“You’re so fucking sexy, El. God I need you,” Adam murmurs as his teeth scrape along my exposed neck.
Suddenly, he stops, his hands vanishing from my tender flesh. Before I can ask why, he spins me around and grips my waist. “Bedroom, now,” he snarls.
I nod and he accepts that as my answer. Adam grabs my hand, pulling me along behind him, the urgency in his actions apparent. Just as abruptly as he maneuvered me into the bedroom, he stops to divest me of my dress and to shed the remainder of his suit.
Once we’re both naked, Adam leans in and kisses me tenderly, running his hands up and down my body until they settle on the back of my head, tangled in my pinned-up hair. He walks me backwards until I feel the bed behind my knees. Then he pushes gently, so I sit down and wait to see what he does next.
“I want to see you with your gorgeous hair spread out over my pillow.” His deft fingers start plucking pins out of my hair until it tumbles softly d
own my back. Adam stands back, regarding me with a look of such reverence that I feel my skin heat up. I have to avert my eyes from the intense scrutiny. “Don’t.” He reaches out to pull my chin up. “I haven’t laid eyes on you in so long, I need this. You’re beautiful El, let me see you. I love looking at you.”
He steps back again, and this time I manage to keep my gaze steady, taking the opportunity to study Adam as his eyes glide over my body. He’s just as stunning as he was years ago. My hands itch to touch the ridges of his abdomen and the defined muscles of his shoulders. I want to lick every inch of the dark, swirling tattoo that goes up one arm and now reaches down over the left half of his chest.
“When did you add to your tattoo?” I urge him closer so I can trace the black ink with my fingers.
Adam closes his eyes and throws his head back as my hands lightly glide over his chest. “After the hotel,” he rasps, his hands clenched at his sides.
I stiffen up at the mention of our last encounter, my hands frozen in place on his skin. “Why?”
He brings his chin down and our eyes lock together. “Because I knew I’d never love anyone else. Only you.” Adam places his hand over one of mine and guides my fingers over the black curves. “I put it over my heart,” he whispers as he traces our hands along the curved lines, “because that’s where you’ll always be, even when an ocean separated us.”
He lets go of my hand, letting his drop back to his side. I look closer, retracing the path that he followed and gasp. “That’s my name,” I say softly, running my finger over the letters that are hidden within the tribal design. It would be difficult, if not impossible to spot if you didn’t know what you were looking for.
He tattooed my name over his heart. I have to swallow down the lump in my throat before I can speak. “Adam, I can’t wait any longer.” I drag my hand down his torso, letting it drop to my side. Then I scoot further up on the bed and lay down, closing my eyes in a pathetic attempt to control my speeding pulse.
I’m not alone for very long. The bed dips nearby from Adam’s weight as he climbs up and lowers his body onto mine. I can’t help the moan that escapes from my throat when our groins rub together. He shifts his hips gently, increasing the friction in that perfect spot.
“You’re so beautiful,” he says, dragging his hands through my hair. When our mouths meet, it’s less desperate, less frantic than before, because we know we have all the time in the world in front of us. No more roadblocks, no more missed opportunities, our future starts now, together.
We take our time exploring each other’s bodies, rediscovering what we used to know so well. Hands and mouths touch and taste every inch of flesh, I kiss the faded scar on his abdomen, a reminder of so long ago. Adam trails calloused fingers over every sensitive curve on my body. We continue teasing until we’re both unable to hold out any longer.
When he enters me, it’s like coming home again. Two halves have become whole once more. Declarations of love mean everything now that we have each other with no barriers, nothing to hold us back, no more complications. And when we both reach that glorious peak, we find a reason to live… each other.
* * *
God I’m nervous. I don’t think I’ve ever been this nervous in my life. I fidget, bringing my hand up to my mouth to chew on my thumbnail, only to remember my manicure. Scowling, I drop my hand and search around the room for something to occupy my mind.
“Ellie, for god’s sake, just stop twitching! You’re going to sweat your makeup off!”
“Gemma, don’t tell me I can’t be nervous, it’s not nice!” I whine.
“El,” Kate says calmly, taking my hands and squeezing them, “breathe. It’s fine. Everyone’s here and we’re just about ready to start. The media hasn’t caught wind of it so we’re good.”
I attempt to do as Kate says and close my eyes, breathing in and out deeply, grimacing at the scent of smoke and stale beer as I try to rein in my fluttering pulse. I smooth my hands over the front of my dress, smiling.
“Okay, it’s time, El.”
Holy shit! I’ve never been so scared and so excited at the same time.
41
Adam
“Ready?” Dax asks as he fidgets with his tie again.
“I’ve been ready for ten years.” Annoyed, I smack his hand away from his collar. “Leave the damn thing alone. Kate will kill you if you’re all fucked up when she sees you. She’s been all over us about these damn suits.”
Dax grunts out an incoherent response but lowers his hands and shoves them in his pockets.