Chapter 47
CHAPTER 47
CLARA
C andy raced off when she heard Diesel calling for her and my heart thumps wildly as Atom’s voice sounds through the bolted door.
“Clara, it’s me.”
My fingers shake as I pull the lock aside and as he fills the doorway, I note the weariness in his eyes.
“What happened?” I whisper as I usher him inside and he sinks onto the couch and to my surprise, grasps my hand and pulls me beside him.
“Emilio sent us a warning. Either we give you up, or one by one, he’ll waste one of our club members.”
I gasp in horror and my voice shakes. “The guy on the floor, is he–”
“Alive.” Atom reassures me.
“He’s the messenger apparently, and the next one won’t be so lucky.”
“Because of me.” My words falter and Atom pulls me against his chest and wraps his arm around my shoulder.
“Because of Emilio and what he believes is his right. None of this is your fault, Clara. It never was.”
I pull up and gaze into his eyes with a frown. “I have only brought you pain, Atom. It’s happening again and just like the last time, I must choose the wrong path to keep you on the right one.”
“You make shit decisions, darlin’.”
To my surprise, he chuckles and shakes his head.
“You should know by now that the only decision and always was, is to choose us.”
“Us?” I love how that sounds, and he twists my face to his and whispers huskily, “You are mine and always were. It all goes to shit when you try to fight against that. This time I’ll be the one making the decisions. All the choices in fact and I’m saying we marry tomorrow and then watch me deal with the problems my way, as you should have done ten fucking years ago.”
“Atom.” I have no other words and as I gaze into his eyes, I am lost forever.
“It’s been a long time, darlin’,” he whispers as his fingers stroke my increasingly heated skin.
“Too long.” I nod, my heart fluttering as I stare into his lust-filled eyes.
“You know we are inevitable.” He reminds me and I nod, happy for the first time in ten long years.
“We always were.” I whisper and as our lips touch, it’s a homecoming I really never expected to experience.
Tentatively, we explore the past, his rough hand cupping my face as he kisses me with a softness that belies his appearance.
I savor every second of something I have missed so badly and my heart fills as he breathes new life into the deflated one that died so long ago.
Somewhere, deep inside, the spark glows and moves through my body, lighting every corner of the darkest soul that has existed in the shadows for so long.
I am brimming with hope and destiny and as I kiss him back, I offer him my world.
His thumb rubs against my cheek as he deepens the kiss and I melt into his arms, desperate for more – craving him – and as he gently pulls away, he whispers, “This is our wedding night, Clara. This is when I declare my life to you.”
He jerks his head toward my bedroom.
“This has been a long time coming.”
A huge smile lights my face as I take his hand and he leads me into the small room, carefully locking the door behind him before shrugging off his shirt.
I stare with wide eyes at the chest I remember, although more ink and muscles cover it than before. He holds my attention as he drops his jeans and kicks off his boots, his pants following, until he stands before me like a warrior, hard for me.
Then again, he always was.
Holding his gaze, I lift off my top and pull down my pants unashamedly, giving him permission to access every wanting part of me. He is right. We were always meant to be together, and it’s futile to try to escape that.
His heated gaze lingers on my skin, bringing it to life with the promise in his eyes.
Somehow, we cross the short distance between us. Small steps to close the gap but giant ones in our future.
His rough inked hand closes around my head and he pulls me gently toward him, his lips finding mine as if they are in a homing sequence.
He tastes of sin and depravity mixed with love and new beginnings, and I never appreciated the power of his kiss more than now.
The years melt away as we explore familiar territory. Resurfacing memories remind me how good we were together.
My entire body is aching for him and as he pulls me even closer, my breasts graze his chest and my hand presses against the taut skin, causing a shiver of desire to ripple through my soul.
It’s as if I’m drowning as I offer myself completely to the man I have always loved, and when his hand finds mine and laces our fingers together, he pulls back and says huskily, “Last chance to back out, darlin’.”
“Same to you.” I stare at him with a small smile and as his eyes darken and deepen with lust, I can’t tear my gaze away from him as I dive inside his soul and remember how much I love it here.
He leans down and brushes his lips against my neck and then whispers in my ear, “We always knew this was a dangerous love, but as it turned out, the only danger was losing you.”
I place my finger on his lips and smile. “The thing about things you lose, Atom, is that one day they will be found and when that happens, you guard them carefully, realizing their importance to you. I will guard us with my life, which I dedicate to you right here. I love you, Atom and I always will, so push the past behind us. We’ve wasted too long already.”
He takes me literally and eases me gently onto the bed, carefully joining me, his hand cupping my ass and drawing me up hard against him. His kisses are deep and unapologetically rough, and I kiss him back with an appetite I haven’t felt since we were young.
His cock is rigid against my pussy and I shiver as I anticipate the pleasure it creates. I missed this so much – him so much, and I have an insatiable need for him to be inside me. He has other ideas and kisses a trail down my heated skin, each point of contact a reminder of how much I adore this man. He brings my body to life as I bloom under his attention and when he reaches my clit, my mind explodes with euphoria.
He worships me as if I’m his goddess and he is definitely my God and I am delirious with sensation as I climb a mountain I never thought I’d find again, the journey familiar and all the sweeter for it as I appreciate how much I missed coming here.
I am so close to falling off a cliff and then he is there, joining me, his hard cock thrusting into my wet heat, causing me to cry, “Oh God!”
“Not God, darlin’, there’s only one name on your lips in our forever, so scream it to the heavens and remind them who’s calling.”
“Atom!”
I call out his name, the only one I have ever held in my heart and as he pushes in deeper, I could weep tears of joy. He is home. I am home and it’s been a long time coming. What happened in the past no longer counts because our future together is all that matters now.