Page 177 of Tattooed Love

She gave me a look to say that was all I was capable of.

“We aren’t!” I snapped at her. “When are you going to realize I’m seriously in love with you?”

She yawned again.

“You’re tired.” I stated the obvious. I should be putting her to bed. As much as I wanted to make love to her, she needed sleep. Maybe after a solid night’s sleep back in the same country as me, she would wake up in the morning realizing how much I loved her.

“What are you doing?” she said, as I lowered her onto the bed. I then let go of her. Grabbing the blankets which were already pulled back, I pulled them over her.

“Putting you to bed.” I kissed her forehead. “I’ll come back in the morning.”

She locked her arms around my neck. “You aren’t really leaving, are you?”

“I’ll be back in the morning.” As soon as she was awake, I’d be back. “I promise.”

I pried her arms from the deadlock around my neck, and lowered her arms to the bed.

“I promise when you wake up, I’ll be back.” I ran a hand through my hair. It was going to nearly kill me to leave her like this. I kissed her forehead again, needing to.

I went to leave her but her hand wrapped around mine, stopping me. I frowned, looking at her hand now locked around mine.

“Then why leave?” She sat up, and yawned again.

“You want me to stay?”

We had never once just slept in the same bed.

She nodded her head, confirming what I thought couldn’t be possible. She wanted me to stay. My five minutes had turned into a full night with her.

“Are you going to stay or not?” She sighed. “You don’t have to. I know you don’t do that. Just sleep with someone.” She yawned again. “You can go,” she said, deflated, and let go of my hand, like she had made up my mind for me, and laid back down.

I moved across the room and heard her mutter something, but didn’t catch it. I turned the light off and closed the door.

I walked back to the bed. The curtains were open, so I could make out her figure and the fact that she had her eyes shut, and had rolled onto her side.

I got into the other side, my arm slipping under her head.

“Jax?” She sounded alarmed.

“Who else do you think it would be?” I kissed her bare shoulder and, with my other arm wrapped around her, I pulled her back to me.

“I thought you left.”

“Like I would leave you.” Had she not listened to a word I had said tonight?

“It’s early, you don’t have to go to sleep.” Her hand ran down my arm, stopping over the hand I was holding her with.

“I don’t care.” Having an early night wouldn’t kill me. Actually, my body needed one, with the lack of sleep I was running on.

She turned in my arms. “You don’t sleep over. Even when we were on the road, we didn’t share a room.” Her fingers ran across my jaw and I pulled her in, not settling until her head was on my chest.

“I always wanted to, but your brothers were always in the way.” My hand ran down her bare back.

“And what, they aren’t anymore?”

“I’m never letting anyone get in my way again when it comes to you.”

She sighed. “I’ll believe that when I see it.”