Page 102 of Lethal Devotion
"You can't get rid of me that easily," she teases, but there are tears in her voice. She bites her lip, her gaze never leaving mine.
"I don't want to get rid of you," I say fiercely, meaning every word. "I never wanted to get rid of you. I just... I was so afraid of fucking this up. Of hurting you."
"The only way you can hurt me is by leaving.” Sienna swallows hard, her hand reaching up to touch mine. "By giving up on us."
"I won't," I promise, and I feel something shift inside me, something that's been locked away for years finally breaking free. "I promise you, Sienna. I won't walk away from you again. From us."
I see something wobble in her expression, a flicker of fear in trusting what I’m saying. "You mean that?" she whispers tremulously.
"I mean it." I slide my hand into her hair, fingers tangling in the silky strands. "I'm done running."
“Good,” she whispers. “Because all I want is for us to be happy.Together.”
"I'm happy right now," I murmur, still stroking her cheek, and I’m surprised by just how true it is.
She leans down and kisses me, soft and gentle, and I taste salt from her tears mixed with the sweet taste of her lips. I feel like I can’t breathe. I thought I’d never kiss her again, that I’d never feel her touch again, and now… now she wants it to be forever. NowI’veadmitted that I want it to be forever, too. It still feels hard to believe, completely.
When we break apart, I can see her breath catch. "Marry me," I say suddenly, the words spilling out before I can stop them.
She blinks at me in confusion. "We're already married."
"No, I mean really marry me. Not because you have to, not because it's the only way to keep you safe. Marry me because you want to. Because you choose to." I trace her lower lip with my thumb, pressing down slightly and seeing her breath catch again. "Marry me with a real ceremony, with a dress and flowers and all that shit you deserve."
Her eyes fill with tears again, but these are different. These arehappy tears. I can see the difference in the way she smiles, in the way she leans into my touch.
"Damian, I don’t need?—"
“I know,” I tell her firmly. “But you deserve it. And I know I’m not supposed to tell you what you deserve, but this time, I know I’m right.”
"Are you proposing to me in a hospital bed?" she asks, and I can hear laughter in her voice.
"Is that a problem?"
“No,” she says, laughing and wiping away her tears. “It fits. It really does.”
"So is that a yes?"
Instead of answering with words, she kisses me again, deeper this time, and I can feel her answer in the way her lips move against mine, in the way her fingers tighten in my hair. Heat floods through me despite my injuries, despite the tubes and wires surrounding us.
"Sienna," I breathe against her lips, need making my voice rough. Miraculously, despite the pain and the countless drugs I’m probably being pumped full of, I can feel my cock stiffening instantly, as hard for her as I always am.
My hand slides down to grip her waist, and despite the fire in my chest, despite everything trying to keep us apart, I need her closer. The relief of knowing she's here, that she loves me, that we're going to make this work—it's making me dizzy with want.
"I need you," I growl, my voice rough with desperation. "I need to feel you, to know this is real."
"Damian, you're hurt?—"
"I don't care." My grip tightens, and I start to pull her toward me. "I almost died tonight thinking I'd never get to touch you again. I need this. I need you."
She should be the responsible one, should remind me about my injuries and the fact that we're in a hospital. But something in my voice, in my eyes, must convince her—or maybe it’s just that she wants me as badly as I want her—because she allows me to pull her onto the narrow hospital bed.
It's awkward and uncomfortable, and I can see her trying to be careful of my bandages and the IV in my arm, but the moment she's pressed against my side, something settles in my chest that's been twisted up all night.
"Better?" she asks softly.
"Much." I tighten my arm around her, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. "But I want more."
"Damian—"
