Page 24 of Dead to Rights
Fair enough, but he still didn’t like it. “I love you, but you realize this sounds insane, right? We’re going to go hide in some void and just hope Karleigh doesn’t figure out we tricked her?”
When he didn’t receive a response, he looked over at Noah, frowning when he found him sitting perfectly still, his eyes wide with shock.
“What?”
“Say that again.”
“I said we’re going to hide in some—”
“No, not that.” Scrambling across the sofa, he crawled right into Finn’s lap and grabbed his face between both hands. “Before that.”
Still frowning, Finn thought back, trying to figure out what he’d said that had caused such a reaction. He thought the plan was insane with a low chance of success. Before that, he’d said…
Fuck.
The words had just slipped out, and while he’d meant them, he hadn’t intended to say it so casually. All week, he had been waiting for the perfect moment to tell Noah how he felt. He had imagined candlelight. Maybe soft music. He had pictured himself speaking the words with the reverence they deserved.
But it was too late, and even if he could, he wouldn’t take it back. All he could do now was make the most of the moment.
Settling his hands on his mate’s hips, he looked into his eyes and took a deep steadying breath. “I love you, Noah Marsh. I don’t know when it started, but I do know I can’t picture my life without you. If you’ll let me, I promise I’ll spend every day loving you for the rest of eternity.”
Red-rimmed and puffy, Noah’s eyes shimmered with unshed tears, but he wore the most beautiful smile.
“I love you, too, Finn. I’ve never been the kind of guy who sticks around for long, but from the moment I met you, I couldn’t imagine not being by your side. For the first time in my life, I know what it means to have something to fight for.”
Then he dipped his head, bringing their lips together in a chaste, yet heartbreakingly tender, kiss.
“I’m going to fight for us, Finn. And I’m going to win.”
Chapter eight
Noahdidn’tconsiderhimselfnaïve. He knew there were no easy answers ahead. Only hard choices.
The easiest choice by far, though, was Finn.
His entire life, he had been the type to leave when things got hard. Instead of working through issues or finding mutual ground, he just packed up his stuff and ghosted. It had been easier that way. Cleaner.
With Finn, he had finally found someone worth staying for.
While he’d never given much thought to what that might look like in practice, he hadn’t expected it to feel so damn consuming—or so frightening. Because having someone he loved, someone he’d do anything for, meant having everything to lose.
“I’m not going to let her come between us,” he said, his voice thick with the intensity of his emotions. “You belong tome, Finn Truitt, and I’ll fight for what’s mine.”
Finn’s hand smoothed up his spine and came to rest on the back of his neck, urging him closer until their brows rested together. “That’s a two-way street, Noah. You are mine. My whole damn world.”
The depths of that conviction washed over him, both soothing and arousing. “Show me.” He rubbed their lips together and pulled away, loving the way his mate chased after him. “Make me yours, Finn.”
Finn growled, a dark, delicious sound full of possession as he gripped Noah’s nape and slanted their mouths together. There was no teasing this time. No reservations. Only heat and need and hunger.
The cowboy didn’t just kiss him. He laid claim to his mouth, branding him from the inside out, leaving no room for him to doubt exactly who he belonged to.
They ate at each other, desperation making them clumsy. Their mouths crashed together, lips firm but yielding, and every stroke of their tongues only fueled the fire burning between them.
Noah groaned, his body vibrating with anticipation as he rocked his hips, grinding against his mate as he sought the friction he craved. His cock throbbed behind his zipper, swollen and aching, and his stomach clenched, fluttering with excitement.
With shaking hands, he mapped the hard muscles of Finn’s chest and shoulders, caressing and groping, eager to feel all that smooth skin without any barriers between them. A shiver raced through him when his mate dipped a hand beneath the hem of his shirt, his fingers dancing across Noah’s back and leaving a trail of goosebumps in their wake.
Blood roared in his ears as adrenaline flood his veins, and his pulse spiked, his heart drumming painfully against his ribs. Every brush of fingers, every glide of their tongues felt like too much and not enough at the same time to his overstimulated system.
