Page 136 of Oblivion

With tears still welling in his eyes, he gently tipped my mouth up to his, and breathed me in. I inhaled as his lips tenderly captured mine. He hummed under his breath, as if physically tormented by our connection.

We paused. Breathed. Suspended by timeless seconds, before we fell a little harder.

I gently captured his lower lip with mine, then stilled again. My fingers followed the path of his smooth jawline, then wove around the back of his head. His lips leisurely feathered across mine and drew another hum from my chest.

Consumed by the aching need to hold him as tight as humanly possible, I pulled him closer until my nose squished against his cheek.

I arched into him, tilting my head further to the side and running my mouth like cross-hairs along his. The delicate swipe of my tongue was received with a tortured groan. It gathered in his chest and vibrated against mine.

Without breaking our kiss, Dante lifted me into his arms. My ankles locked together on his lower back as he pressed me against the entryway wall.

I expected it to be rough. To be shunted and my hair gathered in a fist and ripped to the side. But he surprised me by cupping my cheeks again and kissing me with raw tenderness that made me melt in his arms.

I’d never kissed to escape the grief of a broken heart. Never wanted to breathe in a man’s very essence and fade into his body to become one. And never had I been moved to tears by the depth of emotion and affection for another person.

Dante’s lips slid from mine, and he buried his face in my neck again. I looked over his shoulder to see two women standing in the kitchen doorway, both with their hands pressed to their chests and wearing tearful expressions. The taller brunette with wavy hair visibly fought to get her emotions under control, while the pregnant, pretty little Asian woman dashed a quick finger under each eye.

My focus drew back to Dante when he sniffed and lifted his head.

“I fucked up, baby. All I wanted was you, but I went and fucked up so bad. I’ll never forgive myself, and I don’t deserve you bein’ here.”

Confusion pulled my eyebrows low. “You didn’t do anything wrong, Dante. It’s okay to be upset.”

He shook his head and smoothed both thumbs under my eyes. “Ididdo wrong, Penny, and I’ve regretted it ever since.”

The ache in his voice made my heart plummet.

“How bad?” I asked thickly, and the dread grew.

“I’m scared it’ll make you wanna leave.”

A lump formed in my throat. I forced down the reaction and the gut-wrenching assumption of what had happened. I locked it all away for the moment. Now wasn’t the time and here wasn’t the place.

Instead, I nodded and forced my eyes back to his, knowing in my heart-of-hearts I couldn’t walk away in his time of need.

“Right now, I’m still here for you,” I whispered.

Dipping his chin, he bit into his lip and shook his head, seemingly chastising himself. When his eyes lifted to find mine again, they held remorse so profound it took my breath away.

“I love you, Penny.”

I failed to catch the aching sob. “I think I love you too.”

Air forcefully expelled from my chest as Dante’s arms engulfed me. He held me so damn tight, as if this was our final moment together.

Oh, my heart.

Oh, my aching, hopelessly in loveheart.

CHAPTERFIFTY-TWO

Penny

We barely spoke to each other for the rest of the evening, but our connection was as strong as ever. Dante seldom let go of my hand, and when he did, he would set his on my thigh. It was like I was his anchor—the only thing stopping him from slipping into the unknown.

It was nearing ten p.m. when he finally set down yet another empty beer bottle, and turned to me.

“Where are you staying?”

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