Page 56 of Looking Grimm

My blush deepened until my face was fully aflame. I couldn’t hide it from Nash’s over-the-shoulder glance.

“Keep pushing me and see what happens,” I threatened, though I didn’t sound threatening at all.

Rolling onto all fours, he crawled over to me. His legs and arms barred me in as I laid flat beneath him. “Why don’t you save us both the trouble and tell me what’ll happen?” he asked.

I thought for a moment I might have it in me to go for another round. He looked so damn good with his pecs and biceps flexing and his cheeks dimpled in a grin. I could kiss every inch of him, and it wouldn’t be enough.

“Keep pushing me,” I repeated, “and I’m gonna cave. Because I’ve never wanted anyone as much as I want you.” I leaned into him, jittery with nerves that reduced my voice to a whisper. “I love you, Nash. So fucking much.”

I swallowed, feeling exposed and stricken by my own admission. But I meant it, and I was tired of pretending I didn’t.

Nash stared back at me, so quiet and motionless that I didn’t know what to think. I held my breath, scared as if he hadn’t said it first, as if he hadn’t known I’d come around. How could I not?

Seconds felt like hours before he grabbed my face with both hands and pulled me in. His fingers were rough and his mouth forceful as he kissed me so long and deeply that I came up gasping.

“Say it again,” Nash murmured, his face inches from mine and our noses almost touching.

My stomach churned as the anxious energy returned, or maybe it never left.

“I love you,” I repeated.

“Hell, yes!” He dove in again. The feeling of him smiling against my lips made me smile, too, as he kissed me over and again, seemingly determined to smother me.

I was laughing by the time he scooped me off the bed and carried me into the bathroom. He set me on my feet while he turned on the shower, then quickly returned, arms and hands all over me while the air grew thick and warm around us.

Steam filled the tiny space as he took my hand and led me into the tub. He kissed me there, too, unrelenting, and I let myself get caught up in him.

The water pelted us, coursing through my hair and running down my bare skin, soaking every grip, slip, and slide. I felt like I was floating, my mind flooding with feelings I’d had for a long time but struggled to voice.

I told him I needed him because being with him never hurt. I wasn’t scared when we were together, wasn’t lonely. I was home because my home was in him. My heart was safe with him, and I believed he wouldn’t leave me. He loved me too much to do that.

We stayed entangled—hands, bodies, and mouths on each other until after the shower was done and we were back in bed, cozied up under the blankets. Nash held me with his chest against my back and his arms tucked around me in a loose embrace. And we slept.

It was a blissful,dreamless rest, the first I’d had since Donovan died. I never wanted it to end, so I spent the next morning dodging daylight and hiding under the covers until real life found me and dragged me out.

Padding into the bathroom, I found my toothbrush in the cup by the sink. I had clothes in Nash’s dresser, too, and a few things hanging in the armoire. Half of it, Nash had bought for me, determined to make me feel at home here.

I combed through the tangles in my hair, then checked myself in the mirror. It might have been my imagination because twelve hours couldn’t have changed that much, but I thought I looked better. A bit fresher in the face, and the pinch of strain around my eyes had relaxed, letting in light that made the hazel look almost green.

Blankets rustled in the bedroom, and I spotted Nash entering the reflection. Sheet wrinkles lined his bare torso as he wandered up behind me and threaded his arms around my waist.

He pulled me into him, and I grinned, setting down the toothpaste I’d been holding to cup my hands over his.

“Thought I was dreaming having you here again.” Nash’s breath rushed hot across my neck as he started kissing again, dotting the curve down to my shoulder.

I rubbed my ass against his crotch, craving the closeness we’d shared last night. But thinking about the past twenty-four hours brought awareness that trumped my arousal, and I turned to face him.

“About what I said,” I began.

“No takebacks,” Nash cut in. “And I’m not gonna forget it, either. Not ever.”

A smile tempted my lips again. Was he always this cute? Glowing and almost giddy. It was a struggle to keep myself focused on sobering thoughts when I wanted to kiss that satisfied look off his face.

I slapped his arm. “I meant about the Capitol, dumbass. Holland’s out for blood.”

Now that I thought about it, the investigator might have been in as much danger as I was. So far, everything I’d done had caused Grimm to respond in equal measure. Isha was high on the roster of people in the Hex’s circle. She had been involved with the gang since before I came along, and Holland was her obvious Capitol counterpart.

I could have called and warned her, but she would trace the phone—follow it here—and I’d be damned before I put Nash through that again. Now that I was wanted, associating with me was its own crime. I didn’t put it past Maximus Lyle’s court to convict Nash of aiding and abetting a fugitive.

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