Page 182 of Wild Then Wed
“Yeah.” I glance up at her again. She hasn’t moved. Still right there, steady and soft and mine. Even if just for tonight. “Sorry I woke you.”
“It’s okay.” She brushes my hair back from my forehead, her fingers lingering like she’s trying to smooth away whatever’s still stuck there—whatever the nightmare hasn’t let go of yet.
I just look at her.
At the curve of her mouth, still a little swollen. There’s a hint of pink to her cheeks, and her lips part just slightly as her gaze drops to my bare chest, then back up again.
“Tell me something good,” she says, her eyes meeting mine.
I let out a shaky breath. It’s not quite a laugh, but it’s close. “That’s my line.”
“I know. But I wanna hear it from you.”
Her knees are tucked under her, her arms loose at her sides, the hem of my shirt falling somewhere around mid-thigh. She’s just…here. In my bed. In my shirt. In my life.
Something good.
“You’re here,” I say, reaching for the ends of her hair, curling a few strands around my finger.
Her face softens.
“You’re here, and it’s three in the morning, and I’m not okay—but I’m better with you next to me. So that makes you my good thing, Wren.”
She doesn’t say anything at first. Her eyes are wide and searching, her bottom lip pulled between her teeth like she’s weighing the risk of whatever she’s about to do next.
And then she leans forward, just slightly, and her fingers find my jaw. Gentle. Certain. Her thumb brushes the edge of my cheekbone, and then her mouth is on mine.
It’s soft, but sure. Her lips are warm and plush and still taste a little like toothpaste, and something in me eases that I didn’t even realize was wound tight.
She pulls back, just enough to whisper, “You’re my good thing, too.”
And then she kisses me again—just once, quick and quiet—and starts crawling across the bed like she means to leave me here with that.
Absolutely not.
I reach out and hook an arm around her waist before she can get more than a few inches away, pulling her back to me.
She lets out a quiet yelp of surprise, which sends Hank lurching upright at the foot of the bed with a startled snort before flopping back down. I tug her into my chest. “Stay with me. Right here.”
She turns slightly to look at me. “Are you sure?”
I nod, already tugging her closer. “Yeah. I’m sure.”
She settles beside me, her back pressed to my chest, her hair spilling across the pillow and into my face. It smells like the conditioner we used earlier and I bury my nose in it for a second before pressing a kiss to the nape of her neck. She lets out a content hum as her hips shift back, barely a graze against me—but it’s enough to make my body respond before my brain can. I suck in a breath, my hand tightening at her waist.
The sex earlier—fuck. It had ruined me completely. I can’t remember the last time I had sex that good. Hell, I don’t know if I’ve everfeltthat good in my life.
And it wasn’t just about how she felt. It was the fact that she let meseeher. Let me have her. And I know Wren—she doesn’t hand herself over like that. Not unless she means it. She’s guarded for a reason, and I’ve never asked why, never pushed. But she still gave me something I don’t think she gives easily to just anyone.
That trust? It means everything to me. And I’m not about to fuck it up.
She shifts beside me, her voice barely above a whisper. “We don’t have to remember any of this after tonight if you don’t want to.”
My fingers pause where they’ve been trailing the curve of her waist. “What do you mean?”
She looks up at me then. “I just mean…tonight was a lot. And I wouldn’t blame you if you wanted to just forget it, you know? Go back to how things were.”
I stare at her. I don’t say anything at first because I can’t. Her words hit me in the chest, sharp and all wrong. Like she’s already halfway out the door, even while lying in my arms.
