Page 86 of Caught in the Axe
A smarter woman might stop and reflect on this. Maybe pump the brakes and think through the potential consequences.
But I silenced my logical brain and instead went with my gut.
I didn’t know how much time we’d have together, but itdidn’t matter. I’d take as much as I could get, and I’d ensure that time started right now.
He answered the door wearing an old Boston Revs T-shirt and a pair of sweatpants. As if I needed another reason to do this.
“Lila? Are you okay?” Frowning in concern, he pushed his glasses up his nose.
I pushed past him, slammed the door behind me, and threw my coat on the couch. “I just needed to see you.”
Without hesitation, he opened his arms.
I walked right into them, letting his strength and warmth envelop me in a kind of comfort I’d never known. “I don’t want to fight it any longer,” I admitted. “This. Us. I want it. I want you.” I was tearing up. Instead of a smooth seductress, I was a blubbering idiot.
But there was no stopping the emotions bubbling up within me. Memories of the moments we’d shared, the way we’d each let ourselves be vulnerable, his gentle kindness and care, blended together, creating a tsunami of emotion, gratitude, and desire.
Owen pulled back but didn’t step away. He peered down at me and wiped away my tears with the pads of his thumbs. “You can have whatever you want. I’m all yours. For tonight, this year, or forever. I’m here if you want me.” Hitting me with a look as sincere as it was sexy, he leaned down and captured my mouth in a gentle kiss.
I clung to him, my hands twisting his shirt. “I can’t stay away. I can’t pretend anymore.”
He gently kissed my neck, pulling a gasp from my lungs, and pressed his bodyflush to mine.
His sweatpants hid nothing. The feel of his hard length against my belly ignited a flame inside me.
Desperate to feel his bare skin on mine, I pulled him toward the bedroom.
He followed willingly, though his lips never left my skin.
“I know we can never—”
He pinned me against the door, cutting me off. “Stop.” That demanding tone only fanned the desire heating my blood. “Be here with me. In this moment. We’ll worry about everything else later.”
I nodded mutely, captivated by the way he commanded the situation and the set of his jaw.
Despite his insistence, his control was unraveling, and that was even sexier.
“I want you.”
A shiver worked its way through me as his pupils blew out and a groan worked its way up his throat. Trembling, I snaked a hand down to the waistband of his sweats.
“Undone. No control. No perfectionism,” I begged. “Give me the real, raw Owen.”
He tilted my chin up and stared into my eyes, his fingers caressing the column of my throat. “I’ll give you everything.”
Chapter 29
Owen
This was my moment. She was here.
Every day since we’d left Boston had been torture. Keeping my hands to myself made me twitchy and angry.
What I felt for Lila was complicated and messy, sure, but the intensity couldn’t be denied.
I adored her. And I’d do anything to make her happy.
Correction. I’d do everything. Starting right now. These opportunities didn’t come around too often, so I’d do all I could to convince her that we could do this for real.
