I tightened my hold on her. She wasn’t going anywhere, not yet.
“Stay,” I breathed, rolling on top of her and pinning my hands beside her head.
“You…you don’t want me to leave?” She questioned, a small crinkle in her brow.
I let out a small chuckle and rubbed my nose against hers. “No way, sweetheart.”
“Oh.” She let out a soft sigh and smiled.
I frowned, realizing that when she had awakened she’d believed things had gone back to the old way between us. She was crazy. That wasn’t happening. The truths and passion we shared had forever altered us. There was no going back.
I kissed he, pulling her plump bottom lip between mine and releasing it. Her eyes dilated with lust and I loved that I made her come alive.
“You know,” I grinned, tilting my head, “we should probably shower.”
She laughed—her face transforming with the emotion—and reached up to run her fingers through my hair, which was caked together with paint. “That’s probably not a bad idea,” she wet her lips. “Are you going to make sure I get very, very clean?” Her arms wound around my neck.
“Mmm,” I pretended to think. “I’ll make sure there’s not a speck left.”
“Good,” she giggled, wiggling her hips, “because I’m pretty sure I have paint in places I don’t even want to think about.”
That was probably true of the both of us.
I peeled my hands off the canvas and stood. I reached a hand out for her, and when she grasped it I tossed her over my shoulder.
“Caelan!” She shrieked as I carried her to the bathroom. Her laughs filled the air as I turned on the shower and waited for it to warm. Once the water was heated, I lowered her and pulled her inside under the spray.
The water caused the paint to blend together on our bodies in a kaleidoscope of color. I took a mental picture, never wanting to forget this.
I grabbed my soap and lathered it in my hands. “I have to admit,” I inhaled the scent of the soap, “I kind of like the fact that you’re going to smell like me.”
She laughed, rolling her eyes. “You’re such a dude. You all want to mark your territory like a damn dog.”
“Well,” I reached out, rubbing the soap on her body, the white foam running in rivulets down her abdomen and legs, “when a guy has a beautiful woman like you, he can’t help but want to make sure everyone knows she belongs to him.”
“Trust me,” she smiled coyly, “you have nothing to worry about.”
“There’s no one else?” I questioned, cupping her breasts and rolling my thumbs over her nipples. “What about the guy you gave a lap dance?”
Her body stiffened and she frowned. “He’s no one.”
Ice drenched my veins. She was lying. I could see it. She had feelings for him, feelings she didn’t want to admit.
“Don’t lie to me, Sutton,” I growled.
“He’s just a friend,” she assured me, placing her hand on my chest where my heart beat proudly. “What I feel for him, in no way compares to what I feel for you.”
I took a deep breath, marveling at her words and how relieved they made me feel.
I kissed her in a punishing manner. I wanted her to know that she belonged to me. Her body melded against mine and then her legs wrapped around my waist. Under the spray of the shower, I held her in my arms with her back against the tiled wall, and sank myself deep inside her. I wanted to stay buried there forever, so I didn’t have to face reality. And the reality was if I ever wanted to have a healthy, lasting relationship, I had to clean up my act.
As she climaxed around me, and I reached my own peak, I said the same words to her that I had spoken after we made love. “I live for you.”
It was true.
I lived and breathed for Sutton Hale.
And that was a dangerous fact.