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Ash blinked at me. “What?” he practically whispered. “Don’t joke about this.”
I crossed my heart. “Never. I can’t ever be serious about anything, but I can be when it comes to you. I love you, Ash. I’ve known that for a while now, but I didn’t want to say it out loud. It feels too real. Too raw. Come home. No more of that, your room, my room bullshit. I want to be with you and only you.”
Ash’s arms fell from over his chest. “You mean it? Really?”
“Every fucking word,” I growled.
He moved over toward me. “You want me to stay? Even after our agreement is up?”
“Consider it done already.”
Ash frowned. “No, I still owe you money.” He tilted his head. “I’ve been meaning to ask, how much do I owe you anyway?”
I gave him a stupid grin. “I gave up counting after the second time we had sex.”
Everything went silent as Ash stared at me. He blinked, his eyes widening before they narrowed. Ash closed the space between us and raised a hand. I jumped up, grabbing his wrist before he could slap the shit out of me.
“Fucking feisty.” I yanked him toward me. “If you’re going to hit me, wait until we’re in the bedroom.”
“You goddamn bastard!” he shouted. “All this time, I’ve been worried about how much I owe and working it off, and youforgot?You motherfucker!”
“It wasn’t important," I said, pulling him against my body. “Right away, I knew I wanted to be with you forever. Why do you think I added so many fees? I didn’t want you to go.”
Ash blew out a breath, but I saw the tiniest glimmer of a smile. It fizzled just as quickly as it emerged.
“Did youreallyfuck that guy’s mom?”
I nodded. “Oh yeah. Back in my whoring days, I was all over the place.” When he frowned at me, I kissed his forehead. “That was months ago, baby. I would never touch her again or anyone else. Besides, I was telling the truth. I saw Able gunning for you, and I just—” My stomach tightened, rage building in my chest. “I had to get him the fuck away from you.”
Ash sighed. “I still want to punch you in the chest.”
“Do it.”
He balled up his fist and did just that. I coughed, trying not to act like it hurt when the truth was that it hurt like a bitch. My body was already sore, and here he was, fucking me up more! Instead, I pulled him into my arms, and he rested his face against my body. Finally, I was able to take in the scent of him, that aroma that was so uniquely Ash. I relaxed, holding him close as the adrenaline started to drain and the emotions kicked in. My eyes watered.
“I love you, Ash. Stay with me. I—” I sucked in a breath. “I can’t live without you. I love you so much it fucking hurts.”
Ash clung to my arms. “I know what that feels like.” He was quiet for a moment. “I love you too.”
My heart pounded in my chest. I could die right here and now, and I wouldn’t care. For the first time in so long, I cried. I thanked everything that no one else was around to witness me doing it. Ash stepped back a little, reached up, and cradled my cheeks in his warm hands. There was still blood on him, and bruises were forming, but he looked as Earth scorchingly hot as always.
“Kiss me,” Ash whispered. “I’ll make you pay for all this bullshit later.”
“Yes, sir,” I grinned.
Ash’s eyes widened. Before he could say anything else, my lips crashed against his. I drug him close again, holding him against my body. He was always so small against me. I loved it. Ash was tiny but mighty. No one deserved love like the man I was going to fucking marry.
The momentwe walked through the door, my legs caved. Home. Finally. Giancarlo caught me before my ass could slam against the hardwood flooring.
“There you two are. Shit,” Melony said. She looked between us. “Giancarlo, I didn’t think this would happen.”
It wasn’t her fault. She’d tried to help me. I elbowed Gin in the side when he continued to glare at her. He grunted.
“What? I didn’t say anything.”
“Yet,” Chelsea said. She whistled as she looked at us. We’d changed out of the blood-soaked clothing, but it wasn’t hard to imagine what we’d looked like before.
“Come sit down. Who has it worse?” Melony asked.
