Page 58 of Ruined
He knew what I wanted, and he gave it to me.
A happy sigh blew over my lips as soon as he covered my body with his and connected us in the most intimate way. When he began to move, I remember thinking that sex had never felt this good.
But we weren’t having sex.
This was something entirely different, something so much more than two people chasing a release. Every pump of his hips registered somewhere in my heart. My body felt alive, my soul free. His whispered affirmations against my skin breathing new life into a part of me that I didn’t even know existed.
No, this wasn’t sex. It was making love.
One more roll of his hips and I was lost in ecstasy, taking him right along with me. He dropped his head to my shoulder and breathed out a satisfied sigh, my heart felt so full I feared it might burst.
“Wow,” he declared on an exhale as he flopped to his back. Turning to his side, he rested his face in one hand while the other lazily ran up and down my arm.
I turned my head to face him, a huge smile stretched across my lips. “Yeah.” Lifting my hand, I pressed my palm against his jaw. The tenderness in his gaze as he took me in nearly crippled me. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: No one had ever looked at me the way Eli did.
“What runs through your mind when you look at me like that?” The question just slipped past my lips; I had no time to stop it.
He reached up and swiped my hair away from my face, then stooped to press a gentle kiss to my lips. “I can’t tell you that, sunshine. I’ll scare you.”
Swallowing hard, I insisted, “Tell me anyway.”
Eli rained down kisses all over my face; my mouth, my cheeks, the tip of my nose. He drew back and wrapped his arms around me, pulling me to him. “Not now, you’re not ready to hear it.” His breath was warm against the top of my head, his embrace tight.
In his arms I didn’t feel broken; I felt cherished. I didn’t even care how fast I was falling. How could I when it felt so right? The only thing I wanted was for him to never let me go.
“I have to confess, I’m a bit worried.” Eli picked up the remote and muted the TV. I couldn’t tell you what we were watching; my mind had been spinning out of control all damn day. “You seem…distant.”
Uncurling my legs from under me, I sat up straighter. I dared to look at the man beside me and saw the concern on his face. Guilt ate at me. I had no doubt that he thought this was about him…or maybe, more accurately, how insatiable we’d been.
We’d fallen asleep pretty soon after this morning’s exertions, but as soon as we woke up we were more than ready for round two and then later round three in the shower afterward. I didn’t think I would ever tire of the way this man made my body sing.
What did happen was my conscience weighing heavy on me. I needed to tell Eli the truth behind my spontaneous trip to Willow Creek; I just never found the right moment. And now he was thinking he’d done something wrong.
“I haven’t been completely honest with you.” His Adam’s apple bobbed up and down with the swallow he worked down. Afraid I’d lose my nerve, I started speaking again, “I messed up, Eli. You already know what my outlook on relationships and intimacy was, so it shouldn’t come as a surprise that I ended up taking someone home I met at a club.”
Those dark eyes of his narrowed while his jaw started ticking; still, he said nothing. I had no other choice than to forge on. “I won’t go into details, but I need you to know I said no. Not once but multiple times.”
Eli’s face went completely ashen right before murder flashed in his eyes. He was biting down on his teeth so hard I feared he might break them. “Did you go to the police?” He gritted out the words, his voice strained.
“I did, but—” I couldn’t stand to look at him, the shame was too much. Dropping my gaze to my hands in my lap, I softly said, “—the case was thrown out…I have a reputation and because everything was purely he said, she said, they believed him.”
“This is bullshit!” He roared as he jumped to his feet and started pacing. With every step he took, more curses spilled from his lips. I wasn’t certain whether he was angry with me or the situation.
Wetting my dry lips with my tongue, I opened my mouth again. “There’s more.” Eli stopped mid-step to methodically turn to face me. It wasn’t hard to tell he was fuming; his left eye was twitching slightly while his jaw was working overtime. “The guy who…assaulted me—” the words tasted bitter on my tongue. “—is responsible for my gallery burning down. Even though the charges against him have been dropped, he’s made it his mission to destroy me.”
More curses fell from his lips, all of them directed at John. Eli reached up and dragged his fingers through his hair, I noticed they were trembling. His gaze was bouncing from one place to the next, but not in a way that made me think he was avoiding me. It was more as if he was trying to work out something in his head.
I knew the instant it clicked into place for him. I could see it in his eyes. Two easy strides had him standing in front of me where he dropped to his haunches, his hands splayed on my thighs. “The text from the other night — it was him, wasn’t it?” All I could do was nod. “Can I see it?”
Shaking my head, I explained, “The messages disappear soon after I read them, I don’t know how he does it.” I sucked in a fortifying breath. “He’s been in my home, Eli. It’s the reason why I’m here in Willow Creek. I don’t feel safe in TC…” Swallowing hard, I finally gave voice to my biggest fear. “I should never have gotten involved with you. I’m afraid when John figures out where I am, he’ll hurt you or Molly. I would never be able to live with myself if—”
“Nothing’s going to happen, sunshine. You hear me? That shithead will eat lead before he even thinks about laying a damn finger on you again.” Fierce determination burned behind his dark irises. His hands cradled my face between his palms, his skin warm against mine. “I’ll protect you, Zoe. I’ll keep you safe.”
