“I don’t need rescuing.” JT repeated his earlier declaration and turned her to face him. “Not by you. Not by anyone.”
Her temper flared. “That’s your whole problem,” she said, hitting him with all her pent-up frustration. “You think you’re doing fine on your own, that this isolated little world you’ve built for yourself can keep your heart safe.” She put both hands on his chest and shoved hard. He stumbled back a step, his expression reflecting surprise at her fierceness, and she stalked after him. “Well, you’re wrong.” She wagged her finger a scant inch from his nose and he retreated a few more steps. “You need me.” She prowled after him, all her heartache and worry rising to a boiling point. “Admit it. Damn you. Admit it.”
JT stopped retreating and stood staring down at her face. His fingertips brushed he
r cheek and came away damp. Violet didn’t even realize she was crying.
“I don’t just need you,” JT said, bending down and lifting her onto his shoulder in a fireman’s carry.
He dumped her on the bed and pounced on her. Violet gasped; his rough handling had disrupted the efficient working of her lungs. Or maybe she couldn’t breathe because of the way he was staring at her: as if she was the most amazing sight he’d ever seen.
“I don’t just need you,” JT repeated, his tone tender. “I can’t live without you. And I swear I’ll do whatever it takes to make sure I never have to.”
And then he was kissing her passionately, reverently, without holding back any emotion. Violet’s joy knew no bounds as she realized that he’d stopped running from her. He might not have let go of the pain that kept him isolated, but he was ready to let her help him heal.
Her tongue met every greedy thrust of his, devouring just as fervently as she was devoured. With her fingers fisted in his hair, she threw back her head and moaned as his teeth nipped at her throat and he investigated the level of her arousal. Her hips bucked as he slid one finger inside her, then two.
Heat built beneath her skin as his mouth latched onto one of her nipples. The firm tug sent a spear of longing straight down to her core. She twisted beneath him, pinned to the mattress by his weight, but managing to communicate her hunger.
“Now,” she commanded breathlessly. “Don’t make me wait any longer.”
He used his knees to spread her thighs wide, opening her for his possession. “It’s been hell for me as well.”
And then he was thrusting inside her in one long, measured surge that nearly made her black out, such was her pleasure.
“Yes,” she murmured, smiling as his lips claimed hers once more.
He retreated at a deliberate pace, letting her savor the friction of their joining before plunging fully inside her once more. Their union couldn’t be measured by the pleasure he brought her body, but by the way her heart swelled to almost bursting.
“I love you,” she told him, meeting his gaze as they danced together, hips moving in ancient rhythm.
JT laced his fingers with hers and set their hands on the pillow beside her head. Without breaking his steady stroke into her body, he kissed her gently on the lips before murmuring, “You’re my everything.”
His confession caused her body to spasm. Her orgasm rolled over her in slow waves of ever-increasing pleasure that slowly faded. When she opened her eyes, she found JT watching her. Her lips curved at the wonder in his expression. He began to move against her powerfully, chasing his own finish. In seconds his body shuddered as his climax claimed him. He let her watch every emotion play across his face.
Breathing harshly, JT collapsed on his stomach beside her on the bed. He peered at her from beneath his long lashes, a wryness in his expression making him look younger than his thirty years. Or, Violet corrected, he looked exactly the age he was and she’d grown accustomed to how stress and unhappiness had made him seem older.
She rolled over on her side and cupped her hands beneath her cheek. “I’m here to stay.”
“I assumed that when I saw all the packing boxes in the hall.”
“And by here I mean wherever you are.” Her lips firmed. “I fully intend to fight dirty if that’s what it takes to save our marriage.”
“There’s nothing to save.” He lifted one hand to forestall her heated rebuttal. “Let me finish. I simply mean that I was wrong to push you away and that I’m fully committed to spending the rest of my life with you.”
Violet let him see her delight. “Good. I think you made a wise choice.”
“So do I.” JT rolled onto his side until their noses were an inch apart. His heart rate had returned to its regular resting pace, but every third beat or so it skipped a little as he realized just how happy he was.
“Feel like telling me how the shareholder vote worked out?”
Why did he get the sense that she already knew?
“Strangely enough, it came out in our favor.”
“Really?” She did a lousy job of sounding surprised. “How is that possible?”
“From what Brent was able to gather after I left, Casey didn’t vote his shares.”