Page 187 of Let Me In

But from how true it feels.

“I don’t feel brave,” I whisper, my voice trembling just enough to give me away. I press in closer, needing the heat of him. My fingers curl gently against his chest, as if anchoring myself to the truth of his presence.

He shifts just enough to kiss my forehead, then rests his cheek against my crown.

“That’s what makes it real,” he says quietly. “You did it anyway.”

My throat tightens.

My hand finds his chest. Spreads wide. I feel his breath beneath my palm.

Feel how calm it is now.

Steady.

Like being here with me brought him back.

His voice dips even lower, just for me.

“When your body’s ready…” A pause. A soft inhale. “I’ll take you slower. Let you feel everything. Take my time with you, like I’ve wanted to from the start.”

My whole body warms.

He shifts again, kissing the side of my head.

“But for now,” he adds, voice deep and full of something so tender it aches, “you rest, little one.”

My lashes lower, my fingers curl softly against him.

And I fall asleep wrapped in his arms.

Kept.

Claimed.

Home.

CAL

She’s asleep within minutes. Her breath soft against my chest, her body curved into mine like she was built to fit there.

God knows I’ve never held anything like her before.

Not this tender, not this real.

She’s all soft limbs and slow exhales, skin still flushed where I kissed her, claimed her, filled her so full of me I swear I still feel her wrapped around me.

But it’s not the sex that undoes me.

It’s the trust.

The way she gave me everything tonight.

Let me touch what no one else has ever seen, let me keep her—really keep her—in all the ways that matter.

I brush her hair back again. Let my fingers trail through it, slow and steady.

She murmurs something in her sleep. Nothing I catch, but it makes her tuck in tighter.

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