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William felt a wave of joy, followed instantly by disbelief.

How could anyone know him at his rawest and truest form and yet love him?

His chest was now threatening to burst. And as he stared at her, nothing else mattered to him—not his past or his walls.

He opened his mouth to say something, anything, but no words came out.

“Shhh!” Eveline whispered, pressing a finger to his lips to silence him. “I am simply telling you so that you know how much you mean to me. You do not have to say it back if you do not feel the same way.”

But he felt the same way. William realized now that he had loved her for quite a while.

It was the reason he had been so bitterly jealous when she had interacted with Theo. It was the reason that just the sight of her drove him to madness. It was the reason he had his wall up around her. After all, what good was love if it was not to hurt?

And yet he could not say it back, not yet. Because if he did now, she would believe he only said he loved her because he felt obligated to.

William knew he had to wait for the right time. He had to make the moment special.

When he cradled her face, his hands trembled with disbelief. And yet there he was, holding the woman he loved, and she was as real as day.

And when he finally kissed her, the world could burn for all he cared, because all that mattered to him was being with her, holding her, kissing her.

He felt warm all over, and her moan sent shivers down her spine.

He stopped for a moment to catch his breath, and their eyes met. They did not have to say anything because her eyes alone conveyed her longing for him.

At that moment, he was certain that he had found the one thing that his heart ached for—to be loved and to be accepted without judgment.

Their kiss, which had started off soft, soon transformed into a hunger, a need that could only be satisfied by her.

He ran his hand across her back, and he cursed under his breath as he touched only fabric. His hands traveled back to her neck and pulled her closer. He wanted their bodies to melt into each other. He wanted them to become one.

She suddenly broke their kiss, gasping for breath.

“William,” she breathed, “take me.”

In her eyes was undeniable surrender.

William’s heart thudded in his chest. He did not need a lot of words to know what she meant.

Without another word, he lifted her into his arms and headed for the house.

And before long, they were finally in his chambers. He set her down, and in her eyes was lust like he had never seen. There was, however, something else. There wasneed.

CHAPTER 20

Eveline watched as his eyes roamed over her body. She could tell he imagining what she would look like underneath all the fabric.

His movements were fast, calculated, as though he were in a hurry.

When he closed the distance between them, Eveline expected that he would tear her clothes off her.

Instead, he kissed her again.

There was a pull between them, and with every twist of their tongues, Eveline felt such yearning that she never thought possible.

The yearning consumed her, and she wanted more of him. She longed for him, for his touch, and while he was touching her, she wanted more.

Heat built up inside her, and it coursed through her, from her hair right down to the soles of her feet.