Breathe You In (Sweet Torment 1)

“I’ve never been more miserable than I have without you, sweetheart. You’ve changed everything. You have control over me. I hate it.” He lowered his voice and kept that blazing stare on me until I felt it to the center of my body. “But I love you. So damn much. You can have it all. Everything I am. Just please don’t walk away from me.”

A sob broke low in my throat. “I want you to be happy.” And it was the truth. Such an easy thing to admit when there was nothing left to hide. “I never played you. I would never want to.”

“I know.” He stepped closer, lifting his hands slightly as though cornering a frightened animal. “I’m the one who deceived you. There’s no excuse. But I swear to you, I won’t do it again. I’m so sorry, sweetheart.”

“Politicians never admit defeat,” I whispered.

He took the final step, so close I could feel the heat of his body.

“You defeated me that first night, and I’ll concede happily if it means I get to keep you.”

He gently cupped my face, and tears rolled down my cheeks and wet his fingers.

“I love you, Amy.”

With a deep breath, I said what I’d come here to say. The truth.

“I love you, Roman.”

He kissed me hard and I wrapped my arms around him.

Standing outdoors on a cold day in November, I felt warm and safe. Complete.

“It’s crazy,” he said against my lips. “How much I need you. It’s like…”

“An addiction.” I nipped his bottom lip and he smiled.

“Yes, an addiction.”

Epilogue

Living in sin with the governor isn’t going to look bad?” Hazel asked with a wink as she unpacked a box in the middle of Roman’s bedroom—now our bedroom.

“Technically we’re not ‘living together.’ I’m just keeping some things here for an extended period,” I said, reciting what Roman and I had discussed. Smiling, I hung up some clothes in the closet. For the first time in a long, long time, I felt at peace. Truly complete.

“I’m just glad the election is over. Roman won, and that douche Warren ran back home to his mommy with no chair to sit on.” Hazel snickered, and I glanced at her from within the closet. “Get it, no chair, because he ran for house chair?”

“Oh, I get it.” I smiled and joined Hazel where she was, unpacking in front of the fireplace. I was so happy for Roman. After we’d made up, he’d taken me with him to watch the results come in. When he was announced the winner, he’d given a speech and addressed all his supporters. It had been overwhelming how many people had turned out. So much of the last few months had been wonderful and crazy and in the end, Roman was the right man. For New York and for me.

This next step I was taking with the governor of New York was a permanent one. While my stomach fluttered with happiness, I looked at Hazel and said, “I’m going to miss you.”

She looked up and patted my shoulder. “You’re not going far, and we’ll see each other all the time.”

I nodded, then frowned as I saw what she was unwrapping. “What is that?”

She peeled back the newspaper to reveal—oh, God, no…

“It’s the turkey collection! I saw you looking at them all the time. It’s my housewarming present to you.” She beamed, and went about setting up Stroky and his cohorts on the little table between the chairs.

“But, Hazel, you love those.”

“Yes, but don’t worry. Christmas is coming, and I have these great sparkly Santas made out of recycled milk cartons and baby food jars.”

“Great.” Hideous as those things were, I liked that a piece of my old home had followed me to Roman’s.

“Have you heard from Paige?” I asked.

Hazel shook her head. “I don’t know what’s going on with Paige. She’s been working late for the past week, and we haven’t really had a chance to chat.” She looked up at me. “You look happy, Amy.”