Page 58 of Entangled By You
“I was just finishing up,” I manage, my voice tight. “The furniture’s all done, but I figured you’d still want to do some of the shopping yourself. My card’s saved on your accountnow. Order whatever else you want for her. Let me know if you need help with anything else.”
I force myself to look away before I drown in those ocean eyes. If I keep staring, I’ll break. They’ve always been my Achilles heel. One glance and I’m a sailor being called to the rocky shore.
“Oh… right, yeah. Okay, thanks?” Her voice tilts up at the end, hesitant, like even she doesn’t know what to do with the distance I’ve put between us.
That single, uncertain word nearly takes me out. If she would just say it—one simple word,stay—we’d both be free of this misery. But she doesn’t. So I drag in a breath, shoulders heaving, and turn toward the door. Each step feels heavier, as if leaving is a punishment etched into my skin.
I don’t know what this means for us. Maybe she just needs more time. Or maybe—God help me—perhaps we’re really too broken to stitch the rift closed. I can’t let myself believe that. I won’t. If I do, it’ll take root, and I’ll never claw it out.
“Pierce, wait!”
Her voice slices through the air, soft but urgent, and I freeze mid-step.
I turn, but I don’t move closer. Not yet. She could still change her mind. But then I see it—the fire lit behind her eyes, the same fire that I fell in love with ten years ago—and I know. She won’t take it back.
“Say it, Lexi.” My voice is rougher than I mean it to be, breaking on the edges of hope springing up in my chest.
Her throat bobs as she swallows, then a confident “Don’t go” is whispered from her supple pink lips.
“Close,” I murmur, taking one step toward her.
“I’m sorry.”
“Closer.” Another step, the space between us shrinking.
“You were right.”
I huff a low laugh, shaking my head. “I like the sound of that one, but try again.” My boot hits the hardwood, bringing me within reach of her again, close enough to feel the warmth radiating from her suntanned skin.
Her chin tips up, steady now, and her voice doesn’t waver when she says it. “I love you.”
The words don’t just hit me, they slice me wide open, skinning me to the bone, and rebuilding me in the same breath. There’s no doubt in them, no hesitation. Just an undeniable truth laid bare.
“There we go, Princess.” My voice rasps, too full of emotion to hold steady.
Her button nose scrunches in annoyance, and I lean in, pressing a kiss to the tip of it.
“I’ll always love you, Lexi.”
And for the first time in the longest week of my life, I believe we might actually make it. Relief courses through my system, and I shake the tension from my fingertips.
Holding her, for those few seconds, lit up my skin, but I want—no need, more.
My fingers wrap around the back of her neck, hauling those parted lips to mine. I can’t be gentle with her right now. I need her skin against my skin, her breathy moans in my ear.
Walking her backwards, she follows my lead. It doesn’t take much to line her up with the kitchen table. I inwardly sigh at the layers of clothing between us. It’s not much, with summer creeping up on us, but it’s still too much with the urgency to have her right now.
Dropping to my knees in front of her, she slips her ass on the edge of the table, gripping the lip with her hands tobalance and stare down at me. I’d happily get on my knees for this woman every day for the rest of our lives.
My fingers work diligently to unbuckle her sandals, throwing them aside. I continue my efforts, tracing the smooth skin of her freckled thighs to the denim edge of her shorts. Disappearing beneath the hem, I seek the warmth of her core, teasing the seam of her pussy over the soft cotton of her underwear. The fabric’s soaked. The smell of her arousal permeates the small space between us, and my cock thickens.
“Someone missed me,” I tease, rubbing over her clit one more time before pulling my fingers free.
Her hips lift off the table’s edge, seeking more attention, but over the clothes game is too much for my desperation to handle.
As I shove down her shorts and underwear, she takes the hint and pulls her T-shirt over her head, leaving her almost completely exposed to me.
“Bra off too, baby.” I give the command.
