Page 95 of The Bodyguard Affair
The climb is so fast, I press my hands into the mattress to slow us down. I want to remember everything, how he sounds, how he tastes, what he feels like.
A smile spreads over his face, and it almost takes me out before he brings one palm flush over my heart. “I can feel you, right here. You’re already close, aren’t you?”
I bite my lip through a sharp gasp, nodding as the heat inside me nearly unfurls. “So close.”
I expect him to torture me a little, make me wait. But he starts bucking up into me faster and faster.
I study the way his jaw tenses as he works me, the way he tips his head back, groaning with abandon, the way he looks at me like I’m something to be cherished, even loved. From that alone, the pressure inside me mounts to nearly a point of no return.
“I need…” He hesitates, swallowing.
“Need what?”
Our eyes lock and he doesn’t waver. “You,” he whispers.
At his words, I fall apart entirely as he absorbs every tremble. Every shock wave rippling through my body. It’s bigger, more intense than any other time because it’s not just about pleasure, or the technique he used to get me off. It’s about him. And me.
He thrusts hard into me, finishing violently in a ragged, fractured groan that turns everything upright. I come all over again, in soft, subdued waves. We stay like that, watching each other lose all control in a way we’ve never been able to do with anyone else.
Our vision tunneled, we go limp in each other’s arms, still moving slowly, not ready to end the connection. I don’t think I’m physically capable of letting go.
As he holds me, I think about what he said. How I need him, too. How safe I feel with him. Not just because he could probably kill somebody with his bare hands. I’ve never felt safe like this with anyone, physically or emotionally. I’ve never felt like Ihad to put on a persona, like I had to perform for him. I’ve never felt like he was grading me or that he had any expectations for me. I can just be.
I think about the night we met. How he carried my groceries and filled my world with color all within the span of a few hours. How I pursued my dream, all because he encouraged me to do it. I think about the fog I was in for months after he left and how it never really lifted.
Since he’s been back, every second with him feels like standing in the sunlight. How my heart leaps, twirls, and sizzles when his name flashes on my phone screen. I think about how quickly I trusted him and how he never wanted anything in return for keeping my secret. I think about how much he cares about his mom, his family. I’ve never met someone like him, ever. And more than that, how he sees me. How he believes in me like no one else.
It’s all-consuming, how desperately I need him. It scares me. I’ve never needed anyone before.
Chapter 42
Nolan
It’s at the luggage carousel that it hits me, all at once. I’m in love with Andi.
Of all the moments for my brain to choose, it picks this one—us sweaty, skin crisp and sunburnt, her head resting lazily on my shoulder as we watch suitcases circle endlessly on the belt. It feels like a confetti bomb detonated in my chest.
I love this woman.
It doesn’t feel as foreign as it should, considering I’ve never been in love—not like this. It blankets me in a steady, affectionate warmth, spreading through me until it fills every corner of my being. Maybe because the feeling has been there longer than I realized, quietly brimming under the surface, waiting for me to figure it the hell out. And now that I have, it feels obvious. As simple as the sky being blue. The earth being round.
She tilts a goofy grin at me, giddy when her bag tumblesdown the chute, entirely oblivious to the fact that she has me wrapped around her finger.
I want to rewrite everything she knows about love—tear down whatever walls she’s built—and show her it’s not just some fleeting thing. That it can be good, real, and that it can last. We’ll surely mess up along the way, we’ll have hard times, but we’ll make it. Fuck, I want to lie in bed, debating baby names, planning a future. A home.
I’m still reeling from the weight of it when my phone vibrates in my pocket. I glance at the screen and see two missed calls from Jones. Weird. Lately, I’m the one calling him.
As we head to the parking garage, I dial him back.
Jones picks up on the first ring. “Good news, man,” he says, his tone oddly chipper.
“Good news?” I echo, half listening. I’m distracted by Andi’s ass as she walks in front of me down the narrow space between the parked cars.
“You’re going to Denmark.”
I stop walking, convinced I’ve misheard. “Denmark? As in, Scandinavia, Denmark?”
“Is there any other Denmark? Yeah, royal protection. The second-born Danish princess. She’s starting university and they need extra security. Two-year contract. And get this—they specifically requestedyou. Apparently, your stubborn ass came highly recommended by a certain sexy PM with luscious locks.”
