Page 25 of Craved By You
??“I’m so sorry,” I choked out, surprised that he had shared that much and my eyes started to tear up. “How old were you?”
“I was eighteen.”
“I-I’m really-” He cut me off.
“My stepmother was abusive.” He got quiet. “I should have stepped in before it was too late, and I’ve never been able to forgive myself.”
I looked at the floor. Everything started to make sense now. Why he seemed even extra pissed when I shared my past relationship experiences with him. He wanted to protect me in the way that in his eyes, he had failed to protect her.
“I’m sure she wouldn’t want you to be so hard on yourself,” I tried to reassure him, not knowing if I was doing more harm than good.
Colt smiled and caressed my cheek. “No, she wouldn’t. That doesn’t make things any easier, though.”
“Do you want to talk about it some more?” I asked hesitantly, seeing a shift in his eyes that motioned to me that he was done with that conversation no sooner than it had already started.
“In time.” He grabbed my hand again. “Like I said, tonight, I just want to focus on you.”
Chapter 15
Colt
Icouldn’t believe she was here, standing before me, in my home. I never brought anyone here. Astrid wasn’t just anyone though. She was the reason my heart skipped beats and my soul no longer felt to be the darkest shade of black. I have fallen for her.
Once I finished playing Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata for her I turned around and she was staring at me like she had just seen a ghost. The moment I mentioned my mom’s passing she returned to me and I could tell that she had questions that I wasn’t quite ready to answer.
“Tonight, I just want to focus on you.” I tried to distract her, but I could tell that wasn’t going to work. “I promise, soon, I will tell you all about my mom…”
“But let me guess,” Astrid paused and grinned, “it’s getting late.”
I stood up and whisked her away in my arms back to the master bedroom. Aside from the living room, this was anothermajor selling point for me. The room itself was huge and I recently had some work done to make it feel more like a space for AstridandI.
The walls were painted the darkest black that existed. Being in the music industry I had several connections and one of them was able to hook me up with the guy who had created this fantastic shade. I knew Astrid would love it. The baseboards were lined with matte black tubing that had LED lights inside them and they could glow in any color that we could possibly want and at any brightness to help control the atmosphere and vibe.
I also had a custom-made Saint Andrews cross done in black and red to match the rest of the house and a matching kneeling bench. Throughout the room there were discreet chests and drawers that held a wide selection of toys that I had picked out for Astrid. I wasn’t sure what all she would enjoy, but I wanted to be sure that she had the opportunity to learn about all of them. The options were endless when it came to her.
My bed was another custom piece that I was quite proud of. It was tall, but not too tall. The four post frames sat on top of a cage that could be easily hidden away with the bed skirt. Each of the posts were strong and had been made to hold up to seven hundred pounds. I smirked at the thought of what she and I would be able to accomplish with that, especially with the o-rings that I also had installed.
It was a masterpiece.
“Wow, you really have done this before.” I could hear the disappointment in the tone of her voice and I found myself desperate to reassure her that she was the only one in this moment that I wanted to do any of this with.????Had I explored various lifestyles with other people previously? Of course I had,but this was different. She was different. and she deserved a place of her own that had never been shared with anyone else. “I’ve recently remodeled,” I said coyly.
The expression on her face was not reassuring.
“I did this for you.” I paused and waited for her reaction, but still… nothing. “I’m serious.”
Then there was a slight glimmer in her eye. “Why though?”
Damn, there was no making this woman happy was there? “You are special to me, you are the only one in the entire universe that I want to live this life with. I love you, Astrid.”
The look on Astrid’s face softened. She had gone from hesitation and mistrust to all smiles as she wrapped her arms around me in the tightest hug.
“Pinch me,” she said excitedly. A strange response to my professing my love to her, but I obliged. “Ow!”
“You said-” She cut me off.
“It isn’t a dream!” Astrid continued to celebrate. “Colt, I’ve longed to hear you say those words.”
I stood there, unsure of what to do with my hands in this quickly growing awkward moment, for me… Clearly not her.Does she love me, too?“Nope, not a dream, sunshine.” Or was I the one who had been sucked away into dreamland while all of this was going on?
