Page 32 of Taming a Ruthless Heart

We fall into a rhythm, our movements synchronized, and it’s like we’re back in time, sitting at the piano in the house where he grew up, sharing quiet moments and soft words.

Flashes of his mother teaching him to play flood my mind.I don’t mention her because her passing feels so recent.His gaze grows distant and thoughtful, probably thinking of her, but I don’t press him on the topic.I know better than anyone how hard it is to reopen unhealed wounds.Tension builds, thick and potent, as the melody winds down.Our hands slow, and he lets his fingers linger on the final chord, the sound stretching into silence.

Still gazing at the keyboard, Dave murmurs, “I don’t know what’s been triggering me, but I can’t stop thinking about her lately.”He lifts his eyes to mine.My heart crumbles at the longing in them.“Mom, you know?”

I nod.“It’s natural you remember her often.It’s only been four years since she passed.”

“Yet the pain is so fresh.”His eyes drill mine as if he’s seeking the truth in them.He knows how much I suffered when my mother passed, and he asks, “When is it going to stop hurting?”

I squeeze his forearm.“I lost mine thirteen years ago and it still hurts like hell.You just learn to live with the pain.”

“You’re right.Losing your mother at just fifteen was devastating.”He strikes a couple of random keys.“I should be grateful that I had my mom for thirty years.She was such a remarkable woman.”

The softness in his voice, the way he talks about her with a reverence that’s rare for him, makes me see him in a different light—a glimpse of the man he was, the man he might still be beneath the layers of darkness.

At the same time, my guilty conscience flares, realizing that Rose has the same exact eye color as Martha’s.I’m sure that’s part of the reason he’s been thinking about his mother over the past days.I’m just not ready to point that out to him yet.

We’re close enough that I can feel his breath, the warmth of his presence, and it’s overwhelming, almost suffocating in its intensity.It wipes out everything from my mind.It lifts the burden of my lies and secrets from my shoulders.It makes me forget all the valid reasons why we should not act on the intense physical attraction still binding us together.

His gaze drops to my lips, and the air between us crackles with energy.I think he’s going to kiss me.I slide my tongue over my lower lip to alleviate its dryness.

“I should go,” he murmurs.His eyes flick to mine, holding my stare as if he’s reluctant to leave.

I nod, though, my heart aches with the weight of everything I haven’t said.

He doesn’t move, though.

The silence stretches between us, electric.The air feels warmer, heavier, like we’re both caught in a moment we shouldn’t be lingering in.

Dave’s fingers brush against mine on the keys.He’s so close that I almost forget how to breathe.

He shifts, his hand lifting to catch a loose strand of hair that’s fallen across my face.His fingertips are rough and warm as they tuck the hair behind my ear.The world narrows to the space between us, to the unwavering pull that’s always connected us, no matter how much I try to deny it.

He leans in, his gaze falling to my lips again.I know better than to give in, but my heart doesn’t seem to care.My breath hitches, waiting for a kiss I’m not sure we can afford.

13

Alexia

What happens if we cross this line?The thought flickers through my mind, but his nearness drowns it out, leaving only the warmth of his breath and the lingering hope that maybe, just maybe, he feels the same way I do.

Time and space stand still.Dave and I are suspended, caught in a tangle of memories and unconfessed desires.His breath heats up my skin, and I wonder if he’s waiting for me to stop him, to pull away.But I can’t.Not this time.

He leans closer so slowly, as if giving me a chance to change my mind.I don’t.Instead, I cup his cheeks and eliminate the gap between us.His lips brush mine, soft at first, tentative.He’s testing me, testing us.But then he presses deeper, and I lose myself in the feel of him, in the familiar taste that’s both achingly new and painfully ancient.This kiss feels like coming home and like jumping off a cliff, all at once.

I move my hands to the solid slab of muscles on his shoulders.He pulls me closer, his arms wrapping around me tightly.I wonder if he’s afraid I might slip away.I won’t.I want this as much, or more, than he does.

There’s an urgency in the way he kisses me that makes my heart race.I slide my fingers up into his hair, gripping him tighter, feeling the tension in his body mirrored in my own.

He breaks away, leaning his forehead against mine, his breathing shallow and fast.His green eyes gleam in the dim room.They bore into mine, dark and intense.His fingers tangle in my hair, keeping my face in place.

I’m breathless, my thoughts are a mess, and I don’t want to stop him.Not tonight.I try to pour my feelings into my own expression as our gazes remain locked for an eternity.I think he’s reading me correctly because the ghost of a smile lifts the corner of his mouth.

“Are you sure?”he murmurs, his voice a low rumble that sends a shiver down my spine.He strokes his thumbs across my cheeks, and I lean into his touch, grinning, because words feel impossible right now.

“Yes,” I breathe, and that’s all it takes.

He pulls me back into him, his mouth covering mine, more urgent now, more demanding.His hands move away from my hair and down my neck, over my back.Our bodies fit together perfectly as his tongue teases the inside of my lips.I gasp and offer him free access.He slides his tongue past my teeth, sucking at my lower lip, making the flames that have been coiling low in my belly combust into a raging wildfire.It’s impossible to think of anything but Dave, his kisses, and our passion.

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