Trusting Tanner (The Collins Brothers)

by Lexi Lawton

  “I win”—she began to unzip his jeans—“and I get to be your girlfriend. Exclusively.”

  “Done. And if I win?”

  She trailed her hands over the exposed skin of his chest. He shuddered and moved closer, not wanting her to ever stop touching him. “If you win, you get to be my boyfriend. Exclusively.”

  “Done.” He dipped his head the rest of the way and captured her lips in what he wanted to be a long, passionate kiss. But instead, his tongue plunged hard and deep between her parted lips as he took his fill of her, savoring the sweet taste of her kiss. With the way she ran her fingers over his chest and across his abs…he couldn’t stand it a moment longer, and he stripped naked as fast as possible before removing her panties. He lifted her leg, holding her knee to his waist.

  “Is this okay?” Please say yes. He’d crossed the point of no return the moment he’d walked into the room with her.

  “Yes.”

  He kissed her hard on the mouth as he entered her. She cried out and dug her fingernails into his back. It might’ve hurt if he wasn’t so consumed with how wet and hot she was, how tightly her inner walls gripped his cock, how good her body felt against his. It amazed him how the turmoil he’d felt only an hour ago disappeared the moment he was inside her.

  “Tanner,” she whimpered.

  “Fuck, Jules.” He adjusted his footing and lifted her other leg so they were both wrapped around him. “You have no idea how badly I want you.”

  She gasped when he thrust into her, and he was lost to his desire. There was nothing soft about this, even though that had been his intention, to make love to her. He was operating on pure need, adrenaline, fear. He needed her, this, more than he needed his next breath. It was all-consuming. He hadn’t had sex since the last time he’d been with her, and he wasn’t going to withhold anything; he was going to give her everything he had, everything he was.

  He grabbed her ass and lifted her away from the door, careful not to lose a moment of contact as he carried her the short distance to the bed, their mouths never once separating. He sat, bringing her down on his lap, and moaned, dragging his hands up her back, his fingers curling over her shoulders. “God, I’ve missed you.”

  “You’ve already said that.” She nipped at his bottom lip.

  “It’s worth repeating.”

  “Yeah?”

  “Definitely.” Everything about her was amazing, especially her ability to forgive him. He vowed never to hurt her again.

  She pushed him onto his back and pinned his hands above his head, lacing their fingers. Then she went for his neck, kissing and nipping at it, while she rode him. Hard. Fast. Her movements as frenzied as he felt. Her lips moved from his neck to his ear, her mouth closing around his earlobe, tugging gently.

  Tremors wracked his body. “Juliana,” he gasped. Christ, at this rate he was going to come already, and he couldn’t. Not yet. Not when it had been far too long since he’d had her like this. He freed his hands, wrapped his arms around her, and rolled them over so she was now pinned beneath him. “Baby, you need to slow down.”

  “Sorry.” She trailed her fingers down his back. “I missed you so much, and you feel so good.”

  He rested his forehead to hers and closed his eyes, fighting with everything he had left not to cry. She was going to destroy him even more than he already was. He awkwardly moved her to the center of the bed, and then pushed into her again. He swore he went cross-eyed, it felt so good. “I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you.” He began to move inside her, much slower than before, and he kissed her the same way.

  He was a fool to think he could ever live without her. They belonged exactly where they were this moment: together. He knew that right down to the very darkest corners of his soul, just like he knew he’d give everything he had to make sure nothing would ever come between them again.

  She moaned and arched into him. He loved when she did that, when she let him know she liked what he was doing. It was genuine and pure, like her. “Tanner… Please…”

  Her walls tightened painfully around him, and he knew she was close to coming. Putting his weight on his arms, he slammed into her, repeatedly, making her writhe and moan. The sound was heavenly, something he’d hear in his dreams for as long as he lived. He swallowed her cries with a kiss, muffling them so no one would hear, and smoothed the hair back from her face.

  She met him thrust for thrust. Juliana’s orgasm crashed around him with such force his arms gave out, and he collapsed on top of her. He put his arms around her back and held her tight as he gave himself over to her completely. His muscles tensed then jerked when he came inside her. He’d forgotten how fantastic it felt, how it completed him in a way nothing else could.

  He buried his face in her hair, fighting to catch his breath. “I. Love. You.” He punctuated each word with a kiss to her neck until he found her lips once more.

  Juliana gently scraped her fingernails along his nape, and he shivered. “I love you,” she whispered.

  He rested his forehead to hers and fought to catch his breath. “I’ve missed you so much.” He kissed her lips, each of her cheeks, her nose, and chin. “And I am so, so sorry for everything.”

  She made a noise that sounded an awful lot like a groan. “Are you really apologizing to me right now?” She shifted her head to the side, forcing him to look at her. “Tanner, I’m the one who owes you an apology. You did nothing wrong. You’re a victim in this, more so than I am.”

  Easing out of her, he rolled onto his back, cradling her to his side. When she put her head on his chest and her arm across his stomach, he sighed in contentment. “The evidence against me was overwhelming. Hell, even I was starting to think I’d done it.” He dragged a hand through his hair and moved closer to her. How many times had he dreamed of this moment, fantasized about the day he would be with her again? “How about we try to forget about the past and focus on us and our future?”

  “That’s the best idea you’ve ever had.” She smiled. An honest-to-goodness smile that melted everything inside him.

  He rested his cheek on top of her head and closed his eyes.

  “Will your parents completely flip out if I spend the night in here with you?”

  He groaned. “I don’t know. Probably. Although I really don’t care. I’ll take whatever punishment they want to give me, because you are not going anywhere ever again.”

  And he couldn’t wait to walk downstairs tomorrow morning, holding her hand, and introduce her as his girlfriend. They fell silent. He caressed her arm, loving how her skin erupted in goose bumps at his touch.

  She lazily traced circles around his nipple, her breath warm on his skin. “This is the best Christmas ever.”

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  Acknowledgments

  To my wonderful agent, Dawn Dowdle—thank you for believing in me. You wouldn’t give up even when I was on the verge of doing just that. Here’s to a long, lucrative career full of friendship, books, and sales!

  To my fabulous, amazing editor, Karen Grove—you are a godsend! I can’t begin to express how grateful I am to you for loving Tanner and Jules as much as I do. You’ve pushed me to become a better writer and have helped me make this book shine in a way I never thought possible. (I have a serious girl crush on you!)

  To Liz Pelletier and the entire Entangled Publishing team—thank you for taking a chance on me. I promise you won’t regret it.

  A special thanks to my husband and kids for putting up with my late-night writing binges, my crazy deadlines, and for bringing me back down to earth when I get lost in my mind, which happens way too often.

  Kat Daemon, Jody Holford, Nona Raines, and every other beta reader who took the time to give me the tough love I needed to get this book in shape: THANK YOU!

  About the Author

  Born and raised in Central New York, Lexi L
awton is an only child who found companionship in books. When she was old enough to put pen to paper, she began writing her own stories of love, suspense, and heartbreak. She hasn’t stopped since. Represented by Dawn Dowdle of Blue Ridge Literary Agency, Lexi has her butt in the chair and her fingers on the keyboard, writing several new stories.

  Today, Lexi lives in Michigan with her husband, four kids, three pit bulls, and two cats. When she’s not writing, she enjoys going to the gym, spending time with her family and friends, and obsessively listening to anything by Luke Bryan.

  You can find Lexi via her website (www.lexilawton.com), Facebook (www.facebook.com/LexiLawtonAuthor), and Twitter (www.twitter.com/Lexi_Lawton). For up-to-date information about Lexi’s upcoming projects and exclusive sneak peeks, sign up for her newsletter.

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