Page 58 of Devoured

"Oh." She laughed and wiped the tears off her cheeks.

No one should look this beautiful when they cried. "You're so gorgeous."

She laughed. "I have a huge bandage on my head."

"You're still gorgeous."

She slowly reached up and traced the bruise around my eye with her index finger. "I love you."

I had no right to be loved by her. And her words haunted me.Does love always hurt this much?I was so tired of hurting her. And I was scared that saying it back to her meant she’d be doomed for the rest of her life. A life with me. I tried to push away the thought, but it clung to me. So I didn’t say it back.

And I wasn’t just scared of hurting her. I’d never truly given my heart to someone before. I didn’t like how out of control that made me feel. But I did love her. I’d told her as much in my letter to her. She knew it. I didn’t need to say it out loud. I loved her so much I physically ached when we were apart.I love you.I ran the tip of my nose down the length of hers.You know that I love you.

"I'm actually really tired now." She rolled over so that she was no longer facing me.

Fuck.She was going to keep pressing this, wasn’t she? "Hey." I leaned over and grabbed her chin in my hand. "What's wrong?" I asked, even though I already knew.

She sat up so that my hand fell from her skin. "Why won't you say it?"

"Say what?"

"I've told you multiple times that I love you. You never say it back. Why won't you say it?"

"I have said it." I wasn’t sure what I was so scared of really. This was what a relationship was. Feeling vulnerable. And when she was staring up at me with tears pooling in the corners of her eyes, it didn’t seem so scary to be vulnerable too. I could do this. It didn’t mean she’d be doomed. It didn’t mean she’d run away. What we had was real.

And I knew this was important. She’d told me once that her ex didn’t believe in labels. And she’d just told me she’d never been in love before. This was a big moment. For both of us. And I’d promised her I’d always be better than her shit ex. She deserved someone that would worship her and love her out loud. I took a deep breath. It was time to jump all in.

"No, you haven't."

I tried to hide my smile. "I haven't?"

"No."

I pushed the sheets off of us and straddled her, pinning her in place. "I could have sworn I said it."

"You haven't."

"My mistake." I kissed the freckles on her shoulder. "I love you." I was surprised at how easily the words fell from my lips. I kissed the curve of her neck. "I love you." I pulled down the neckline of her hospital gown and kissed her clavicle. "I love you." I tugged on the string behind her neck and pulled the gown down even more. "I love you," I said as I kissed her between her perky breasts. Once I started saying it, it was like I couldn’t stop.

The machine she was hooked up to that monitored her heart rate started beeping like crazy.

I laughed. I loved riling her up. I loved her. I hesitated at her stomach and lightly kissed the bruise on her stomach. "I love you." I pushed the fabric to the side and kissed her hip bone, where I’d bruised her before against my desk. "I love you."

She moaned.

I smiled against her skin. The heart rate monitor kept beeping faster every time my lips touched her skin. My breath lingered between her thighs. “I love you.” I pressed my lips against her clit and gently sucked.

She lifted her hips to meet my mouth.

But I was setting the pace tonight. I pushed her hips back down, spread her thighs wider, and licked her delicious pussy. The machine beeped even faster as I slowly swirled my tongue around her wetness. God, I’d missed the taste of her. I’d be perfectly content eating her out for the rest of the night. But I wanted to show her that my words were true. I looked up at her. "I love you. And I want to make love to you."

"Then do it."

I kept my eyes locked with hers as I sat up. I unbuttoned my jeans as I stared at her. She was so beautiful. And I wasn’t sure how I’d gotten this lucky. I didn’t deserve her. But I wanted to.

Penny reached out and unzipped my hoodie with her hand that wasn’t attached to the IV. She stared at my abs in the way that she used to. Like she was staring at a fucking god. And I was glad that I hadn’t had time to put on a shirt before grabbing a hoodie and running out the door. I wanted her to keep looking at me like this forever. Like I was her whole world.

I pushed my pants and boxers down. I needed her. Desperately. But this wasn’t about what I needed. I slid the rest of her hospital gown to the side and looked down at her naked body.Perfection.

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