Page 31 of Flawless

“I need you,” she whispered.

I’d never tire of hearing those words. Knowing how much it cost her to say them, made them rarer and more valuable.

I inched inside of her slowly, watching the air seep through her teeth as she adjusted to the invasion. “Feels so amazing…” She gasped as I moved slowly, letting her feel the power of a connection that seemed to defy words.

My body took over when the pleasure caused my mind to check out, moving instinctively, like I’d been making love to her forever. I already knew what she liked. How fast, how deep, how hard, to come undone for me. And I used that knowledge to draw it out until she was gasping and pleading, digging her nails into my back and moaning my name.

There’d been plenty of women before her, but it was hard to imagine another after her. I was pretty sure this girl was it for me. And that scared the hell out of me, because there were no guarantees I’d be allowed to keep her.

That thought unleashed something deep inside, a fear I’d kept buried, causing me to pick up the pace, trying to chase away the demons taunting me.

She surrendered to her release, but I couldn’t let go. I couldn’t let go of her.

God help me, I’d be wrecked if this thing ended.

Finally, without warning, my climax slammed me as I emptied into her. The significance wasn’t lost on me. She was the first woman I’d ever trusted enough to forgo the condom. And I needed her to be the last.

I rolled onto my back, wrapping my arms around her and pulling her close. I couldn’t say a word, pretending I needed the time to catch my breath. But I really needed a minute to talk myself off the ledge because I was spiraling into a pit of fear at the thought of losing her.

She tipped her head back, her hand resting on my chest. “You okay, babe? Your heart’s still racing.” Her half laugh was teasing when she said, “I haven’t worn you out, have I?”

My heartbeat thundered in my ears as I considered telling her the truth. Just the thought of being that vulnerable made my gut clench, but if we couldn’t be honest with each other, even when it was scary, we couldn’t build the kind of relationship I wanted.

I rolled over on my side, tucking a strand of wavy blonde hair behind her ear. “Truth time. Don’t get freaked out, okay?”

Her eyes widened and she reared back a little. “You’re not gonna tell me you’ve got some weird fetish, are you?”

I laughed, loving her knack for bringing levity to any situation. “Yeah, I have a fixation with this sexy little country singer that keeps me up at night.”

She grinned. “Hmm, that’s the kind of compulsion I can totally support.”

Honesty had never felt scarier than it did when I said, “Not sure it’s good for me though. What if I don’t get to keep you? Where does that leave me?”

We both knew where it would leave me: broken.

“You’re serious, aren’t you?” she said, softly. “You’re really worried about this?”

“Yeah, I am.” I kissed her shoulder. “It kind of hit me when I was making love to you. I don’t want this to end, Ry. But there’s no guarantee it won’t.”

“What happened to getting to know each other? Taking things slow?”

It was a valid question, but I’d moved way beyond that, without even realizing it.

“Here’s the thing… my heart has already claimed you. Apparently, it by-passed all that logical stuff my mind was on board with.”

I could tell she was nervous when she asked, “What are you saying, Cam?”

I knew there was no other way to describe it, so as crazy as it sounded to fall so fast, I told her the truth. “I’m in love with you.”

She closed her eyes when tears glided down her cheeks. She was silent so long, I was sure I’d made a huge mistake, but when she finally flashed me those baby blues everything I was feeling was reflected back to me.

Hugging me hard, she said, “No one’s ever said that to me before. And I’ve never felt this way before, so that must mean I’m in love with you too.”

I savoured those words before muttering, “How the hell did we get here?”

She laughed, slapping my chest when I rolled over on my back and thrust my hand into my hair, because I was seriously freaking out about this revelation. I’d suspected it before, but seeing her in my bed solidified it, and now I had to figure out how to keep her. Because letting her go was no longer an option.

“Christ, Ry, how do we make this work?”