Page 78 of Dark Knight

My hand tightens, squeezing the firm muscle. “What would she think of you? She would think she raised the kind of man who does what needs to be done. Everything you’ve done since then, you did it because you had to. You protected my father. You protected what he built. That’s honorable.”

“You don’t have to say that.”

“I know I don’t have to, but it’s the truth. That’s how I see it. You stood up repeatedly and did what had to be done. You are a protector. You’re a good man.”

“I didn’t protect you from him.” He doesn’t need to say the name. “I only ended his useless life when it was too late to stop him.”

“That wasn’t your fault. I wasn’t exactly open and honest about what was happening.”

I’m tentative as I reach out, placing a hand under his chin and turning his head until he’s looking up at me. I was so, so wrong. From the very beginning, when I met the handsome, brooding kid who I felt was taking my place. No wonder Dad was so good to him. He knew what he had been through. Knew what he needed to feel, like he could trust that he was safe.

There’s so much pain swimming in those blue eyes. Oceans of pain. Pain I want nothing more than to wash away, but I know I can’t. Just like he couldn’t wash mine away. “Come on,” I whisper, taking his hand and backing up. “Come to bed. Let it go for now. Just lie down with me.”

He only hesitates for a second before unfolding his body from the chair and following me to the bed, where I climb in first and hold my arms out to him. I don’t know what’s driving me now. Instinct, I guess. I need to hold him, and I think he might need to be held. Everybody does at some point–even tough guys like him.

It’s like a victory when he lies down beside me and lets me wrap him in my arms. When his cheek rests against the top of my head and his body shudders as he releases a pent-up sigh that seems to release the tension holding him stiff.

“I’m here.” It’s all I can think to say while his heart beats under my ear and I gaze out at the moonlit night. “I’m here, and it’s all going to be okay.”

CHAPTER27

ROMERO

“We have a problem.”

And there I was, prepared to attack her at first sight when I rounded the bottom of the stairs and found her standing there. How can I not? She’s in front of the open refrigerator door, dressed in nothing but the long cardigan she wrapped around her naked body after getting out of bed. The last thing I want to hear about while my dick’s getting hard is a problem.

“What is it?”

She scowls at the inside of the fridge. “There’s practically no food in here.”

“That doesn’t sound right.” But there’s no arguing with what’s in front of me when I step up behind her.

“We’ve been busy with other things,” she murmurs, looking up at me with eyes that sparkle with deeper meaning.

Other things. That’s one way to describe the way we haven’t been able to keep our hands off each other. What can I say? I’m a guy who finally got what he craved for years, and I’m making the most of it. I don’t hear her complaining, either – no, she only complains when she has to wait for me to recover. She spent a long time being afraid of being touched, being wanted. She felt disconnected from her body. Now, all of that is in the past, and she’s got a hell of a lot of lost time to make up for.

We both do.

Although now that I’m looking at a refrigerator that holds nothing but a few mouthfuls of milk, eggs, and yogurt that’s probably expired, I understand the need for balance.

“Shit. I guess you distracted me.”

“Did I?” She leans against my bare chest, sighing softly when I wrap an arm around her and slide my hand under her sweater. Her nipple hardens under my palm, while her head drops back onto my shoulder. “You can do that all day if you want to,” she whispers – throaty, needy.

“I wish I could.” I bury my face against her neck and inhale her sweet, floral scent before nipping at her tender skin.

“I know, I know. You have to work.”

It turns out there are things in this world capable of ruining my hard-on, after all. All it took was the reminder of my responsibilities. The reason we’re here. Who keeps money in my accounts.

“Not this very minute, though.” I don’t want to think about that. I won’t think about anything except for how she melts against me so effortlessly. All she needed was an invitation. She’s mine, all of her. No matter whether it’s right or wrong.

As if I don’t already know it’s wrong.

I close the refrigerator door and lean her against it, parting the sides of her sweater so my hands have full access to her tits, which I mold in my palms while she arches her back and whimpers. I know that sound by heart now. I’ll never get tired of hearing it.

“I thought you wanted breakfast.” She ends it on a moan, letting her head drop back when I bend to pull one of her nipples between my teeth. Like, I give a shit about breakfast now, when there’s something much more tempting to eat. My need for her is bottomless. I can’t imagine it ever ending. I should want to, but I don’t. That’s the last thing I want.

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