Page 51 of Hart of Redemption
I wanted to see her stripped bare, to run my hand over every curve and dip of her body, to taste every inch of her from head to toe. I craved the sound of her moans and longed to see the way she would writhe under my touch.
I should wine and dine her. I should start there, but that wasn’t me. I needed to feel her pressed against me, on top of me, smell her vanilla scent, and finally unleash that part of myself that had been locked away for far too long. The side of me that had a minuscule amount of love somewhere inside.
After locking my door and flicking on the bedside lamp, I said, “Please tell me that you want this too. No lies, and don’t say yes because I’m your boss.”
Sitting on the bed, she giggled, a sound that was a balm to my black soul. “I would never say yes because I work for you. You don’t have that much dominance over me.”
“And what do I have that dominates you?”
She started to take off her V-neck T-shirt.
I grasped her wrist. “Don’t.”
“I thought you wanted me naked?”
“Oh, babe. You don’t know how much. But I want to unwrap you like a Christmas gift that I never got. One that has the best present inside.” I knelt down in front of her, not sure if I could even say the words that were about to come out next. I never gave a crap about what others thought of me, but I was worried that she would think I was a loser.
“I’m scared, Joy, to be with you. I’ve never said that to anyone. I would rather burn myself than tell anyone how I feel. I didn’t even share my feelings with Savannah.”
She combed her fingers through my hair. “Tell me about her.”
Not the time to bring up Savannah, not when I wanted to devour Joy, but I needed her to understand me. I felt I had only one shot with her. I agreed with Denim that tomorrow was never promised, and with tensions of a potential war mounting, I might not be around to enjoy the things I’d seen only in my dreams.
I smiled, leaning into her touch. “Savannah was beautiful and carefree and had a smile that made my knees weak. First woman to have that effect on me until you.”
She searched my face. “That’s who you were visiting in Linwood Cemetery when we met?”
“I go out there every year around the time of her death.”
She cupped my face with a hand. “I’m sorry for your loss. I know how excruciating grief feels. I lost my mom and brother. But as much as we miss our loved ones, they would want to see us happy. Since I met you, you’re the opposite—sad, angry, tense.”
Oh, to tell her all my sins. She would definitely run if she knew what I did for a living besides running a nightclub, which was why one night with her was appropriate. Although I knew I wouldn’t be the same after tonight.
She brushed her lips over mine. “Duke, what do you want in life? What would it take to erase the sadness in your eyes?”
“Redemption, family, a beautiful wife, maybe kids.” Saying all that out loud to someone other than Vince or Brian felt freeing. My brothers didn’t even know that. “I’ve only said those words to two other people.”
She kissed me softly. “You can have those things.”
I couldn’t envision any of that in my future. “What I want right now is you.”
“Then what are you waiting for? Unwrap your Christmas present early.”
I quickly removed my shirt and carelessly threw it onto the nearby chair.
She removed her boots, watching me as I kicked off my shoes.
Then I helped her onto her feet and removed her T-shirt that had the Monarch emblem. When my gaze rounded on her black lace bra, I lost my damn breath.
I traced the curve of her jaw with my finger, down her neck to the swell of her breasts, my touch eliciting goose bumps along the way.
She held onto my waist, her body trembling, her breathing ramping up.
I moved her hair over her shoulder. “You’re stunning.”
Her hands skated up my bare chest. “Why are you being gentle? It goes against your hardcore exterior.”
I chuckled. “Are you complaining?”
