Page 63 of The Hotel Room

It wasn’t just the ache. It waseverything.

The way her body felt unsettled. The tingling, the need for touch—both to soothe the tension and to satisfy a deeper craving she hadn’t felt this intensely in...God, how long?

And the worst part?

Sheknewexactly what would ease it.

James.

James, with his steady hands, the way he used to press his palm against her lower back and knead the ache away with the perfect amount of pressure. The way he’d drawn her into his arms during her last pregnancy, skin to skin, whispering promises against her temple that had made her feelso completely loved.

And yes—God—the sex.

He had known her body in ways no one else ever could.

But now—

Now, the bed felt too cold.

Too empty.

Kate rolled carefully onto her other side, wincing as her body protested the movement.

The ache wasn’t just physical.

It was the hollow, gut-wrenching awareness of how alone she felt.

Shehatedhow much she missed him. She hated the fact that her body, her heart, still longed for the man who had hurt her so deeply.

You’re stronger than this. You don’t need him.

Plenty of women did this alone. Raised children without a man there to rub their back or kiss their forehead or make them feel desired when their body felt foreign and swollen and uncomfortable.

She wasn’t weak.

And yet—

Her throat tightened, a lump forming that had nothing to do with the physical pain pressing against her ribs.

Because no matter how much she told herself she could do this without him—

Shemissedhim. Not the James who had broken her heart in that hotel room. Not the James who had taken her trust and shattered it.

But the James she’d believed in for seventeen years.

Herhusband.

The man who had held her through Noah’s birth, pressing kisses to her damp forehead, whispering how proud he was of her.

The man who had spooned her during Lily’s pregnancy when her back pain had gotten unbearable, massaging her until she fell asleep, making her feel safe.

She wantedthatman back.

But he was gone. Or maybe he was never who she thought he was.

Kate’s eyes squeezed shut as her chest twisted painfully.

She felt weak. Exposed. And worse,betrayed by her own bodyfor still craving the warmth of his arms.

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