Page 32 of Unburdening His Heart

I don’t know why I’m shocked that strait laced Andrew Shaw has a breathtakingly beautiful tattoo covering his entire back. It’s a skull at the base of his spine, a soulful owl with piercing, glowing eyes at the top of it. It’s wings unfurled around the skull. It’s gorgeous artwork, and also not something I could picture him picking.

It’s deep, it’s alluring, but it’s also somehow sad. I’m unsure if I’ve ever seen anything like it, and I find that I like it a lot. He sits on the bed, facing away from me so I can take it all in. There are so many details it’s hard to get my eyes to focus on one spot.

I can’t believe I didn’t notice it the first time we slept together. I can’t help but kick myself for missing such a big part of him. However, in my defense, my mind and eyes were focused elsewhere that night.

I don’t have any tattoos, but I like them. I’m drawn to them, especially on men, but I haven’t taken the plunge to get one. As my eyes and hands rake over Andrew’s back, all I can think is why the hell not? My fingers trace the owl’s delicate wings. He shivers in my fingertips' wake.

“Well, are you going to ask your questions?” His tone is a little tense, his back rigid.

“I…” I hesitate, unsure why he suddenly acts so closed off and strange.

He inhales deeply, releasing it in one long, heavy sigh. He turns to face me, a stricken expression on his face.

My confusion must be written all over my face. He only shakes his head before leaning forward to place a gentle kiss on my lips. “I just don’t like to talk about it. Nobody even knows I have it.”

“Why? It’s beautiful. You should be showing it off.”

He seems to weigh his words before continuing. “Because I got it during a pretty hard time in my life. I wasn’t in a good place. I wanted all the pain and guilt to stop. In some ways, it saved me. In others, it’s only a reminder of what I’ve done wrong. What I could have done better.”

“Andrew…” The singular word comes out as a hushed, pained whisper.

He shakes his head. “It’s better now. I promise. It still lives inside me, though. I have to fight it every day. Some days, the pressure is too great. The need to release it all is overwhelming…but…” He trails off, closing his mouth and shaking his head again.

“But what?” I press.

“But…somehow…I don’t feel it all when I’m with you. Everything is lighter, brighter, and so damn clear.”

My mouth closes, then opens again as tears threaten to well and spill. This handsome, broken man before me is giving me a piece of him. A small glimpse into his world and his heart. All I want to do is cradle it, keep it safe, and make it mine forever.

There are no words I can say in this moment that would adequately convey how I feel. The sex was out of this world, but him showing me a piece of him no one else has ever seen or had breaks my heart and stitches it back together again in one fell swoop.

It’s all-consuming. My body burns with it. My heart is practically pounding out of my chest. So, I say nothing. My words aren’t enough, no matter how sweet and well-meaning. My eyes try to convey that to him, saying, “I hear you. I understand you.” His soften in return, never breaking contact with mine.

We fall back on the bed and lie on our sides, facing each other. I’m a couple of feet away from him, my hands cradled together under my face. His arm is bent, his face resting on his bicep.

His hand moves so his fingertips skate along the top of my hip before sliding down. They tease my pussy before he hooks his forearm between my legs, the crook of his elbow hitting right at my opening as he pulls me to him.

It’s the hottest, most erotic thing I think I’ve ever experienced. He slings my leg over his hip, sighing when my chest touches his. A soft, sweet smile plays on his lips before he gives me a little peck on the lips.

“Night, Charlotte.” His eyes close as he burrows closer.

“Night, Andrew.”

Long after he falls asleep, I continue to stare at his chiseled jawline, straight nose, and the longest eyelashes I’ve ever seen. Quite frankly, I’m jealous of them.

When darkness finally pulls me under, I have the best night’s sleep I’ve had since that fateful night in Sacramento. When I was wrapped in his arms, just like this.

The alarm blares and wakes me from a deep sleep. Andrew’s scent and arms envelop me.

“It’s too early. Turn that annoying thing off,” he grumbles as he snuggles in closer. His leg is hooked around the back of mine, his hand loosely covering my bare ass.

I place my lips to his chest, the light dusting of hair there tickling my nose and lips. I love it. It’s just enough to run the tips of my fingers through.

“I get up this early every morning.”

“Whyyyy?” he playfully groans.

I lean up to give him a quick peck on the lips, and he deepens it before letting me go. I’m unsure where we stand this morning after he opened up to me last night. His confessions were under the cover of darkness and after mind-blowing sex. Who the hell knows where his head was last night in comparison to this morning.

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