Page 96 of Lose Me In The Shadows

He badly wanted to kiss her. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see her: blushing and disheveled, proud and satisfied. It wasn’t that she’d changed, it was that she’d leaned into all the best parts of her: her cleverness, her bravery, her complete ownership over her body, and her desires. She’d always worried about her freedom, but this was Kara truly free—to want, to demand, to let loose. Maybe to even love.

But he couldn’t tell her any of this, or she’d balk so hard the car would crash.

Since he couldn’t kiss her, he settled for running a hand through her hair.

“Thank you, baby. I know that scared you, but you embraced it anyway.”

He saw her smile.

“If you had killed us though, I would’ve come back and haunted you.”

Yeah, this was one road trip where he was glad they weren’t there yet.

How do you expect her to give us her love if you can’t do the same?

Luke shook his head. No one knew how to throw a gut punch like Micah. Ever since Kara had shot him, no matter how much he cared for her, he couldn’t imagine a future for them where she chose to stay. And when he’d asked her what it would take, she hadn’t answered him.

He always thought he knew what love was. His grandmother had loved him. Had loved his grandfather, too. Love, caring…it had been about control. And about lies. He’d sworn he wouldn’t keep lies from the people he loved, and he wouldn’t control them.

And yet here he was, still trying to control Kara, lying to her by omission, and to himself. He’d asked her to stay but hadn’t given her all of him, especially his trust. His faith.

He didn’t know how to give it, though. Fear and hope both lay before him, wild and uncertain as the Pacific Ocean out the window.

Fear. Like the fear he’d felt yesterday, with that gun in her mouth.

He didn’t want to feel it, and he knew just how to distract himself.

“Kara, crawl back here.”

She turned to look at him. “How? I’m not particularly slender, and this is a small car.”

Tell him about it. His long legs barely fit in the backseat.

Conor growled. “That better not have you been disparaging your body.”

“It wasn’t. I like my body. So much so I don’t want to smush it trying to climb into the backseat for whatever nefarious purposes Luke has.”

Luke lowered his eyes, looking up at her from beneath his lashes. He eye fucked her, and the way her breathing became labored from his look alone quieted his obnoxious inner voice.

“Micah, be careful,” she said as she unbuckled her seatbelt and turned, crawling into the backseat and falling unceremoniously onto Luke and Conor’s laps.

“Oh, I’m always careful, baby.” Micah grinned from the driver’s seat.

“Look what we have here,” Conor murmured. “A gift that fell right into our laps.”

But Luke felt a little bit greedy and a whole hell of a lot selfish, so he dragged Kara over to his lap so she faced forward, lining up his cock with her pussy and pushing her hips down as he thrust upward. Surprised, turned on, and swollen from Conor’s earlier ministrations, she shrieked.

“Luke! Fucking hell, give a girl warning next time.”

“Sweetheart, the only warning you get is when the tip slips inside,” he told her. “Now be Conor’s good girl, Micah’s baby, and my little sweetheart, and move those hips.”

“Still feeling aggressive, huh,” Micah commented with a chuckle.

Luke chose to ignore them, his focus fully centered on the feeling of Kara’s ass shoved up against his crotch, her bare thighs touching his, and her wet, clenching pussy heating him from the inside out as she swirled her hips and bounced up and down. Luke was beginning to think this was his favorite position with her; her in his lap, his cock so deep in her pussy he could imagine he was hitting her throat, Kara bared to the other men to see or touch, but resting against his chest, close in his arms. His to fuck, his to hold, his to—

—love. He couldn’t lie to himself about it anymore. He loved her. Fully, deeply, desperately. And that was fucking terrifying. He’d rather have her shoot him a million more times than break his heart.

As if Kara sensed it, she murmured into his ear: “If I’m your little sweetheart, what are you?”

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