is a quiet rasp that sends chills over the back of my neck and down my spine. If this man has the power to do that to my body with one word, I imagine what he could do to the rest of me if he just reached out and?—

No.

I’m torn between wanting to tell him about Callum, admitting that everything he saw in him was correct, or keeping my failings to myself out of embarrassment that I’m in this situation.

It’s not that I don’t want to give him the satisfaction of being right—I don’t want the disappointment of being wrong.

Archer brushes a finger under my chin, enough to ignite my skin and make me suck in a small breath. Tipping my chin up, he lets his gaze linger on my face, moving from my eyes to my mouth, which starts to water under the strength of his stare, and back to my eyes, which are locked on him. His pupils dilate and he lets out a long, slow breath.

“Why?” It’s almost a plea. The muscles in Archer’s face have gone slack. His eyes are soft and welcoming, communicating that I can trust him.

I feel weightless, shaky in anticipation of what will happen when I tell him. Archer’s other hand, strong and steady, comesout to grip my hip. Like he knows the barest wind could blow me over.

“I walked in on Callum and his tour manager last night.” My throat feels tight as the awkward words wedge their way out. “In bed,” I add as though the first part wasn’t clear.

The softness in Archer’s expression disappears in an instant. His jaw tightens and a muscle starts ticking in his cheek. His eyes, which looked so gentle and calm a moment ago, now look charged and ready for battle.

“That fucker.”

Archer drops his hand from under my chin, but his other one still grips my hip. He looks like he just ate something that tasted putrid.

“There may be more to it that I don’t know, something going on with him, or maybe I freaked him out with all the wedding plans,” I start to protest, to tell him that Callum isn’t a bad guy. All my fears that somehow this is my fault bubble to the surface. Maybe Callum just did a bad thing, but…wait, why is my knee-jerk response to defend him?

Archer shakes his head. “No. Don’t do that. Not for a second. This isn’t on you. Him cheating has nothing to do with you and everything to do with him being a grade-A piece of shit.” He takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly. “I’d like to drive back down there with you and tell him to his smarmy face.”

“That would be a waste of a good road trip.”

Deeper lines crease Archer’s forehead. One side of his mouth pulls down. “I’m going to ask you again. Why’re you here, darlin’?”

It’s a fair question. After telling him I intended to go through with a fake marriage for the sake of the adoption, I know I look like I’m just here on the rebound after being betrayed. “It’s where I want to be.”

He nods, but his expression doesn’t change. “Because you need a shoulder to cry on? I can be that, I suppose.”

“No.” I take a step closer.

“Why, then? I don’t do rebounds with other men’s women.”

I shake my head. “No. That’s not it. I had hopes for a relationship with Callum, but as you know, it was for specific reasons. The wrong reasons. And I never felt for him what I’m starting to feel for you.”

His eyes soften, and he swallows hard but doesn’t move.

“This isn’t a rebound,” I continue. “It’s what I’ve been wanting since I met you. And now I need to know what it’s like to have your hands on my skin.”

His hand, which had been balled into a fist by his side, unclenches. He raises it and slowly traces the side of my face, from my temple down to my chin.

“This feels like the beginning of something that could get very, very good.” His voice is a sexy rasp.

The beautiful, searing heat of his touch reminds me that the last thing I want is to leave this place or do anything to detract from this, his hands touching me.

I reach my own hand to touch his and hold it against my cheek where it rests. He sucks in a sharp breath. I wonder if his heart is beating out of his chest like mine is. I reach for the soft fabric of the worn band t-shirt he’s wearing and gingerly place my hand against his chest, over his heart. I feel it’s steady beat and imagine the blood rushing through his veins the same way mine is making me lightheaded now. I also feel a hard plane of muscle beneath my hand that makes me want to strip the shirt right off his body and touch his skin.

His hand moves from my hip, slowly grazing before lifting my hand from his heart and bringing it to his lips. His warm breath feathers over my skin, sending a chill across mine. My shoulders relax. I feel myself lean closer to him, heart hammering in my chest. My skin vibrates with my pulse, and I feel more alive than I have in my life and he’s barely touching my skin.

Our eyes stay locked in an unbreakable acknowledgement ofthe before and after. Before we kiss, life comes with all of its mistakes and regrets.

After…it’s the great leap, the first steps on the dusty surface of the moon, uncharted and magical. I want to linger in this in-between state for one more moment because I can already tell that after Archer’s lips meet mine, there will be no going back.

As a shaky breath of air enters my lungs, I also know that I don’t want to go back. I’ve been fighting against the feeling of wanting this man from the day I walked into the old barn and saw him staring at me in the doorway.

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