Page 103 of Our Long Days
“Without a doubt.” He doesn’t miss a beat.
“That’s all that matters. We’ll face the rest if the time comes.”
I’m air bound, lifted off the floor and into his arms. I sit sideways in his lap as he buries his face into my neck, whispering apologies against my skin until his voice grows hoarse.
“I don’t deserve you.” He inches back. “You were always there, and I never saw you coming, my beautiful, selfless girl. Since the new year, you’ve chipped away at my armor. This summer just confirmed it.”
“Confirmed what?”
“You’re it for me.” Two large hands frame my face. “You’re my salvation, Florence Sadler. From the evening you stole my favorite shirt, you altered my world. It might have started with a night, but all our long days together, lying in the sun or dancing in the rain, they’re just the beginning.”
I brush my nose along his. “No more hiding?”
“No more hiding,” he agrees, stroking my jaw. “Be sure, Florence, because there’s no going back after this. Some days will be tough…”
My lips stretch, tears catching in my smile lines. “But we brave the storm. Together.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
dexter
We takethe simplest things for granted.
A warm bed to sleep in. Food on the table. Clean running water. We don’t notice them until they’re gone.
With Florence in my arms, mouths fused together, hands exploring, the reality that I almost lost her hits me. Foolishly, I took her loyalty and stubbornness for granted. Of course, she would obliterate my worries to ashes. They’re not completely gone, perhaps never will be, but a dramatic weightlessness came over me when she accepted every confession, twisting the fear into hope.
It flows through me as I lay her on my bed—no, our bed. Because after tonight, we’re never sleeping apart again. A life, a future, a family I’ve denied myself all sit within reach. She did that. She showed me true strength.
I crawl over her, arms braced either side of her head. “Tell me again.”
Her chest rises and falls, delicate fingers tiptoeing up my jaw. “I love you.”
“Again.” I plant a kiss between her breasts, inhaling her delicious scent.
“I love you,” she repeats.
Slipping off the thin strap of her dress, my kisses trail down her arm as she says those three precious words over and over. My journey ends at the inside of her wrist, lips brushing the delicate lines of the axe. My mark.
She watches me, skin flushed the prettiest pink.
“I love you, Florence. Down to my core. Laced in my veins. We’re made for each other, and I’m sorry for fighting it.”
Her head tilts. “No more apologies. Just love me, Dex.”
My lips are back on hers in a flash. Our clothes disappear under hurried hands. Skin on skin, heartbeat to heartbeat. She guides my cock to her center, already soaked, and after a few thrusts, I fill her to the hilt.
It’s slow, the need to savor it like it’s the first time crucial. In some ways, it is. My eyes are wide open, mind free, heart ready to accept the love I’ve feared for so long.
“Dex,” she whimpers when I draw a tight nipple into my mouth. “I need more. Please.”
“Anything, baby. I’ll give you anything,” I murmur into her silky flesh.
She grips my ass, nails biting, directing my movements. “Deeper.”
I hitch her legs higher around my waist, rolling my hips until her eyes roll back.
Her walls flutter around me, body tensing as pleasure ripples from head to toe. I’m close behind, roaring through my release, clinging to her as if she might float into the ether.
