Chapter 33 #2
“I definitely don’t want to talk about it,” Leon replies, whispering in return. “My day has already been made a million times better, and I’d hate to ruin my mood now that it’s been lifted. Seeing you cuddled up on the couch with them…fuck, baby. It meant everything to me.”
My stomach flips hard and fast, sparkling with undeniable desire at the sound of the affectionate name on his tongue.
“It was sweet,” I breathe, thinking back on it.
“They tried so hard to stay awake for you, you know? They’ll be thrilled that you’re here in the morning.
You will be here in the morning, won’t you? ”
“I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.”
My cheeks ache with my responding smile and I boldly reach for his hand. “I still can’t believe you carried me all the way up here without waking me up. I can’t believe you carried me up here to begin with, actually. You could have left me on the couch, you know?”
“Carrying you was no trouble,” Leon says, his voice suddenly sounding deeper.
His fingers squeeze slightly around my hand, and it’s enough to make my heart beat faster.
“But I did consider leaving you all where you were, not because it would have been easier, but because it was the best thing I’ve seen in months—if not years. ”
My breath shakes as I inhale. “What do you mean?”
“You may have shifted something inside me that can’t be put back into place, Katya. Treating you like a mother for them and not like a wife for myself has never been harder than tonight. You’re impossible not to fall for, do you know that?”
You’re impossible not to fall for.
Fall. For.
“Leon, I—”
“You don’t need to say anything tonight, Katya,” he interrupts in a husky whisper.
“We can talk more about us tomorrow. I know I must be giving you whiplash with my changing stance on this topic, but I’m afraid I’ve never been a good liar when it comes to people I care about.
I couldn’t pretend not to be drawn to you for any longer if I tried.
I want you, baby. And if you don’t stop looking at me like you want to pull me into your bed, you’re never going to get back to sleep. ”
Fuck sleep.
“If you call me baby again, I might not let you out of this bed to let me go back to sleep, Leon.” I hardly recognize the sound of my voice, the lusty edge to my tone, nor the burning desire rising up within me.
Still, it’s the only permission he needs to lean down and claim my mouth as his.
Our lips meet in a rash, intense press, molding together desperately.
Leon sends a thrill straight through me as he kisses me hard, putting an arm underneath my back to pull me closer as he leans over me.
He has all the power in our position, looming down over my half-lying form like some kind of god.
A whimper crawls up my throat and vibrates into our kiss, making my lips buzz.
Spurned on by the sound, he chases it and devours the taste of my neediness right from my lips.
I can taste him too, but his minty flavor only floods my mouth fully when he parts my lips with his tongue and sweeps it inside to dance with mine.
I feel like I’m on fire in an instant, moaning and reaching for his shirt to ball it into my fists and hold on for stability. If we were standing, my knees would be weak and wobbly without question, and my thighs would be slammed shut so hard that I might fall off balance.
“Leon,” I whimper into his mouth, searching, begging—pleading—for something I can’t name.
His forehead touches mine as he pulls his lips from mine. Our breath mingles while I pant, my eyes flickering open to look into his.
“We need to stop.”
No, I almost whine.
“Why?” I gasp instead, holding his shirt tighter on instinct. “I thought you wanted me?”
“You have no idea how much,” he growls, maneuvering a hand up my spine to wrap around the back of my neck.
“I want you in ways that would probably terrify you. But I can’t have you now just because we desire one another.
I’ve had a bad day, you’re half asleep, and we need to talk before we go any further than we already have.
I won’t have you regret even a moment of what we’re going to do to each other, tesoro. ”
The stubborn, horny part of me wants to deny his reasoning so very badly. But I can’t.
“What?” I ask, missing the sound of the Italian word, blinking at him. “What did you call me?”
“I’ll tell you tomorrow,” Leon replies, his eyes darting down to my lips. “If you still want me to.”
“I will,” I assure him, unwavering.
“Good night, Katya.” His hands leave me before I can process the loss of his heat. When he stands to leave, panic rises up and my stomach twists with discomfort where there were once butterflies.
“Stay,” I plead, reaching out just in time to capture his hand.
“Baby…”
“Not to do anything,” I clarify, rubbing my thumb over his knuckles. “Just stay with me to sleep? I want to know that you’re here. I missed you today, you know? I just, please stay?”
He looks at our connected hands, and then back down at me.
“Just to sleep,” Leon agrees, letting our fingers pull apart as he moves to shut my bedroom door.
I want to pout that I can’t see him as the door snuffs out the hallway light, but he sheds his outer clothes so quickly that him joining me under the blankets and wrapping a bare arm around my middle is too good to complain about.
Disappointingly, the urge to kiss him again is quickly beat out by the call of sleep.