Page 58 of Owen

She sighs blissfully as I push my arms above my head, stretching out the tension.

“It’s all figureoutable, Owen.”

“You made that word up.” I give a brief laugh, feeling better with her around me. She calms me in ways I didn’t think were possible.

“I did not.” She puts her hands on her hips over her green flight suit. “If it’s in the urban dictionary, it’s a word.”

I catch her staring at my abs. “Maybe I should become a model?” I flex my muscles and try to look serious.

“This body is just for me.” Jade pokes me in the ribs, making me laugh, because unlike her, I am super ticklish. “I don’t enjoy seeing you upset,” she says on a sigh as I pull her into my arms, surrounding me with her fragrance that I’m addicted to.

“I’m not now that you’re here.” The whole world could disintegrate as we hold each other at the bottom of the stairs, getting lost in each other’s embrace. “And I’m not going anywhere. Wherever you are, I’ll follow.”

She sounds satisfied that I agreed to stay, because I want to.God, do I want to be with her, but the pull to claim back what is rightfully mine is strong, willing me to hop on a plane to confront my father. Not because I wanted my old life back, but because I wanted that house, for her, and to rent a place to be near her and Poppy. Now I’m back to relying on my cousin to bail me out of the godforsaken hole my father pushed me into.

“You’re braver than you give yourself credit for. There are millions of unsettled people in the world unhappy with their lives, yet they do nothing to change it.” Our bodies are sealed together so tight, there is barely room for a strand of hair between us. “Most of them are too scared to chase their dreams, learn a new language, or open the shop they’ve been dreamingabout owning. But you…” She leans back to let me look at her. “You, Owen Brodie, already started making big changes before you even arrived here in Cyprus. Changing your life wasn’t about your job, a house, cars, or the money you had in the bank. It started in here.” She taps my temple. “And in here.” She points to my chest. “You knewyouhad to change yourself before you could truly change your life.”

Emotion builds in my chest, as she uses her positive energy to make my damaged heart beat stronger.

“Learning to cook, managing your household, being there for your friends, agreeing to marry Evangeline and attempting to get to know her, fleeing when your soul felt like it wasn’t where it should be. You still did it. And sometimes, like now, the repercussions of your actions are turning up to bite you on the ass, but you’ve been given the gift of possibility and opportunity. To think big and be limitless. You said you’ve hit rock bottom.” She shakes her head. “I don’t agree. This is your time to build solid foundations. To step outside your comfort zone and embrace what’s about to unfold.”

I grin, astonished by her gems of wisdom. “Are you sure you aren’t an eighty-year-old wise woman trapped inside a thirty-nine-year-old’s body? You’re something else, Hotshot.”

“It’s part of my job to leverage my mindset. It’s what sets me apart from others and makes me an effective leader. I didn’t get to where I am by chance, Owen. I worked for it, and I still work on myself every single day. You should read motivational books to help you.”

She’s right. “Recommend me some.” I want to be like her when I grow up.

“I have them all downloaded on my Kindle. I’ll let you borrow it.”

I bow my head, and my lips meet hers. My plan to kiss hergently, to show her how grateful I am to have met her, is instantly shredded as our kiss turns passionate. “I’m falling for you.” My unscripted words of affection accidentally slip from my mouth.

“My heart is falling faster than a sonic boom.” She’s almost purring as she speaks before she twirls her tongue around mine.

I grin wider when she uses the speed of sound flying terms to tell me she’s falling for me, too. She has no idea how sexy her nerdiness is. Or how hard she makes my cock. The flight suit she’s wearing is so sexy, making it difficult to control myself.

Desperately wanting to be inside of her, my cock thickens in my swim shorts, our kiss deepening by the second. Our breathing heavy, she murmurs, “Tonight.” Referring to the fact we will fuck like wildcats later. That’s if we can, because nine times out of ten, I have to gag her to stifle her loud, pleasurable moans and go easy on her so not everyone in the surrounding villas can hear us.

“We need our own place.” My throbbing cock agrees with me.

“We’ll be back in England before you know it. We’ll have space then.” She threads her hands into my hair as we continue to kiss unabashedly in the hallway, not caring if anyone catches us. “I have a super tight schedule this year, though.”

“I’ll travel to wherever you are.”

With her lips on mine, it’s as if she sucks all the emotional pain I’ve been feeling away. With every kiss, she heals me, breathing fresh oxygen into my body, regenerating my heart.

Her lips swollen, she whispers, “I need to check on Poppy.”

“She’s been on great form. She caught a Chitchat Gecko.” I shake my head.

“How the hell did she do that?” Jade gasps, knowing how fast they move.

“She’s faster than a cheetah sometimes. She presented it to me like it was a gift at the lunch table.”

Jade covers her mouth with her hand. “Was it okay?”

“It was fine, but Poppy got more of a shock when your mom screamed and made her jump. She burst out crying when she dropped it, then cried even more when it scurried off into the bushes.”

“She never cries.”

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