Page 161 of Legacy
I round the bed and slip under the covers, turning away from him immediately, pulling the blanket tight around my shoulders, holding my breath like it will keep me from being noticed.
His scent hits me instantly, warm, winding around me, pressing into every part of me I’ve tried to keep him out of.
“I couldn’t sleep.”
The words fall from my lips, quiet and raw, cracking at the edges.
Silence.
It stretches, long enough that it feels like it might swallow me whole, like it might force me to crawl out of my own skin.
Then the mattress shifts.
His breath warms the back of my neck, slow and unsteady.
A hand curls around my waist, hesitant for half a second before pulling me back, firm and certain, until I’m pressed against him. His skin is hot, his chest solid against my spine, his heartbeat steady, too steady, like it’s trying to replace mine.
His breath ghosts by my ear, warm and trembling.
“You’re not alone.”
His voice is low, rough, gentle in a way that makes my eyes sting.
The same words.
The same promise.
Five years later.
And—
I let him.
I let the warmth seep into the cold spaces, let the tether pull tight around my ribs, let the weight of him settle into the hollow places I’ve carried for too long.
Just for tonight,I whisper in my mind as his nose brushes the curve of my neck, as his breath hitches against my skin.
Only tonight.
I don’t sleep.
I can’t.
Not when he’s this close.
Not when every inhale tastes like him, when every exhale is a prayer I’ll pretend I never spoke.
I lie there, wrapped in the heat of him, the scent of him, the steady, aching thrum of his heart against my back, and let myself relax.
Just for tonight.
Only tonight.
Finally, I sleep.
Chapter 29
Angelo
