Page 194 of Beat of Love
She held him without hesitation, arms strong around his back. She had worried, really worried about how the confrontation with Kamila would affect him. That maybe it would change his mind about her. About them. “You okay?” she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
He nodded, the movement brushing his stubble against her throat. “Yeah. Just … needed this. You.”
They stood like that, wrapped around each other, neither in a hurry to move. She closed her eyes, listening to his heartbeatslow. Feeling the tension leak from his body as he let himself lean on her.
No words. No demands. Just the quiet reassurance that he was back.
But slowly, the embrace began to shift. A spark lit inside her, familiar and greedy. She felt the warmth of his breath at her temple, then his lips against her hairline. His hands were no longer holding — now they were exploring. Her lower back, her waist. Her fingers had found his shirt, curling into the fabric.
When he pulled back just enough to look at her, his eyes were dark with want. “You feel good,” he said, voice low and thick.
Desire swept through her, but she didn’t give in to it just yet. Instead, she touched his cheek, grounding them both. “What happened?” she asked, wanting him telling her here, outside.
“Kamila chose the needle,” he said flatly. “We had her cornered. She saw it was over and took the easy way out.”
Brandy didn’t flinch, but her arms tightened around him. “And how do you feel about that?”
He hesitated, and her heart held still for the beat it took him to answer.
“Relieved. It’s behind me. She’s behind me.”
There was no vengeance in his tone. No lingering fury.
Just peace.
And that meant everything.
She exhaled softly, letting herself believe it was truly over.
He dipped his forehead to hers. “I feel … free. It’s liberating.”
She felt the words settle in her chest like sunlight, warm and weightless.
His fingers slipped into her hair, tilting her face toward his, and when his lips brushed hers, it stole her breath — not from urgency, but from reverence.
“Now,” he murmured, lips barely touching hers, “how about we take this inside?”
A slow smile formed, hunger and love twining together. “I thought you’d never ask.”
He kissed her deeply, and she kissed him back with everything she had. Because he was here. Because he had come back to her.
Not the man haunted by jungles and ghosts.
But the man she’d always believed was still in there.
The man he was always meant to be.
When he scooped her into his arms, she didn’t laugh or protest — she wrapped her arms around his shoulders and pressed her face to his throat, feeling the steady, calm beat of his heart.
The beat of love.
The wildness, the desperation was gone.
In its place was something steady. Grounded. Present.
And she could see it now — in the ease of his movements, the way his mouth curved as he looked down at her. The lines around his eyes had softened. The tension he always carried in his shoulders, between his brows, was gone.
The darkness no longer clung to him.
