Chapter 26 Holly #3
Suddenly, I’m surrounded by warmth, and the comforting scent of Bear fills my lungs.
I’m pressed against his chest, and half a second later, Clay joins us, pressing himself against my back.
There are no words to describe how it feels to be cocooned within them, the safety and instant sense of being home helping to settle me, grounding me.
I take a shuddering breath, my tears soaking the front of Bear’s T-shirt, but I know that he doesn’t care, his hand threading into my hair and supporting the back of my head.
Clay is moulded to me, as though we are one person.
He holds me so tightly, as though his touch alone could stop me from falling apart. He might be right.
“You want to know why we’re drawn to you so much?
” Bear’s words are muffled from where he speaks against my hair, but that doesn’t hide the emotion in his voice.
“I can’t speak for Clay, but you soothe something inside me and make me want to be a better man.
You give so much of yourself to others, yet you don’t see how amazing you are.
” He pulls back enough to look at me, his hand cupping my cheek.
His eyes shimmer and I can hear his sincerity.
Every word that leaves his mouth is full of truth.
I can feel something in my chest healing in his presence.
It’s gradual, but I want this so bad. Bear seems to be experiencing something similar, and slowly, he leans down until his lips brush over mine.
It’s whisper soft, giving me a chance to pull away if this is not what I want.
A whimper escapes me, not sadness, but desperate relief.
My tears have mostly dried up, but when another rolls from the corner of my eye, it lands on his cheek.
Pulling back from our kiss, he catches the remainder of the tear on his finger, drying my face with his thumb. “I have never met someone so kind-hearted, hard-working and loving. Whatever bastard let you believe you weren’t worthy of love should rot in hell.”
“Bear is right,” Clay’s voice is deep behind me, and with his hand on my waist, he guides me around so I’m facing him, Bear at my back. “Let us in, Holly. No part of you is too much, or not enough. You are perfect for us, and we want to show you what real love should look like.”
These words are all I’ve ever wanted to hear, and I can’t quite believe that I’m actually hearing them now.
“I know your heart is broken and trust is difficult for you, but if you’ll let us, we can help you heal those scars.
” Reaching up, Clay cradles my face between his tattooed hands.
The intensity of his eyes strikes me, like it always does, and I know that he would put every single part of him on the line to make sure I’m happy.
He smiles ruefully, his thumb stroking my cheek.
“We might not have shown our best sides before now, but now we are in agreement: we won’t let you down. ”
Bear’s chin rests on my shoulder, his cheek pressed against mine. “It’s your turn to heal, Holly, to be loved.” Voice low, he holds me closely as he speaks. “Let us help heal your pain.”
There is so much that could go wrong, but at the end of the day, life is full of what if’s.
What if I trust them and they leave? What if I step outside and get mown down by a car?
It is terrifying, and I cannot see into the future, but what kind of life would I have if I was restricted by my fear of those ‘what if’s’?
After all, what if our love is one to last a lifetime and I turn it away out of fear? I would be signing myself up to a life of loneliness.
“What if I’m your soulmate?” Clay asks, raising a brow. “You will never know until you take that chance. Will you make that jump and trust me, or walk on by without giving us a shot? What are you prepared to risk?”
I’m taken back by the mention of soulmates.
Not because I don’t believe in them, but because I never would have thought that it was something Clay believed in.
Is that what he thinks? That we’re soulmates?
He seems serious, and I guess that would be a way to explain why we feel so strongly about each other, when all the facts say it’s too soon.
We don’t fit the social norm: the curvy bakery owner, and the two muscular gym owners.
Even before you add in the idea of the three of us being in a relationship, the speed of our feelings alone would raise eyebrows.
However deep inside me I know that everything he says is true.
“We would need to take things slowly,” I find myself saying. “There would have to be some rules.”
I can’t believe I’m even considering this, but I can’t deny that this week has been hell without them. What is worse? Getting hurt by a relationship that I thought could go the distance, or passing on the opportunity of love out of fear?
“Of course,” Bear replies, his expression serious as he nods slowly. He is always looking out for me, especially making sure I’m comfortable around them.
I quickly shift my attention to Clay, who is still standing a hair’s breadth away.
Frown gone, I see a rare smile lighting up his face.
Gripping me around the waist, he pulls me against him tightly once more, pressing a punishing kiss to my lips.
Clay kisses me with the fervour of a man drowning who has discovered his salvation – as though I am his air.
“I missed you.” His words are breathy against my lips, mumbled. His actions make it perfectly clear how he feels, yet he doesn’t want to release me from this moment, making the most of our touch after having been denied it all week.
The need to say something back, to explain how hard it’s been to keep away, burns within me, the words twisting on my tongue, fighting for first place.
Parting my lips, I start to speak, although I’m not sure what I’m about to say.
The door swings open once more, the cheery sound of the bell so at odds with the intensity of the moment.
Ashley fills the doorway, scanning the scene before her and how both guys are touching me with a familiarity that goes beyond friendship.
Her eyes lock on me, taking in my bruised lips and pink cheeks, knowing exactly what’s going on.
Slowly, a grin pulls at her lips she cocks her hip, leaning against the door frame.
“Is there room for one more, or is this a closed party?”