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“I don’t think so,” Alfie said, reaching to brush a tear from her cheek. “No, Iknowso,” he added more firmly.

“Alfie, you’re so sweet and kind and considerate, but...” she began, shaking her head.

“No buts,” Alfie said firmly. “Fate isn’t wrong. It brought us together for a reason.”

Marion gave a short laugh that sounded almost pained. “You’ve been wonderful for Charlie, and for me...”

“But you don’t think you’ve been wonderful for me?” He tilted his head, studying her expression. How could she think so little of herself?

“I have so much baggage,” Marion admitted, wrapping her arms around herself as if suddenly cold.

Alfie stepped closer, his hands settling on her shoulders. “I have strong arms to help you carry it,” he replied simply.

She laughed then—a real laugh this time—and wiped another tear from her cheek. The sound warmed him more than he could ever put into words.

He took her hand in his, feeling the connection between them pulse like a living thing. “Don’t you want this?”

Marion met his gaze and he could see the vulnerability there. “I’m not sure what ‘this’ is.”

“This is forever,” Alfie said without hesitation. “You and me, side by side, through thick and thin.”

Marion’s breath shuddered through her body. “You don’t know what you’re getting into.”

“Then tell me,” he urged.

Marion half-turned and looked up toward the window, where Charlie slept soundly. “My sister…Charlie’s mom has always had terrible taste in me. But she always tried to do her best by Charlie. But then she met this guy. He calls himself Razor. I mean, what kind of man chooses a name like that?” She sucked in a breath. “Heather was smitten with him. So smitten she couldn’t see the damage she was doing to her son.”

“Are you on the run?” Alfie asked the question that had nagged at him since he’d seen the haunted look in her eyes.

“No,” she blurted, turning to face him. “Heather and Razor are in prison awaiting trial. I was handed guardianship of Charlie by the courts.”

Alfie let out a long breath, feeling a weight lift from his shoulders. “And you’re doing an amazing job.”

She cocked her head at him. “Did you really think we were on the run?”

Alfie shrugged, feeling a little overdramatic. “It had crossed my mind.”

“And if we were?” she murmured, watching him closely.

“Then I would have protected you, or run with you,” Alfie admitted without hesitation.

“What about your life here?” she asked.

“Marion, from the moment I first sensed you, you and Charlie are my life,” he said, needing her to understand that simple truth.

Something shifted in her expression then, as if he’d finally broken through her barriers. She closed the distance between them and slid her hands up his chest, her touch igniting a fire that had been smoldering since they met.

Alfie lowered his head and captured her lips in a searing kiss. As the kiss deepened, she pressed her body against his, moving against his hardness in a way that made him groan with need. He slipped his hand beneath her sweater and discovered she wasn’t wearing a bra. As he caressed her smooth skin, his thumb grazed her nipple, feeling it stiffen in response.

“I want you,” she murmured breathlessly against his mouth. “Here.”

Alfie fought for control at her words, his body trembling with need. He wanted nothing more than to claim his mate, to worship every inch of her body, to make her his in every way.

In one fluid motion, he scooped her up in his arms and carried her into the kitchen. There he sat her on the edge of the table, his body nestled between her thighs as he lowered his head and captured her lips in a searing kiss that spoke of longing and promises made.

As the kiss deepened, she pressed her body against his, driving him insane.

Marion reached for the hem of his shirt, tugging it upward. He helped her pull it over his head, and it fell forgotten to the floor beside them.