Page 66 of Hostile Love
God, I love kissing him.
“There’s something else.” I wrench my lips away. “Something you need to know?—”
He’s clearly not in the mood to listen when he hunts out my lips again, his kisses full of possessive hunger.
“Matheus.” The urgency inside of him spills into me, making my voice stronger.
I need him too. It claws inside me like a beast craving his attention. But things between us will always be complicated and this needs to be said.
“Please…talk…first.” I pant.
“Fuck.” He breaks away, breathing heavily next to my ear. “You’ve got sixty seconds.”
“I have to be completely honest, Matheus. Hear me out, okay?”
He stares at me and frowns. “Okay.”
I let my arms fall away and gaze up at him, besotted.
“Blanco expects you to honor the agreement even when he knows I refused to marry you. He doesn’t care and said if we don’t end up as husband and wife, every asshole with a gun would be after you. There wouldn’t be anywhere for you to hide. You’d be hunted for a million-dollar cash reward.”
His forehead creases as he listens, and when his jaw ticks, I get the feeling he’s about to challenge my visit.
Let’s face it, I would if I were in his position.
“I need you to understand,” I explain in a rush. “Believe me when I tell you that I don’t give a fuck about the contract anymore or what happened in my past. I’m over it––it's time to move on. I’m right here, Mat––ready to be your wife. To announce our engagement. I’m yours, and Blanco’s threats have nothing to do with it. They only made me want this even more.”
A soft sigh escapes him as he rakes wet strands back off his brow.
“We’re not engaged, Dani.”
My brows snap together. “The second you signed that stupid contract, we were engaged. You know th?—”
“I never asked you to marry me.” He cuts me off. “I signed a piece of paper in the heat of the moment, thinking it was the right thing to do at the time. I can see now, it wasn’t.”
My heart withers. “But you said––”
“Some things deserve more thought, and I’m starting to rethink everything.”
“What do you mean?”
“What if Elias pushed me into law because the universe was showing me an alternative path?” He shrugs. “I don’t know…I’m still trying to figure my shit out. Growing up, I just wanted to be included, you know? To feel like I belonged next to my brothers. But when I look back, they’re in every memory I have. I always stood next to them…just not in the family business. And to be honest, I don’t know if I even want to be part of that.”
“Well, while you’re deciding if you want to marry me or not, Blanco expects a wedding…our wedding.”
“I don’t give a fuck what Blanco expects.” He scowls. “The timing isn’t right. We both know it.”
“Timing?” I scowl. “Sounds like you’ve got cold feet.”
“You’re the one who turned me down, Dani.”
“Look,” I say, thoughtful. “I’ll be yours whether there's a ring on my finger or not. Either way, I’m all in.”
His broad shoulders bounce as he sighs.
“And when I decide the time is right to marry the woman I’m madly in love with, I’ll ask her…in my own time and in my own way.” He thumbs my jaw. “And if you say no a second time, I’ll have to consider other more persuasive measures.”
“Oh, yeah?” I whisper, helplessly grinning. “You know I fight back, right?”
