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They could talk later. Right now, she just needed to be held. She needed to crawl back out of that abyss and get the cover back on it.

There was no way she could live like this, not forever. Exposed and needy.

Jace had exposed her. And now Jace would hold heruntil she recovered. Because Jace was her rock. He was her comfort.

A cold feeling entered her chest and she burrowed deeper into Jace’s embrace, trying to escape the chill. Trying to shut out the destructive thought that she might have just put a crack in her foundation. One that she might never be able to repair.

Chapter Eight

Jace was awake the entire night, with Sam’s naked body nestled against his, her breasts snuggled into his side—a serious distraction from sleep.

Unfortunately, he still did a lot of thinking.

About what she meant to him. About the fact that he was pretty sure he loved her.

Dammit.

Love. Had he always loved her? Probably. It was likely why there had never been a woman in his life that he’d wanted to keep more than Sam. Because when push came to shove with relationships, Sam had always been an issue.

No, he’d never said anything to her about it because, in his opinion, it wasn’t her problem. But at some point, his girlfriends started getting touchy about her. Her place in his life, him going to her house to watch movies until midnight.

And some part of him knew that their jealousy was normal for the situation. But mainly, the conversation always ended with him getting pissed and telling them that if they wanted to mark their territory, he was the wrong guy for them.

Not one of them had enticed him to change his situation with Sam. Ever.

Because Samantha was always the most important. Samantha made his world spin. He was so attracted to her it hurt. He thought about her all the time—his first thought when he got up, his last before he went to sleep.

Yeah. So that was probably love.

Dammit again.

He got out of bed, leaving Sam there, soft and sleepy and so sexy. If he didn’t move away from her he was going to jump her, and until they talked he didn’t feel comfortable doing that.

He crossed the gray room, the sun still not up over the mountains, and went into the bathroom, turning on the water and waiting for it to warm up before stepping under the shower head.

Love.

How had it come to this? He wanted to tell her. And he wanted to hide it forever. Or at least until he figured out what he could do with it. What it meant for him. For them.

He pushed water back from his face, sliding his hands over his hair, leaning back against the hard tile. Love was elating and terrifying. Like a roller coaster. The climb to the peak was incredible, the free fall after...in Sam’s arms...amazing.

It was the blind corners that were killing him. They’d survived everything behind them, sure, but he had no idea what was up ahead.

The door to the shower opened and he turned. Sam was standing there, naked and biting her lip, looking nervous and beautiful, so damn perfect it hurt.

“Mind if I come in?” she asked.

“Please,” he said, his voice rough, not like his own at all.

She did, closing the door behind her, the moisture in the air clinging to her hair, which was completely wrecked after their activities last night. She wrapped her arms around her midsection, the action pushing her breasts up and together.

And he could only stare.

Had she always beenthisbeautiful? How the hell had he survived looking at her for the past fourteen years without his head, or other parts, exploding?

Not the most romantic thought. But honest.

Right now though, it wasn’t just his cock that was on the verge of serious injury. It was his heart. It felt like a fist was squeezing it so tight that his chest might cave in due to the pressure.

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