“I’m just helping you think.”
“That’s not helping.”
It truly wasn’t. The lack of caress was more stimulating than the actual delivery. Expectation had her excruciatingly aware of what could be to the point he might as well have done it. “I want you,” she moaned.
“Good. I want you, too. Now, confess.”
There was no hope in it. She licked her lips and tasted him. She didn’t want to lose him.
“I’m waiting.”
He made it so hard. Closing her eyes, she counted to four and then blurted out, “I may never want to get married.”
She felt his shrug. “So, we’ll live in sin, just you, me and Rascal. Hell, I might even become notorious for a whole different type of book.”
She laughed, took another breath and then confessed, “The thought of children scares me.”
“We’ll work through it.”
She actually believed him.
He had her skirts up around her hips. Cooler air bathed her overheated skin. “I’m still more comfortable in my imaginary box.”
“I’ll make sure all serious conversations happen when we hug.”
The next spurt of laughter caught her by surprise. “How do you always make me laugh?”
“I’m a talented man.”
He was. “I’d love it if you’d move your fingers. I’d consider you very talented then.”
“Like this?”
“Oh yes.” Bliss poured through her. “Just like that.”
“I love your honesty in these moments.”
She slipped her fingers down the front of his pants. He filled her hand, thick and hard, pulsing with life. Her pussy clenched. “Only in these moments?”
His chuckle choked off to a groan. “Your honesty in others is still in question.”
As best she could, she stroked his cock. “You’re like a dog with a bone, Bellen.”
“And you’re trying to evade the issue.”
She sighed. “Is it working?”
“No.”
This was the hard one. The dream killer. “I don’t think I’m the type of person who can settle down in one spot for all time.”
His right eyebrow kicked up. “No?”
He didn’t believe her. “I’m serious, Luke. I’ve always been restless about what’s out there.” She waved her free hand awkwardly, encompassing the world. “I only had books before—”
“My books.” He said that with a great deal of satisfaction.
“Yes, yours, but now I’ve seen how it could be.”
“And you want it.”
She nodded and released him. Men were funny about their wives, but she couldn’t go back to the stifling reality of propriety. Placing her hand over his heart, she took comfort from the steady beat. “I’ve found I like the thrill of discovery.”
“So do I.”
She glared at him. “It’s partly your fault.”
His eyebrows rose. He had no right to cock an eyebrow at her or look so innocent. Especially when he was touching her like that. How could he look so innocent while touching her?
His grip switched to her inner thigh.
“So, I’m to blame for this love of adventure?”
He needn’t look so satisfied. “Yes.”
“So it’s up to me to come up with a solution?”
“It’s not fair for you to cause a problem and then just throw away the consequence.”
He squeezed her thigh. It was oddly exciting. “I see.”
She glared at him. “You need to fix it.”
“Of course.”
She dug her nails into his chest. “I realize this may be a problem. You’ve reached a point where you and the Hell’s Eight are settling down.” Oh dear heavens, now she was wrinkling his shirt. “I don’t know if I can do that, so…”
“Josie—”
She cut him off, smoothing out the wrinkles. “I know you have to earn money, and maybe…”
A finger over her mouth silenced the flow of words. “Josie?”
“What?”
“Shut up.”
She blinked.
“I am not settling down. I’m not going broke no matter what we choose to do. And in case you haven’t noticed, I’m agreeing with you.”
He was? “You are?”
His thigh eased between hers, spreading her further. “How many times do I have to tell you that I don’t say what I don’t mean?”
“Probably a lot more. It’s an odd concept.”
Kissing the side of her neck, he murmured, “I suppose you’ll need time to get used to it.”
“Yes.”
His thumb teased her clit in slow circles. “Like I’ll need time to get used to your wild side.”
Shivers of pleasure streaked upward and outward, peaking her breasts and stirring sensual memories. Arching up, she circled her hips in counterpoint to his thumb. He pinched and stroked. She bucked and moaned.
“I’m very interested in how wild you can get,” he rasped.
She made one last grab for logic. “But we can’t always be in bed.”
He chuckled. “Good.”
Throwing up her hands, she fell back against the wall. “What does that even mean?”
Slipping his hand behind her head, he cradled her skull in his hand. Everything about him intensified. His gaze met hers without flinching. All the emotion she could ever want was there in his expression, all the love she could ever crave was there in his eyes. “It means, Josie Kinder, that I see you. All of you. Your intelligence. Your sense of adventure. Your compassion. Your love. And that creativity that you think no one will approve of? I see that, too. And it excites me.”
Wrapping her arms around his neck, she smiled up at him. “And you never say what you don’t mean.”
“That’s right.”
With a tug, she pulled those fabulous lips of his within kissing distance. “And you love me.”
He didn’t hesitate. “Every lush inch. Inside and out.”
Catching his lower lip between her teeth she nipped, smiling at his groan. He pressed her closer. It wasn’t close enough. With a wiggle she demolished that last inch.
“And you don’t want me to change?”
“No.”
All the security she’d ever longed for was in that one word.
Everything. He was giving her everything without reservations. She wanted to give it back with the same eloquence and power. “I can be clumsy with words, and I know I often say what I don’t mean, but not this time. And not ever with you.”
His thumb teased her lower lip. “Good.”
Cupping his face in her hands, she whispered with all the emotion inside, “I love you, Luke. I want to be the fantasy you never get over. I want to take your picture every day. Not as a trophy but so I can forever keep the images of how happiness grows, because I promise you, I’m going to make you so happy.”
He lifted her up. It was natural for her legs to wrap around his thighs and her arms to tighten around his neck. His cock nudged into the well of her vagina.
“Loving me is enough.”
Even more natural to shake her head at such nonsense. “What did you not understand about my need for adventure? I don’t want enough. Enough isn’t good enough. Not for us. I want the whole picture, complete with flaws. I want the challenge of capturing all the nuances, of perfecting on them. I want the grand adventure that comes with building a lifetime with you. However we want that to be. I want you. I want us.” His grip on her thighs tightened. She looked up. He wasn’t smiling. Neither was she. Some things went too deep for smiles.
“I want it all, Luke Bellen.” She paused and found her happiness, letting it flow as she stroked his cheeks. “With you.”
Slowly, his smile came out, like sunshine bathing her in the warm glow of joy. Because he was happy. Very happy. She could see and feel it. And so was she. He lowered her slowly, filling her, spreading her wider, taking possession, going deeper, so deep she couldn’t
tell where she ended and he began. And there he paused, keeping them balanced on the edge of more. Perfect.
With a sigh, he leaned in. Inside her, his cock flexed. Sensation flared outward. Emotion rode sensation. Powerful and all-consuming. Energizing. He was close. So close only the big picture remained. And it was beautiful. His smile nudged her cheek. His words caressed her skin.
“Would you like to adventure with me, my darlin’? For the rest of your life?”
She didn’t have to think about it. She pulled him closer still.
“Yes.”
Most definitely yes.
*
ISBN-13: 9781488026096
Luke’s Cut
Copyright © 2017 by Sarah McCarty
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