Page 125 of The Ruthless and the Strong

I took in a deep breath, bracing myself, and then I opened my eyes and met his deep ocean-blue ones. They looked a bit strained, and he had bags underneath his eyes, as if he hadn’t been sleeping properly.

I knew he hadn’t been.

“I might have given you a few more white hairs this week,” I said softly.

He laughed then, and I smiled, loving the sound. “All worth it. You’re worth it.”

I blinked once, taking in what he had just said. “You still believe that?”

“Of course I do. How could you even ask me that?”

“I left. At the first sign of hardship, I left you. Especially when you had trusted me enough to tell me all your secrets.” I shook my head. “I don’t think I’m worth it. I wouldn’t blame you if you washed your hands of me.”

“Hey,” he said firmly. “I would never walk away from you. Didn’t you get my message?”

I nodded. “You’ll wait for me?”

“I’ve been waiting for you for a very long time now. I waited for you when you married another man, and I would wait for you for a lifetime, if that is what it’ll take.”

“I’m so sorry,” I cried out. I moved him closer to me, wrapping my arms around his neck and pulling him down until he had no choice but to lie on top of me. I spread my legs and let him move between them before I wrapped them around his hips.

I would entangle myself so far into him, it would be hard to tell where he began and where I ended.

“Hush, my beautiful girl. There is nothing to be sorry for, understand me?”

“I’m still sorry,” I said. He shook his head before leaning down and taking my lips with his for a slow, gentle kiss. I closed my eyes and gave myself to him, and the tears I had been fighting so hard to keep in dripped down the side of my face.

Max pulled away then.

“Where does this leave us?” he asked me.

“What do you mean?”

“I’m sorry, baby, but this week without you has been hell. I need you to tell me where this leaves us. Be very sure about it. Because once you tell me you’re mine, I am never letting you go again.”

I paused a bit, pretending to think it over, before I shot him a wide grin. “I’m yours,” I said, “Just as much as you are mine. And I am never letting you go again.”

“Thank fuck,” was all he said before he leaned down and kissed me again. This kiss was different. It wasn’t gentle or slow. It was wild and frantic and sweet, sweet desperation.

This kiss told me he didn’t plan on stopping and for that, I was grateful.

We pulled each other’s clothes off in a frenzy, throwing the tattered, ruined fabric on the floor, before I pulled him back to me once more.

He paused in his movement just before he entered me. “Condom,” he said.

I held onto him and shook my head. “We didn’t use a condom last time either.”

“I know, sweetheart. I’m so sorry.”

“Why are you sorry? I was the one who attacked you the last time.”

His lips twisted a little in amusement before he sobered a little and said, “Because it’s my job to protect you. I should have remembered.”

I shook my head. “It’s not your job to shoulder all the responsibilities, you know. I should have remembered as well.” I shook my head and cupped his cheek. He nuzzled against my touch, his stubble tickling my palm a little bit. “If you trust me, we don’t need a condom.”

“I trust you more than anyone else in this world.”

I nodded. “Good. I trust you, too. I’m clean. I was tested before I moved back to Chicago and I’ve been on birth control for a while now.”

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