Page 65 of You Found Me in the Dark
I gently knocked on her open door, and her eyes glanced my way, and she shot up, sitting on the bed. She froze when she saw me—eyes wide, mouth parted in surprise. She was barefoot, wearing an oversized Snoopy crewneck, and her hair twisted up like she’d thrown it out of the way hours ago. She looked like she’d been curled up trying to hide from the weight of the day. And now she looked like she was bracing for impact.
“Reed,” she breathed. Her voice was barely there. “What are you doing here?”
“I talked to Cam,” I said, keeping my voice low. Gentle. “He’s gone for a drive.”
Her arms crossed tightly over her stomach, like she was holding herself together.
“I told him everything,” I added. “I told him… I am in love with you. That I’m not walking away.”
Her eyes shimmered like she might cry. “You—what?”
I took a step closer. “I love you, Wren.”
She didn’t say anything. She just launched out of her bed toward me.
Her hands hit my chest, fingers twisting into my shirt, andthen she kissed me—desperate, deep, like she’d been drowning and I was the first breath she’d had in hours. My arms went around her instantly, pulling her in, grounding her. Her body pressed flush to mine, warm and trembling.
I kissed her back just as fiercely, holding her like I was afraid letting go would undo us both. She pulled back just enough to rest her forehead against mine, her breath shaky.
“I didn’t know if you’d come back,” she whispered.
“I couldn’t stay away,” I said. “Not from you.”
39
WREN
Ipulled back from him, heart racing so fast I could feel it in my fingertips. His eyes were still on me, dark and steady, like he was anchoring me to the ground with nothing but his stare. I moved around him slowly and shut the door behind him, hand trembling as it met the lock.
Click.
The moment the sound echoed through the quiet house, Reed was on me.
He pushed me gently but firmly against the door, his mouth finding mine again in a kiss that stole the air from my lungs. His hands gripped my hips, then skimmed up my sides, rough palms trailing over the soft fabric of the sweatshirt I’d thrown on earlier.
“Wren,” he murmured against my lips, like saying my name helped him believe I was really here.
My hands slid up his chest, curling in the collar of his T-shirt as his fingers found the hem of my sweater and slipped beneath it.
He paused, pulling back just enoughto glance down.
And that’s when he realized.
His fingers stilled against my skin, and his eyes flicked up to mine—sharp, hot, and surprised.
“You’re not wearing anything underneath this?” His voice was rough around the edges.
My face flushed instantly. I bit my lip, heat crawling from my cheeks down my neck. “Didn’t think I’d be… seeing anyone.”
His gaze darkened, jaw tightening in a way that made my knees feel weak.
“Fucking hell, Wren.”
He pulled the sweater up slowly, like unwrapping something precious, and when it finally cleared over my head, he just stood there taking me in.
His hands stayed on my hips, fingers pressing into the bruises he left on my skin last night. Then, without a word, he bent and kissed the center of my chest, right between my breasts, before lifting me in his arms like I weighed nothing.
I gasped, instinctively wrapping my arms around his neck, and he carried me across the room to my bed. He gave my ass a hard squeeze before laying me down onto the mattress. His mouth returned to mine the second my back hit the sheets.
