Page 67

CALLI

Alex stayed with us for another two days after our day chilling on the beach and acting like kids in the sea before he headed back to real life in London.

I loved seeing the two of them together without the weight or pressure of real life pressing down on their shoulders.

Their bond is stronger than I ever realised, and seeing them working together blows my mind. Last night, they cooked together, and I swear, I spent the whole time sitting at the table in the middle of the room with my jaw on the floor as they moved together seamlessly. It was almost as if they were one person.

I wished we could have had more time, or more so that they could have more time together. Both of them look so much happier since having some quality time together.

“What are you smiling about?” Daemon asks as he climbs back onto the outside lounger with fresh drinks and a bowl of crisps for me, since I was complaining that I was hungry again.

“When all this is done, I think we should go on holiday. A real holiday.”

A wicked grin pulls at his lips as he drops beside me and stuffs a handful of crisps into his mouth.

“Hell, yeah. Private pool. Private beach. We can spend the whole time naked.”

My thighs rub together at the image he paints despite the fact that he had me screaming his name in the shower not so long ago after we went for a moonlight swim.

“As amazing as that sounds. I was more thinking about all of us.”

“All of us? Like… including your brother and cousin?” he asks sceptically.

“Yeah,” I agree, but my stomach knots despite how much confidence I force into my voice.

“Calli,” he warns, but I slap a hand over his mouth before he has a chance to say what I already know is going to fall from his lips.

“We’re going to find a way. We have to. This,” I say, twisting onto my side and slipping my other hand around the back of his neck, “is too important to let go of because others don’t like it. I don’t give a shit about their opinions, or their expectations of me. I want this. I want you.”

“Calli,” he breathes when I let my hand drop. “I want this too. More than anything. But I just don’t think it’s going to be possible.”

“It will. It has to be.”

“But your dad—”

“Fuck my dad. Surely, they want me to be happy over wanting their ideal partner for me?” The sad, sympathetic face that stares back at me doesn’t seem to support that statement and my heart sinks.

“He’s been searching for and planning your future husband for years. Every guy has been unknowingly vetted for suitability. I’m pretty sure every one has failed, mind you. His standards are seriously fucking high.”

“So are mine.”

A bitter laugh falls from his lips. “Hardly.”

“You’re wrong,” I say, abandoning my drink and pushing the bowl of crisps away, no longer hungry for anything but the man before me. Vulnerability bleeds from him and I desperately want to banish it. To somehow convince him of just how incredible he is.

Throwing my leg over his waist, I settle myself over him and drop my hands on either side of his head.

“I want my man to be strong.” I brush my lips over his. “Independent.” Drop a kiss on his jaw. “Powerful.” I lick a line up his throat, the vibration of his growl of approval making a smile twitch at the corners of my mouth. “Dangerous.” My hands slip under the fabric of his shirt, making his abs tense as I push higher. “Deadly,” I whisper as he helps me out by sitting up so I can pull his t-shirt from his body. “Yet vulnerable.” My lips find the top of his longest scar. “Brave.” My lips brush down the length of it as his fingers thread through my hair. “Yet scared.”

My eyes hold his as he swallows roughly, his lips slightly parted and a small frown marring his brow.

“Intelligent.” He scoffs at that one, but his argument is cut off when my tongue finds the top of his V line. “Determined.” I work my way lower, making him growl once more before my fingers find the tie on his sweats. “Passionate.”

I drag the fabric down, and he helps me by lifting his arse from the lounger.

“Sexy. Dark. A little bit broken, but a lot perfect.”

“Calli,” he gasps as I lick up his hard length.