Page 56 of Every Single Vow
Chapter thirty-five
Cooper
Dakota’s eyes flare with surprise at my words. I sat down at that bar for over thirty minutes after sending the buckle bunny packing just minutes after Dakota left. I had zero interest in any other woman that wasn’t the one currently in my arms. I sat and stewed. Going from shocked that she thought I’d actually take another woman up on her offer, to plain pissed at how we kept dancing around the obvious. The fact we were soulmates. Meant to be. Whatever other cliché phrase you want to label it. She knew it, and I knew. It was time to get past the walls she’s built and own it.
“Coop,” she whispers, her eyes filling with tears.
I press my forehead to hers. “I love you, Kota. You’re my person. The first thing I think about when I wake up and the last thing I think of when I go to bed. I’ve loved you for over half of my life and we both know what this is.”
Her sob is quiet but present. So I continue. “We both know this is real. You and me. It’s always been real.”
I pull away and tilt her head back. Tears stream down her perfect cheeks, so I trace them with my thumbs, silently begging for her to say the words. To not hide behind her fear. Her fortress of reasons she thinks she’s not good enough for my love.
“Tell me.” My voice cracks. “Please baby, tell me it’s real.”
She sucks in a breath before she grips my wrists, her walls finally crumbling brick by brick. I pull her close, letting her arms wrap around my neck.
“Please don’t hold back,” I whisper. “Let me love you, Birdie.”
A sob wracks her body, her fingers curling into the hair at my nape.
Her voice is quiet, barely audible when she finally admits the truth. When she finally says the words that I’d been desperate to hear. “It’s real.”
My lips press against her hair, before she pulls back, looking up at me with so much emotion written across her pretty face.Fear. Relief. Heat. Love.
“Kota,” I rasp, my fingers itching to touch her.
Every stubborn inch.
“I love you,” she breathes out as she curls her other hand into my shirt.
Those three words are all I need. My mouth collides with hers, our lips moving with urgency as I scoop her up, allowing those long legs to snake around my waist.
Her back hits the door, while my hips pin hers, our bodies flush and hot.
She whimpers when I shift forward, the denim being the only barrier between my hard cock and her flimsy sleep shorts.
Her head rolls back, her neck arching so that I can slide my lips down the column of her throat.
“Coop.” She gasps when I suck on the sensitive flesh near her collarbone.
My name on her lips feels different this time. It’s a plea, a confession, and I can’t wait a second longer to get this woman bare and discover every single thing that will make her say my name like that again.
I step back, bringing her along as she stays strapped to my chest. Her hips are frantically moving, her hands tightening in my hair as I stride across the carpet and to the bed. I lay her down gently, then stand up to my full height, just staring.
“What?” She whispers, her cheeks flushing.
“You have no idea how fucking perfect you are,” I admit with a hoarse voice.
Her blush deepens, before she rises to her knees.
“I’m far from perfect, Cooper.” Her hands cup my face, and I twist to kiss the inside of her wrist. “But if there’s anyone in the world that makes me want to be it’s you.”
Her words hit me square in the chest, and I don’t need any more confirmation. Dakota Sterling was made to bemine.
Chapter thirty-six
Dakota
