Beautiful Villain
Page 24
When he comes, he murmurs my name against my mouth, and his entire body shudders and shakes. He groans loudly, and it’s just about the hottest thing I’ve ever felt or experienced. Then he looks up at me bashfully and smiles, grinning.
“That was….”
“Amazing.”
“That was amazing.”
Chapter Eight
Neil
The morning comes earlier than it should. I’m sore, but in all the best ways, and judging by the way Finley is wiggling around on the bed, I’m willing to stake a bet that she’s feeling a little tender herself.
“Finley?” I ask. “Are you okay?”
“Hmmm,” she murmurs.
“Sore, cupcake?”
“Mmmm,” she moans in reply and rolls over. She drapes an arm over me and wiggles close, and the sensation is so sweet and lovely and wonderful that I never want it to end. I like her. A lot. I like the way she makes me feel, and I like the way my world seems to come to life when I’m near her.
Finley is strong and sweet and wonderful, and I really don’t want to break the magic of the moment. Unfortunately, dawn has come too early, and it’s time for both of us to get up and start moving.
“Finley,” I say, kissing her. “We need to get up. Do you still want to come with me?”
“Yeah,” she says. “Wouldn’t miss it.”
We manage to pry ourselves from the bed, shower, get dressed, and eat a couple of bowls of oatmeal before we’re in her car and headed for the old mines. I’m suddenly very tense and nervous, but I don’t think that I should be.
“You seem uncomfortable,” she says.
Finley doesn’t miss a thing.
She’s observant as hell, and I’d bet money that’s probably part of what makes her such a great librarian. If someone comes in and they’re feeling nervous or anxious or like they don’t really know what book they need, I bet that she’s the kind of person who can help them find exactly what they’re looking for.
“A little.”
“It’s been a long time since you were here.”
“Not long enough,” I mutter.
“The last time I was here,” she says carefully, and her voice trails off. She doesn’t need to finish that because I’m going to guess it’s been the same amount of time since we’ve both been out here.
“You haven’t been back since it happened,” I fill in the blanks.
“Nope.”
“Why not?”
“Never needed to. It was over. Done. You were gone.”
“I was gone.”
She looks over at me. She’s driving, of course. I don’t have a license. I don’t have anything. All I have is the fact that she’s offering me her good will in taking care of me.
“Can I ask you something?”
“Yeah.”