Page 222 of Keep This Promise
Holden shakes his head. “No, I only went in the closet and grabbed what you asked for. Why?”
“I put this away in the drawer. I . . . I guess I took it out and forgot.”
Maybe the nights in the hospital have left me unbalanced.
“We’ve had a rough few days. Mama James did come in, maybe . . . not that I think she’d go through your things.”
“No, of course not. It must’ve slipped my mind.”
There’s something that doesn’t sit right with me about that, but I am too tired to think through it.
“Come here.” Holden settles next to me and holds his arms out. I don’t wait, I curl into him, loving how I fit right in the crook of his shoulder. I drape my arm over his side and squeeze a little. “I like this.”
I tilt my head to get a good look at him. “Like what?”
“Lying in bed with you.”
“It’s a novelty for us,” I say, joking.
“A first. We’ve taken care of the strange places to have sex.”
I shift again, this time placing my hand on his chest and resting my chin on top of it. “We seem to lack the more conventional places.”
“And where would you choose? If we were going to try to adhere to normalcy?”
He wanted to let me take the lead, and right now, I want to lead us both into temptation. Pushing up, I move up so I’m nearly on top of him. “We could try a bed.”
“We could, but...which bed?”
“We’re in a perfectly lovely bed now.”
He pushes my hair back, keeping a soft grip near the back of my head. “You’re perfectly lovely.”
I lean down, pressing my lips to his. Holden’s fingers tighten a little as the kiss deepens. His mouth tastes of mint, and when he slides his tongue against mine, I moan. Kissing Holden is unlike anything I’ve ever known. It’s sweet and sinful, and he makes me believe in happiness.
He flips me so I’m on my back, his hand running down my side to my thigh before he hooks it over his leg. “You make me lose control,” he says, kissing his way down my neck. “I promised myself we wouldn’t do this. That I wouldn’t push you.”
“You’re not.”
“Sophie, you drive me wild.”
As though I don’t feel the same. “Kiss me.”
Holden’s lips return to mine, and once again, I fall apart. It’s as though my brain completely stops working when our lips touch. It’s rather ridiculous, and yet, I don’t care. I don’t care that I wanted slow. I don’t care that we have a million reasons not to be together. None of it matters because, in this sea of uncertainty, he’s become my anchor. He’s strong and steadfast, rooted where I need him most.
There’s a playful nip on my lip, and then he rests his forehead on mine. “I want you so much, but we’ve rushed everything. You asked for slow, and even if it kills me, I want to give you that.”
I could fall so deeply in love with this man.
My fingers move to his thick hair, pushing it back. I wait until his eyes find mine. “For so long, I have been alone. I’ve forgotten what it was like to be touched, cherished in a way beyond friendship. All of this is quite scary, but it’s also lovely. You aren’t pushing me, you’ve allowed me to lead, and I’m asking you to, slowly, give us the night we never had.”
Holden moves off me, which has embarrassment crashing through me. I am a bloody fool. He doesn’t want the same thing, and I just made myself look ridiculous. He gets up, removing his wallet and phone from his jeans, and then he comes around the bed, extending his hand.
“What are you doing?”
“Stand up.”
I’d rather crawl under my covers and forget I ever said anything.
