Page 23 of Bitter Desire
Why he did that, I didn’t know. And to be honest, I didn’t want to ask him, because I liked that he didn’t correct Tiffany. I liked pretending a little too much, but I refused to think about the particulars on that too closely. What I felt for Law was big, it was real, vibrant and true in a way that had me positive this was a once-in-a-lifetime kind of thing, kind of man, that you absolutely never did or everwouldrecover from losing. The drop in my stomach that came with losing Law washed over me and I had to put a hand out, bracing myself against the railing of the deck.
I heard the door open and shut behind me. “Princess. What are you doing out here?”
“Just taking in some air.”
“You’ll get sick. It’s cold out here.” Law’s arms went around my waist, his body pressed to my back, and he kissed my temple. “Let’s go inside.”
“Can we stay out here a little longer?” I asked, leaning back against his chest. I closed my eyes and breathed deeply. This was real. My thoughts weren’t. I didn’t have to think about becoming a woman I hated, or what would tear Law from me. I didn’t have to do that, because he wanted me. Somewhere out in the night an owl hooted, the wind blew, rustling boughs and dropping leaves before the wind hit us. My damp hair moved lightly, sticking to my cheek and Law tutted, raising a hand to comb through my tresses.
“If you get sick…” he muttered, his finger twisting my hair around his finger.
“I won’t get sick.”
Law made a sound that told me he didn’t buy what I was selling. “I’ll make a fire if you come inside.”
I bit my lip and smiled, the sinking feeling lifting and dissipating at the promise of a fire. “What else?” I pressed, and Law sighed heavily.
“I should have known you were going to bargain with me,” he said, and I giggled. “I’ll make you s’mores.”
“There’s food here?” I asked in surprise. “Like, for s’mores?”
“Of course there’s food here. I’m not bringing you somewhere I can’t feed you what you want. There’s even that expensive coffee you love.”
I turned with an excited hop. “The Alturas blend?” I gasped, hands grabbing the lapels of the robe he wore. The material was soft and fluffy beneath my hands, and I wore a matching one. I liked the soft robe on Law, the material a juxtaposition with the man that wore it. Law was hard all over, his beautiful body a tapestry of tattoo ink and scars, both from the life he’d had before me.
“Yeah, that,” he said, telling me he had no idea what I was talking about, but that he had gotten it for me all the same. Law’s hands smoothed over my shoulders, fingers flexing on the soft robe beneath his fingers. He was used to me in soft and sweet things and he smiled, rubbing my shoulders. I mirrored his gesture and grinned at him when he gave me a puzzled look.
Law was used to me like this and I knew soft looked good on me. But on Law? Soft on Law looked painfully beautiful. It looked perfect. I loved soft on Law.
“What?” he asked, looking down at the robe and patting a hand down his front in search of what I was looking at.
“I like this robe on you,” I told him, running a finger along the fluffy material of his robe.
“It’s all right,” Law conceded, and I rolled my eyes at him as he hustled us back towards the cabin.
“All right? You look hot.”
He paused, considering that. He liked that. I knew he did from the way he was smiling at me. Playful and open. I loved him like this. “I’ll get us a pair for when we’re home.”
Home.
That one word had the power to shake me to the bone. Home was something I’d never had, but Law promised me that and more. He was offering me home on a silver platter and I’d be a fool not to take it with both hands.
* * *
“Where did these come from?”I asked. In front of me were five different dresses, all of them beautifully jewel toned. I reached out a finger, trailing it along the plunging neckline of a deep plum gown hanging in the walk-in closet of the cabin. Law entered the bedroom, a cup of coffee in one hand and an easy smile on his handsome face.
“I had Addie pick them out for you.”
“But for what?”
“We’re going out tonight,” he said, sipping his coffee. I eyed the cup until he sighed and held it out to me, offering it.
“Thank you.” I beamed and took the cup from him. I’d left my own downstairs somewhere in my exploration of the cabin. It wasn’t often that I forgot about caffeine but there was something about the morning sun glinting filtering in through the windows, bathing the cabin in a golden and bright light that had my feet wandering and taking me through the space. I’d discovered a jacuzzi around the back of the cabin with a beautiful mountain view, then there was the library in the spare bedroom. If we were staying longer than the few days Law had brought us here, I might have indulged in that but there was little time to read, or at least it felt that way when all I wanted to do was stay as close to Law as I could. We’d spent the better part of the morning in bed, and if I knew my man at all, he’d take us back there before long. There had been talk of a hike...okay,it had mostly been me talking in bed that morning, with Law nodding along with a pinched look on his face.
“You can’t bring me to the mountains in the summertime and not think I’m going to want to go on a hike. That’s criminal, Law!”
“There are plenty of other things to do here than hike.”
