Chapter 11 #2
“Matty, please,” she rasps, her voice thick with emotion, cracking under the weight of whatever she’s holding in. “Just…” she trails off, her eyes turning glassy, and I officially can’t take it anymore.
I shoot to my feet, my chair rolling away as I swiftly round the corner of my desk and move toward her. I do it without thinking, practically on autopilot as I close the distance between us.
“Hey,” I say gently as I pull her up from her chair, wrapping my arms around her and holding her close.
She doesn’t resist. Instead, she melts against me, pressing her face into my chest as her fingers tangle in the fabric of my t-shirt. I can feel her body trembling, her breath hitching in short, uneven gasps.
I tighten my grip around her slender frame, not knowing what to say, only knowing I want to hold her and make it better somehow.
She shudders a quiet sob, muscles gradually slackening as she lets go of whatever she’s been carrying.
The feel of her in my arms, so fragile and yet so strong at the same time, is everything I’ve ever wanted and everything I’m afraid I might lose.
The wetness of her tears soaks into my shirt, her pain radiating through me with every shuddering breath she takes.
“I’d bring him back, if I could,” I murmur, my voice ragged. “Even if it meant you wouldn’t be mine, I’d do it in a heartbeat if it meant you’d be happy, Blair. That’s all I want, for you to be happy.”
She pulls back slightly, eyes red-rimmed as they lift to meet mine. “Maybe I don’t deserve to be happy,” she whispers.
I gently cup her chin, lifting her face toward mine and searching her eyes. “You do,” I say firmly, sweeping a dark strand of hair behind her ear. “You deserve the world, Blair. I just wish I could give it to you.”
“Jesus, Matty,” she breathes, snorting a sarcastic laugh through her tears. “Where the hell did you come from?”
The corner of my mouth ticks up. “Detroit, Michigan.”
She rolls her eyes, a quiet chuckle slipping from her throat as she lifts a hand to wipe the wetness from her cheeks.
“C’mon,” I urge, grasping her hand and leading her down the aisle toward the lounge area at the back of the command center. I know I can’t force her to heal, but I can hold her as she cries, I can listen and just be here for her.
By some miracle, she actually allows me to guide her over to the couch in the far corner, not even putting up a fight when I sink down and swiftly pull her onto my lap.
Shifting her body sideways so I can see her face, I tuck another wild strand of hair behind her ear, my fingers lingering there for just a second longer than necessary.
“Talk to me, baby,” I say, my voice softer now. “Tell me what’s going on.”
I’m all too aware of the tension in her body, the way she’s coiled like a spring, ready to snap at any moment. I want to be the one to unwind her, to release all that pent-up emotion.
She hesitates, her breath shaky, and I wait. I wait for her to trust me enough to open up, to give me a hint at whatever it is that’s haunting her. Her lips part as though the words are on the tip of her tongue, but then she shakes her head, dark hair swishing around her face.
“I don’t want to talk right now,” she rasps, reaching up to cup my jaw in her soft palm. “I just… I want…” she wraps her arms around my neck as she trails off, lips crashing against mine in a kiss that’s full of desperation, of need, of every emotion that she can’t put words to.
I take every bit of it, kissing her back with a fierce intensity as everything around us melts away. Whether she needs comfort or a distraction, I’ll give it to her. I’ll be her rock, her safe harbor, her soft place to land.
Blair’s lips move against mine with urgency, like she’s trying to consume me, trying to pull everything I am into herself.
It’s messy and imperfect, but it’s real and raw in a way that makes my pulse race.
I can feel her heartbeat pounding against my chest, our bodies fitting together like we’re two puzzle pieces slotting into place.
I feel her fingers digging into my hair, tugging me closer as her body presses tighter against mine. I’m acutely aware of the heat radiating from her, the tension between us crackling in the air like electricity. She kicks a leg over to straddle my lap, grinding against me with a quiet moan.
“I need you, Matty,” she whines, hands sliding up underneath my shirt to roam across the ridges of my abs.
Blair rocks her hips over my lap, my cock thickening against my zipper as her hands drop to scrabble with the button of my jeans. I slide my own hands up to cup her breasts, tongue lashing against hers as I thumb her hard nipples.
When we’re like this, it’s easy to forget that the door’s wide open.
That is, until I hear the sound of a throat clearing, followed by Avery’s unmistakable snicker.
We jolt apart on instinct, Blair leaping off my lap and scrambling to the opposite side of the couch. My face flushes with embarrassment when I look toward the door and find Cam standing there with his arms crossed, a knowing smirk on his face. Avery’s right beside him, tittering with amusement.
“You owe me twenty bucks,” Avery tells her mate, turning at the waist to deliver a playful jab to his bicep.
Blair groans, pulling her knees into her chest and hiding her face behind her hands.
“Great timing, guys,” I mutter, grabbing for a throw pillow and bringing it to my lap to hide my boner.
Well fuck.
This is going to be an interesting day at the office.