Page 94 of From London, With Love

“It’s late indeed, which is why you can’t leave now. I simply wouldn’t feel comfortable with you driving home in such a spent state.”

I can’t help but laugh as I try to get up. “Please, I’ll be fine. I’m a big girl.”

My attempt is futile, and I’m rolled back to face Carter. The laugh dies on my lips when I see the earnest way he’s looking at me. There’s something in his eyes.

“Please stay.” His voice is soft, calling to somewhere deep within me. The plea throws me; it’s so unexpected from someone so confident, which only makes itthatmuch more impactful.

“If that’s what you want, okay.”

He lets out an audible breath in response, his body relaxing. We’re both silent for a moment, still looking into each other’s eyes. The tension is too much to handle. With Carter relaxed and unsuspecting, I’m able to sit up and draw in a few deep breaths.

“I’m going to use the bathroom. Would you mind lending me something to sleep in?”

“Of course.” He rolls out the other side and pads over to his wardrobe. With the curtains yet to be drawn, his naked body is lit by the moonlight. Cords of muscle ripple through his back and along his shoulders as he reaches for a t-shirt and a pair of his underwear. He turns to face me, and it’s almost too much to bear. His front is even more glorious than his back; thick abdominal muscles fan up into his broad chest and his deep V line has me salivating.

“Hey, eyes up here.” His playful tone pulls my attentionback to his face. “You’ll be swimming in this, but it’ll have to do. You don’t have to wear these if you don’t want to,” he holds up the underwear, “but in case you didn’t want to put yours back on.”

This man. This thoughtful, beautiful man.

“I’ll take both, thank you.” I catch the items tossed my way and wander into Carter’s bathroom. The entire time I’m freshening up, the fearful-avoidant part of me rears its ugly head.

Do not let yourself get attached to him. You’re already too close. He’ll leave. All men leave. Even when they claim to love you, they leave. Even when they shouldn’t, they leave. Why would he be any different?

By the time I climb back into Carter’s bed, I’ve all but shut down. Not even the feeling of his arm draped over my waist is enough to pull me out of it. Closing my eyes, I will sleep to take me quickly. I think I hear Carter say something, but I keep my eyes shut and say nothing. Soon after, I hear his breathing even out.

They leave. Why would he be any different? All men leave.

Chapter 40

Carter

With her cheek resting against my bare chest, Lara sleeps soundly, the slow steadiness of her breathing filling my bedroom.

I’m absentmindedly stroking her hair with one hand whilst the other rubs small circles on her exposed shoulder blade. In these quiet moments, Lara curled up in my arms, I find myself wondering how anyone else could ever possibly compare to her.

Sleep evades me. I’d love nothing more than to be exactly how Lara is right now, yet I can’t seem to shut my mind off. It’s hard to be bothered by it though, when it’s Lara’s unexpected takeover earlier playing on repeat. Once she let her guard down, the confidence and dominance oozed out of her.?

It was easily one of the hottest things I’ve witnessed.?

“So you’re telling me she has no real set date to leave?”

“Yes.”

Yesterday’s conversation with my sister floats through my mind. Is it crazy to consider the possibility that this really could be more??

I’m in the kitchen when I hear Lara padding down the hall. When she rounds the corner, I’m awestruck by how beautiful she is. This isn’t new information to me; I’ve known it since the moment I first laid eyes on her, but it’s a different kind of beautiful at four in the morning.?

It’s in the way her hair is unruly, cascading around her like a waterfall. It’s the puffiness of her sleep-deprived eyes, and the way she rubs them as she walks. And it’s especially prevalent in the way she dons the shirt I discarded last night, the material leaving little to the imagination with every button undone.My god, my shirt has never looked better.?

“Hey, you.”?

Lara covers her mouth as a yawn escapes. “I woke up and you weren’t there.”

The expression on her face is one of vulnerability, but then her brows furrow as though she isn’t impressed she said that out loud. Her fingers begin fiddling with the rings on her middle finger, a telltale sign of her nerves. But why? Is she worried I’ll leave? It’s my house, after all, so there’s little chance of that.?

Don’t be an idiot, Cart.

Unbidden, the sound of my brother’s voice enters my thoughts. Of course, he’s right. Over the almost six months I’ve known her, I’ve discovered Lara has an almost innate desire to keep people at arm’s length. I’m yet to find out why, but I’m hopeful she’ll open up one day. But this is at complete odds with what she’s said—she almost sounded worried that I left her. Some parts of her are still a mystery.

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