Page 266 of Enigma: The Complete Collection
My brows furrow, confused by his statement.
It takes a few moments staring into his remorseful eyes for lucidity to hit.
Oh, my God.“You're sterile?”
“Yes,” Isaac replies with a curt nod of his head. “That’s how I met Jae and Avery. Jae refused to do the procedure until I underwent an extensive psychiatric assessment since I was under the age of twenty-two and not a father. Avery was the doctor assigned to my case. Several heated arguments later, and the procedure was completed according to my wishes.”
We sit across from each other, staring, but not speaking. I try to formulate a response to his confession, but I’m stumped on how to reply. Am I hurt he kept this from me? That’s a tough question. Half of me says yes, he should’ve been upfront and honest from the beginning, but the other half says no because it doesn’t change the way I feel about him. And if I’m totally honest, even if I knew from the very beginning, nothing would have kept me away from him.
I wasn’t raised by my father, but that doesn’t mean I wasn’t loved. My Uncle Tobias was a wonderful man with a ginormous heart. He loved me enough that I didn’t need anyone in my life but him. Also, what Hugo said weeks ago is true. Family doesn’t necessarily mean people who are blood-related. It’s the people you choose to be a part of your family who are the most important.
I capture Isaac’s cheeks in my hands and stare into his hardened eyes. “Thank you for being honest with me, but it doesn’t change anything between us. There are thousands of children in the world who need a loving family. One day, if we decide we want to have a family, there are plenty of options available for us. If not, I get to keep you all to my greedy self.” I say the last sentence over-dramatically, wanting to wash away the worry marring his handsome face.
He laughs and firms his grip on my waist. “There's only one greedy orifice in your body, Isabelle. It isn’t your heart.”
I screw up my nose and stick out my tongue, immaturely denying his bold statement. When I feel him stiffening beneath me, I realize his declaration is entirely accurate. I can’t help it. I'm beyond being helped when it comes to him. My body craves his touch, his attention—every inch of him.
I don’t necessarily think it’s a bad thing. Our sexual chemistry isn’t our only connection. If it were, we wouldn’t have made it over all the hurdles we’ve endured the past few months. We would have cut our losses and moved on, deciding it wasn’t worth the effort, but we both know our relationship is worth the sacrifices we’ve sustained, and we’ll only grow from here.
“You have two questions left,” Isaac says, breaking me from my thoughts.
I purse my lips while trying to think of a less imposing question than my last. He waits impatiently, tapping his index fingers on my backside.
“What’s the longest period you’ve gone without sexual contact?”
The instant the question escapes my lips, I want to ram it back down my throat. Jealousy has always been a curse of mine. Just thinking about him with another woman has my claws out and ready to be sharpened.
Isaac coughs to clear his throat. “What’s the longest we’ve been separated?”
“Thirty-four days.”Thirty-four days of pure, gut-wrenching hell.
His shoulders square. “Thirty-four days.”
I groan in disgust before I attempt to move off him. Jealousy is hitting me in the gut, brutally wounding me. He grips my thighs and pulls me back onto his lap. Huffing, I shift my gaze to the side of the room, striving to rope my jealousy back in. Even though it’s illogical to believe there was no one before me, I prefer to live with my head in the clouds when it comes to stuff like this. I hate the thought of Isaac with anyone else.Hate it. I can’t stand the idea of anyone experiencing what I’ve experienced with him.
Isaac grips my chin to carefully angle my head back to him. “You wanted to open this bag of worms, so we’re opening it.” He glances up at me with remorseful eyes. “I didn’t know you existed. If I had, I would’ve never stopped looking until I found you.”
The truth of his statement is relayed in his beautiful eyes. It eases my agitation and spreads warmth blooming across my chest.
“This will make me sound like a chauvinistic pig, and rightfully so, it should.” He inhales a quick breath. “Before you, they meant nothing. I simply saw women as a vessel for pleasure. Although they left my apartment satisfied, I wouldn’t have been bothered if they didn’t. I wasn’t with them to create memories. I was with them to release tension. When I achieved that, I left, leaving Catherine with the chore of kicking them out.”
You’d think his statement would cause virulent jealousy to resurface, but it doesn’t. His eyes are full of remorse, and he looks genuinely embarrassed for the way he behaved. I can also appreciate that he is not being evasive, even knowing he isn’t portraying himself in an amiable manner.
He's never hidden the fact he wasn’t looking for a relationship, so it’s understandable he saw sex as just that—sex. He wasn’t issuing false promises. He didn’t offer commitment. All he proposed was his body for the night. So although there may have been women before me, from now on, there will only be me.
“And I’ll never want or need anyone else,” Isaac mutters to my quiet ramblings. “I have a hard enough time keeping up with your insatiable demands to add anyone else into the mix.”
I cock my brow, faking annoyance. “I never heard a complaint seep from your lips.”
“And you never will,” he replies in a deep, provocative rumble.
Pleasure dashes down my spine when he tilts his hips, grinding his cock against my bare pussy.
“Your body was built to be pleasured, Isabelle, and I’m going to make sure it’s every whim and desire is taken care of for the rest of my life. This…” he gestures his hand between us, “…is different than anything I’ve experienced before. Iwantto pleasure you. Ilovepleasuring you. I’llneverstop pleasuring you.”
My heart skips a beat as my pussy pulses. “Can we start that pleasuring now?”
He smirks. “Is that your third and final question for the night?”
