Page 67 of The Scout

“Good?” she said, laughing. “Sorry. But you can’t say it isn’t confusing.”

“Want to know what I can’t stop thinking about?”

“Do I dare ask?” When I cocked a brow, she rolled her eyes. “Sex, right?”

“Have it your way. Yes. Sex with you. Each time I see you, I want to rip off your clothes. To lick every inch of your body. I want your sweet taste on my tongue and your warm wet heat pulsing around my dick.” With each of my words, I could see her face flush with what I determined to be desire. “Trust me, sweetheart, there’s nothing confusing about that.”

“You really shouldn’t say things like that to me.”

“Why? Because it makes you want me?”

When she paused, I couldn’t help but hold my breath. I knew she was overthinking, and I had to bite my tongue to tell her not to. Finally putting me out of my misery, she told me what I wanted to hear. “Yes, that is exactly why.”

Chapter22

Hannah

All I could do was stare at his mouth. Not only did the words turn me on, but I knew how those lips felt on my body. They were talented, skilled. He knew exactly how to vary the pressure and tempo, creating an array of sensations that left me breathless and craving more. Sometimes he would pull me closer, and his hands would gently cradle my face—which I came to find was one of my favorite things.

How could Inotwant him? I tried telling myself not to give in. That I needed to protect my heart. But hadn’t I been doing that since he left? For so long, I believed he didn’t want anything to do with me or our son. Yes, I still had a slurry of what-ifs running around in my head, but rather than the loudest one being,What if my heart breaks again?Now it was,What if I’m missing out on the love of my life?Because, let’s face it, there had been no one since Cash.

“Take a chance, Hannah.”

I knew he was waiting for me to make a move. To do something to assure him that we were now on the same page. “I’ll think about it.”

A sexy grin spread across his face. He cupped the back of my neck and pulled me to him. Our lips met in what started as a slow kiss and quickly became a heated one. Cash didn’t hold back when he kissed me. There was zero doubt that I was desired, and in that moment, there was nothing more important than the connection we had always shared.

I needed him. Every ounce of my body sparked to life. If there was anyone who could reignite my fire, it was Cash. He did it the night we had sex, and if I was truthful with myself, he did it again now.

Reluctantly, I broke our connection. “Your place,” I stated, leaving no room for argument, not that there’d be one.

Without hesitation, he grabbed my hand and led me to the car. Before I knew it, we were in his house, and my back was pinned against the front door. He gripped my ass and lifted me until my legs were wrapped around his trim waist.

“Jesus Christ, Hannah.”

I grappled for the hem of his shirt and yanked it free from his jeans. Keeping me in place with his pelvis, he leaned back and shucked his shirt off the rest of the way. Like a woman in heat, my hands couldn’t get enough of him. They brazenly caressed his rounded shoulders, down to his muscular back, and glided up to his neck. His hips thrust toward me, denim against denim. I could feel my body respond and knew once my pants were off, my arousal would be evident.

As though reading my mind, he brought his lips to my ear. “Are you wet for me?”Thrust.“Can you feel how hard I am for you?”Thrust.“Always you.”Thrust.“Only you.”

My entire body clenched. “I need to feel you, Cash.”

“First, tell me you’re mine.” He softly and assuredly peppered my neck with tender kisses, sending waves of goose bumps to cascade across my skin. His hand reached between us and unbuttoned my jeans. Supported only by the wooden door and his legs, he lowered my zipper and slipped his hand into my panties. “So wet for me.” He teased my clit but didn’t enter me. Pushing forward, he ran his nose up my neck, followed by his tongue. “Tell me, Hannah.”

“Are you mine?” I couldn’t help but need to know.

“Always have been.”

My heart thumped loudly. His eyes bore into mine with such intensity that I couldn’t look away. The vulnerability in his gaze was both endearing and nerve-racking. His words hung in the air, and I found myself lost in a swirl of emotions. He’d said it before, and maybe it was the vulnerable position I was in, but I suddenly wanted everything and believed it could be possible.

Could I trust my heart with him?

His lips continued to pepper my skin with kisses, my heart raced, and I knew I’d never felt about anyone the way I did with him. No one could make me feel as alive as Cash. Fifteen years had passed, yet, whether I admitted it to him or even to myself, I’d never forgotten about him. Maybe that was why I had crappy dates and zero sex.

Deciding to take a chance, I swallowed whatever doubts I had and said, “I’ll think about it.”

“I’ll accept that for now,” he grunted.

Carrying me as though I weighed virtually nothing, he made his way up the stairs to what I assumed was his room. It looked nothing like him. The floral wallpaper, white cotton eyelet curtains framing the windows, and old-fashioned oak furniture made me smile.

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