Page 93 of Retribution

I cup his face, my eyes filled with tears as the rain seems to fade away in the background.

“Oh, Reed.” I caress his face, admiring the vulnerability of this moment.

“I think I’m diving head first off a pier for your love,” I sigh with a lazy smile.

“Can I.. can I kiss you?” He asks hesitantly.

It takes me a moment to understand the question, considering how many times we’ve shared a kiss. It’s only then I realize, he wants to kiss me, for me. Not because of the contract.

Instead of responding with words, I place my hand on the back of his head and pull him towards me. Our breaths are heated as we remain only an inch apart, my stomach erupts into butterflies as he nears. The hot fan of his breath provides a comfort, like a wave of protection from the bitterness of the world.

His lips collide with mine, an instant release of pressure as my body subsides and my shoulders roll back. We come together as one, the sealing of our lips prove our love for one another. We put down our weapons and wave the white flag, we have united together, the stars above have crossed paths. He kisses me so tenderly and soft that it feels like I’m kissing him for the first time. Our tongues graze alongside each other but instead of fighting, they lick each other playfully, figuring each other out.

This feels entirely fresh, like we’ve just began, like there is no contract, no boundaries, no expectations. This is purely just me and him in this moment, admitting our defeat and joining forces to conquer the world together.

His hand skims my left side as he runs his fingers up and down my body, like he’s never touched me before. He’s acting innocent and nervous to discover what lies beneath the thin material barrier between us, the only barrier that shall ever come between us.

He moves his hand over to my stomach; grazing over my navel and trailing to my peaked nipples. The shock waves from the sensation turn me blind as I writhe underneath him, seeing those stars that have finally met. He pulls away from the kiss, my heart aching for more of him, for more of this.

“You will never have to worry about another man ever putting his hands on you again, the only person who will ever touch you will be me,” he growls, the protectiveness swirling around my head.

Reed is the kind of man that doesn’t usually share his emotions, if I’ve learned anything so far, it’s that he’s incredibly hard to read. It’s one of the main reasons I was so in awe of his confession to me, not only was he being firm and clear about how he felt but he said it so beautifully I wished I had it recorded so I could listen to it repeatedly.

What he doesn’t realize is how sweet and loving he is. He discredits himself a lot of the time and acts like its ‘normal’ to be as passionate and perfect as he is, but he is one of a kind.

“Shall we head inside?” he asks.

I nod and he stands up, offering me his hand. I pull myself up and notice his suit shirt is completely soaked through, his nipples are visible through the practically see-through material.

“Come on, Princess.” He leans down and sweeps me up into his arms bridal style, I squeal and kick my legs, wrapping my arms around his neck.

He leans down and leaves another tender kiss on my lips as the rain falls between us.

My body aches from the entirety of the day. The wedding party is close to being over and I’m pretty sure Lola will be too preoccupied to worry about my whereabouts.

He walks us into the building, his feet squelching along the polished flooring and the water dripping from us both. The receptionist gasps.

“Sir, would you like any assistance?” the woman rushes around the desk towards us.

“No thanks, I’ve got it covered.” Reed lets out a heart laugh at the shocked expression on the lady’s face.

I can’t imagine what she’s thinking right now, we must look ridiculous.

Reed pushes open the door of our suite, the room smelling pleasantly of lavender and soap. He sets me upright on my feet as we both take in the expanse of the room.

“This is spectacular!” I gasp, looking at the huge four poster super-king bed, the two-person bath tub in the center of the room.

The bed is covered in rose petals and there is an ice bucket with champagne and two flutes to accompany it. The lighting of the room is pink, making everything else appear pink. A mini fridge sits under the desk and a large TV is above the desk, adjacent to the bed.

“This is really something.” Reed agrees.

“I don’t even remember booking anything remotely like this!” I tell him, turning to look at him.

He wears a smirk on his face as he leans against the wall with his arms crossed.

“You didn’t.” He responds, smugly.

“Reed.” My voice warns.

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