Page 95 of Wild Desire

"What mistake is that?" I asked, pressing my cheek into his palm.

His expression was intense. "Leaving you behind."

My heart longed to take flight, but I held back, needing him to explain himself.

"I didn't tell you how I felt, or maybe I didn't fully realize it until I was gone. I'm in love with you. I was an idiot not to talk to you after that kiss at eighteen, and I'm a bigger moron for walking away from you now."

My heart pounded. I was scared to say those three words to him. What if he admitted that our relationship wouldn't work? Or he changed his mind. But I had to be brave. "I love you too."

He relaxed slightly, leaning down to touch his lips to mine. It was soft and sweet, with a hint of more. He pulled back slightly. "I want to give you a massage. I'm not an expert, but I've been on the receiving end of massages, and I watched a lot of videos."

"You're giving me the massage?" I asked.

He grinned, moving his hand from my cheek. "I promise I'll be very thorough."

My skin heated. "Why are you practically naked?"

"I figured me being in a towel would bring back a lot of memories." He gestured for me to remove my clothes.

As I did, I noticed the soft music in the background for the first time.

He helped me to lay face down on the table. "Aren't you going to cover me?"

He grinned wider. "Now, what's the fun in that?"

I was naked on a massage table covered in soft white sheets, and Killian was greasing his hands with oil. I was hopeful this was going to feel very, very good despite his lack of license and experience.

"I heard you've been working hard while I was gone." His hands landed on my shoulders.

I moaned as his inexpert hands kneaded the tight muscles in my shoulders, arms, and back. My muscles softened and loosened as he moved, and my mind drifted, finding it difficult to string together a sentence.

"You're probably wondering how this is going to work?" His voice rumbled through my body, and I tensed. "None of that. You're going to relax and let me have my way with you."

"I think I'm going to enjoy this."

"That's the idea." I could hear the smile in his voice.

"You probably heard that I fired my agent."

"I hadn't." After the race and the afterparty, I couldn't bring myself to check his socials or the news stories. I wasn't strong enough to find him out with another woman.

"I have a new one, and I handle my schedule now. I choose which races I want to do, how much time I get off, and how I want to spend my time."

I propped myself up on folded arms so that I could see his face. "That's amazing. But you don't think it will be detrimental for your training?"

"Lincoln told me I was overtraining. I didn't want to believe it at first. But he reminded me of the fundamentals: rest, sleep, good food, and intentional exercise."

"I didn't realize he said anything about that."

"He was worried about overstepping but said he didn't want to see me back in his office, at least not until after I retired voluntarily. Not due to a career-ending injury."

"Jeremy didn't care about your longevity," I said, the realization just hitting me.

"He wanted to make as much as he could from me, and then move on to another young guy, one he could push around and squeeze as much money from as possible. But I chose an agent who will work with me."

"That's great, Killian. I'm so happy for you."

He cupped my cheek, his hand smelling faintly of the oil he'd spread across my skin. "I want to be with you as much as possible."

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