Page 53 of Mercy Lake

We continued the same dance as before. “I’ve missed you, Owen.”

“You never have to, babe, I’m yours. Will always be yours,” he barely choked out. Owen said each wordexactly, telling me he remembered the same scene just as I had.

He continued his slow torture, pushing in and out of me as he accepted my rain of kisses.

“I love you, Alexis. So fucking much it hurts.” I could hear the desperation in his voice, the honesty in his tone. He genuinely loved me.

I smiled up at him, tears gathering in my eyes to mirror his. “As I love you.”

Then, he rewarded me with that private signature smile… Created only for me.

OWEN

Alexis was glued to my side, her head on my chest as I ran my fingers through the strands of her hair, the ritualistic movement so familiar yet so refreshingly new.

We had just made love.

At Mercy Lake.

The same place that had taken so many of our firsts. Alexis was right; everything was perfect.

The way she played back our last act of intimacy so many years before made me go crazy as so many emotions ran through me that I thought I’d explode.

And when she accepted me into her body once more—fuck—I knew I’d never do anything to jeopardise that connection again.

She waseverything.And I’d sacrificeanythingto have her stay.

“I never want to lose you again,” I said, breaking the contented silence. “The last five years have been torture, baby. And now you’ve come back into my life, I’ll never let you down again.Never.”

“I know you will keep your promise, Owen.”

I then asked about Austin, and implored that I wanted him as much as I did her. Against all odds, I had grown to love him as well.

I didn’t care that he wasn’t biologically mine. He was an amazing, intelligent boy who had all the best traits of Alexis. How could Inotlove him?

I thought it was way too early to declare that I wanted to be his daddy, so I didn’t lay that on her right then, but that was definitely something I wanted to strive towards. She’d probably run screaming if she knew how ingrained I saw myself in her life after the sliver of herself she had so freely given already.

I will earn her. I will earn him. I will earn my family. I’ll earn it all.

We continued to talk into the night, the calming water lapsing in the background. Until we came to her chance encounter with Everly and after. How she failed to reach me on my phone, which was turned off.

“I thought you had blocked me,” she said with a sexy pout that had my dick twitching back to life.

“I turned my phone off because I knew it would be glued to my hand the whole time you were away.”

“I was offended when you didn’t respond to my nudes.”

My hand immediately reached around for my phone when Alexis giggled.

Great, now my dick is rock-solid.

“It was actually Alicia who kicked me in the ass and enlightened me to take the next step in owning what I want. Without apologies.”

I grinned. “Trust Alicia to give it to you straight. And what is it you want, Alexis?”

“You, Owen.I want you.”

Epilogue

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