Chapter 11
She woke slowly, stretching languidly and with her eyes still closed. She noted the ache between her thighs and the soreness of her nipples. Her husband had spent the entire night turning her into a melting mass of desperate desire throughout the night.
And she was feeling every bit of it. Her eyes flickered open to the sunlight streaming through the curtains. They really should get to the point of having people over to redesign the master suite. Monday, she decided. It was no sense skipping back and forth.
Her suite had her clothes still hanging in that closet. And the bed in her room was a hell of a lot bigger. Not that they needed a lot of space. They slept in each other's arms anyway.
The thought of that made her realize that he was not next to her. In the kitchen, making coffee. The man could do little else, but he made excellent coffee.
"You're awake." His deep voice had her jolting all the way conscious. Dragging herself up, she noticed he was dressed. The jogging pants and ash gray sweater, making him look dangerous and lethal.
His hair was still damp from the shower. She wondered fleetingly why he hadn't waited on her so they could take one together. It was then she noticed the frown on his brow. And that he was standing a few inches from the bed.
"I am. What's going on?"
"I've been waiting for you to open your eyes."
"And now they're open. What's going on?" She repeated.
"I know what you think of me."
She sent him a puzzled look. "Okay."
"You cannot deny it. I've heard it with my own mouth. You think I'm shallow, selfish and entitled."
"I--"
"No." He held up a hand. "You've told me so yourself. You also said I'm a slut. Those were your words, are you denying them?"
"No. I--"
"I'm not finished!" He snapped, causing her to lift her brows.
"I will have my say and would like you to be quiet."
The only reason she accommodated his order was because he looked like someone was torturing him. She nodded.
"I might have been that person back then. I'm not going to insult both of us by denying it. I like women and they like me back. I saw no reason not to take what they so freely offered. I was single and disengaged. And in the past I never believed in settling down."
She watched as he paced to the mantle and then back again, hands jammed into the pockets of his jogger. "I was never worthless, and I respect people's feelings." He glanced over at her and felt the emotions coursing through him.
He had been awake for hours, staring up at the ceiling before easing away from her to go and take a shower. "I want to know what you think of me now."
Her brows lifted. "I'm allowed to speak?"
"Yes, dammit." Lifting a hand, he dragged it through his already tousled hair. "I need to know if you still think I'm that person."
"No, I don't."
He stared at her with molten eyes. "Do you mean that?"
Stifling an impatient sigh, she dragged the sheets over her and stretched her legs out.
"I never say anything I don't mean."
"Good. Okay." He started pacing again.
"What's going on?"
He whirled to her, eyes hot. "I'm in love with you. That's what's going on. I've fallen head over heels, all the way gone over you." He said it in an accusatory tone that sent her reeling even further. "I never asked for this. Never asked for you."
His anger mounted as he started pacing again. "And now, Jesus! I cannot see my life without you in it. So, you're just going to have to deal with it. I need coffee."
Her mouth fell open when he simply strode from the room and slammed the door shut behind him.
She sat there in stunned silence, unsure whether to laugh, cry, or run after him. For a long moment, she stared at the closed door, feeling the echoes of his confession reverberate through the room. The vulnerability in his words lingered, unraveling the walls she had built around her heart.
Finally, she drew in a shaky breath and let herself smile, just a little, as she realized her world had shifted in ways she never expected.
She felt the hope and love tangled inside her, galvanizing her into action. The burst of energy pushed her off the bed and into the bathroom where she fondly noticed that he had left his shaving paraphernalia all over the counter. The man was a slob, she mused as she set about putting them away.
She stopped in the middle of the clean up and stared at herself in the double mirrors. She was a wife, doing wifely things and did not feel as if she was being stripped of her independence. She loved it.
She loved him and the damn man had stalked from the room without waiting to hear her say the words.
Shaking her head, she finished cleaning up and hopped into the shower. She was going to find him and shove the words down his bloody throat.
*****
He had two cups of coffee under his belt and was contemplating a third, with a dash of whiskey.
He had not meant to say it to her yet and it had certainly not been the most romantic declaration, but anger and fear had consumed him while he laid there staring at the ceiling in the early hours.
And like thorns, her words in the past had come back to haunt him.
So, he had jumped the bloody gun and blurted out his love for her. Well, he shrugged mentally as he contemplated the bleakness of the Sunday morning, the deed was done. He had never felt this way before.
He had thought he was in love with Carly, but what he felt for her was a shadow compared to what he was feeling now. The emotions were so sharp, so keen, they felt like knives slicing through his body.
He did not have to turn around to know she was there. She had brought with her the fresh raspberries scent of her bath. His shoulders stiffened as he continued to stare out the window.
"I could smell the brew all the way upstairs."
She walked into the room and instead of veering off to get coffee, she came towards him. Forcing himself not to turn around, he closed his eyes as she came up behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist.
"You're the most contrary and annoying man I've ever known. Even more than my grandfather."
"Happy to be of service."
"Please turn around."
Hesitating briefly, he did just that and what he saw on her face had his heart slamming against his ribs.
"You left abruptly."
"I needed coffee."
"Nobody needs coffee that much." She lifted her hands to cup his face. "You left before I could tell you how I feel."
He wondered if he was heading towards a heart attack. "And how do you feel?"
"I love you, you moron. I've fallen in love with you and that's something we're both going to have to deal with. Yes, I said those words to you and about you in the past, because I was shielding myself from being attracted to you." She smiled when he stared at her narrowly.
"You cannot be in the dark of how you look. You're a beautiful man and I'm a woman. The entire female staff sighs whenever you walk in a room and comment when you walk back out. I never wanted to fall into that trap. So, I taunted you and said things."
She shook her head. "Life is so bloody funny. You were the last person I would ever see myself with. And I wasn't looking in that direction." Tears moistened her eyes.
"Yes, I thought you were shallow, but over the past two weeks, I've learned differently. You've become my best friend. Not only my lover and the man I want to spend the rest of my life with, but someone I can talk to for ages. Before you, there was only my brother."
"God." She sniffed as the tears rolled down her cheeks. "I hate tears." She smiled through them when he bent his head and kissed her wet cheeks.
"If you continue doing that, I'm going to flood you."
"I don't mind." He whispered shakily. "I thought it was only sex to you, and I was terrified that you were going to laugh at me."
"How could you think that?"
"Because you're the smartest woman I've ever known. You speak your mind and never gave a damn about the consequences. I've seen you in meetings and your confidence is astounding."
Her expression softened, a mixture of amusement and sincerity flickering across her features.
She searched his eyes for any hint of doubt, wanting him to understand the gravity of her confession.
It felt as though the air between them had shifted, charged with honesty, vulnerability, and the promise of a future built on something real.
"Tell me again." He urged.
"I love you." This time the tears came unchecked. "Oh God! I love you so damn much."
He took her mouth with his, the kiss taking on a madness that swept them away.
*****
"At some point, we really should get up and get something to eat." She murmured halfheartedly as she lay sprawled over his chest.
"Hmm." His hand was trailing up and down her back as he tried to get his breath back. "How about in the next century?"
"We really cannot live on sex alone."
"Says who? It's almost one in the afternoon and we're doing just fine."
Lifting her head, she rolled her eyes at him. "You got some coffee in you, I didn't."
"You were the one who came in looking all dewy and sexy wearing just a t-shirt and nothing else. What was I supposed to do?"
"Insist that your wife has something to eat or drink."
Lifting a hand, he tucked back a thick coil of hair. "I was too busy being bowled over by the scent of you and the declaration of love. Still bowled over. Whenever you're near, my senses scramble."
"Good one." Trapping his hand beneath hers, she closed her eyes briefly. "I never dreamed it would be you. Never knew that I could love someone this much." She inhaled sharply. "Especially not after seeing what my parents went through. Please tell me this is going to work."
He wanted to berate her for even second guessing, but he knew where she was coming from. They belonged to dysfunctional families, where love had never been a sure thing. His father loved his mother and had lost her. That fear was now living inside him.