Page 21

When warm sunlight caresses my cheek and I feel softness all around me, I don’t know where I am. I stretch a little, trying to turn over, and that’s when I feel Galen pressed up against me.

I turn to look at him, amazed that we’re curled up together in bed. I’m still in my velvet dress, and even though there’s a soft blanket over us, we’re still on top of the covers.

He must have carried me in here when I fell asleep.

I wait for the inevitable rush of fear, and to my surprise, it never comes. I watch Galen’s face as the light filtering into the room gets brighter, thin rays that angle through the curtains to pick out the shine in his dark blonde hair.

A moment of hurt wells inside me as memories from the past fall through my mind like pieces of broken glass. We woke up together a couple of times, but Galen was always so careful not to stay too long with me. He was too afraid of his family finding out.

And I took that. Instead of telling him I was worth more, I let it slide. I have guilt in this, too—I should have told him it was unacceptable and made him come clean.

But with that realization comes a swelling wave of even greater pain. It sweeps through me, engulfing me in self-blame and sorrow.

I couldn’t do it! I loved him so much, I wouldn’t dare put our relationship at risk. That’s why I’m so angry and afraid—because I did that to myself!

For the first time in my life, I let these feelings come. I examine them as they flow through my mind and my heart, and instead of hurting me, I feel soothed as if I’m finally treating the wound instead of ignoring it, or worse, denying its existence.

All those nights, I cried and raged, blaming him, telling myself I hated him—when I hated myself. I never stopped loving Galen.

Watching him sleep beside me, the emotions are painfully clear. He reminds me so much of Nico while he’s sleeping—the same tangle of dark golden hair across the brow, the long lashes falling gently on his cheeks, and the curved lips that look ready to smile up at me with love.

Tears prick at my eyes, and even though my eyes well up, I don’t let them flow. I wriggle a little in Galen’s arms, feeling his warm chest against me. Some instinct in me, a learned response, is telling me to run, but I’m having a problem with that for the first time.

I don’t want to.

I want to stay curled up in his arms forever. I feel so safe and so loved. All those years struggling alone, determined to make it work and be strong for my son… the last few weeks have been bliss, if I could just let myself accept it.

I glance back at Galen’s face, wanting to enjoy the relaxed, peaceful look again, but a shock crackles through me as I realize his eyes are open.

I jump in his arms, a tremor running through me. My heart hammers up into my throat, making me dizzy as my breath catches in my throat.

“I’m sorry, Clara,” he says, letting go of me. “I must have curled up with you after I fell asleep. I didn’t mean anything by it.”

I watch him roll away from me, and the loss that rips through me is more than I can bear. I reach out and grab his hand, rolling towards him.

“No, Galen. Don’t let me go.”

The joy that breaks across his face is like nothing I’ve ever seen before. Even the tender moments he’s shared with Nico recently don’t even come close. I knew that being the big, bad wolf was just a show as the alpha, but in this moment, I realize how vulnerable he really is.

As he pulls me against his chest, I tilt my head up toward his lips. When his mouth touches mine, a shiver runs through him, and it’s so powerful his hands tremble.

I deepen the kiss, searching for his tongue and running my hands over his body. He’s still wearing the silk shirt, and the soft feel of it against my hands and his hard muscles underneath heighten the intensity.

“Clara,” Galen gasps, pulling back. “I don’t want you to make a mistake. I understand how you feel, and I only want you to do this if it’s what you really want.”

“Galen,” I whisper, kissing him softly. “I want you. I always have, and I always will. Am I sure about what will come of this? No, I have no idea. The only thing I know right now is that I want you, and I want this.”

I reach down and stroke the hard mound of him beneath his trousers, and he makes a strangled sound, like a man drowning. I press my lips to his and kiss him hard, as if my breath can bring him back to life.

Galen groans as he wraps his hands around my waist, pulling me against his body and reaching down to grab my ass. I moan into his mouth, writhing against him and urging him on.

I run my fingers down his chest, undoing the buttons and stroking his firm muscles and soft skin around the silken fabric of the shirt. The mixture of sensations causes a warm rush through me, and a deep ache starts to throb between my legs.

When I look up at Galen, his eyes catch the morning sun and shimmer in a pure, deep, emerald green. The look of wonder on his face is ravenous hunger, combined with dumbstruck awe.

“You’re so beautiful,” he whispers. “I missed you so much.”

Tears burn my eyes as I nod, feeling all those nights of tender intimacy flooding back to me. So many moments in his arms, looking into his eyes and feeling the warmth of his kiss.

“I missed you, too,” I murmur, stretching up to kiss him. His tongue searches for mine. His lips are so hot and eager, I feel like he is trying to eat me alive.

He was always very good at that.

Galen strokes my shoulders, teasing at the edges of the dress. I reach up and grab the velvet collar, rolling the dress down to my waist while Galen watches with wide eyes.

The lust on his face gives me confidence, and when I lie back to take off the bra, I do it slowly, unhooking it, then teasing the straps down my shoulders and stroking my breasts with my fingers as I lift off the cups.

Galen falls on me, pinning me by the waist as his mouth goes straight to my nipples. He grips my breasts in his big hands, squeezing them and rubbing the nipples with his thumbs as his tongue and lips make wet trails across them.

I wrap my hands around his head and push my chest towards him, making him moan as he reaches around to squeeze my ass. I writhe under him, the throbbing between my legs becoming a burning, fiery ache.

A sharp growl rips from Galen’s mouth as he dives down, shoving the skirt up my thighs. I open my legs, gasping with need and encouraging him. I feel his fingers rub me gently through my panties before he pulls them off, and then I feel his tongue on my clit.

I throw my head back, thrusting my hips at him. Galen moans, grabbing my ass and lapping at my pussy, from my clit all the way down to my throbbing slit. I’m so wet I can feel it running through my hot crevices, swiftly followed by Galen’s eager tongue as he licks up all my juice.

Galen wraps one arm firmly around me, hooking the other under one knee as he holds my legs open. He uses the tip of his tongue to tease my clit, then drags his tongue down in feather-light touches, until he finally reaches my pussy and dives in with his mouth open, devouring me.

A wailing cry tries to escape from my mouth, but I hold it in, not wanting to wake Nico. I have to cover my face with my hands and shake my head back and forth to stop my cries of pleasure as a massive orgasm crests through me, leaving tingling lines of goosebumps all over my body.

When I finally get my breath back, I look up. Galen is kneeling between my legs, his muscular chest and stomach framed by the edges of the white silk shirt. He reaches down and opens his pants, and when his huge, hard cock comes into view, all thought is wiped from my mind.

A creature of pure hunger and need, I lunge forward, barely aware of my own actions. I wrap my hands around his cock and tease him with my hands, stroking him and squeezing, alternating with long, slow strokes. Galen shudders above me, holding in his cries and getting harder by the second as I tease his cock.

When he groans and almost falls against me, I look up to see his face twisted with desperate desire. His green eyes are shimmering, and his mouth is a thin, red line as he tries to draw a decent breath.

“Please, Clara,” he begs. “I can’t take much more.”

I smile up at him, still stroking his cock with one hand as I run my fingers across his chest. I sit up a bit higher, grabbing his shoulder as I come up for a kiss.

He bends down, and our lips touch, hot, wet, and slick. I feel his tongue, and I reach out with my own, desperate to feel him. The ache between my legs throbs with fierce intensity, and I throw myself back on the bed.

“Fuck me, Galen!” I pant. “Fuck me right now!”

He falls forward, catching himself on his hands and reaching down to grab his cock. He teases the lips of my pussy by stroking the hard, hot head against the slick, throbbing lips, making me squirm and gasp.

I’m shivering and murmuring nonsense by the time he puts his cock against the opening of my pussy, pressing forward with his hips. Even though I go wild, thrashing and thrusting and trying to slam him inside me, Galen holds back, penetrating me slowly, inch by delicious inch.

When he slides all the way home, he wraps his arms around me, crushing me to his chest. I wrap my arms and legs around him, gasping with pleasure as our bodies lock together.

Galen turns his head, grazing my ear with his lips, and I feel his breath across my cheek.

“I love you, Clara,” he whispers. “I always have, and I always will.”

The words shock through my haze of lust, and my body freezes as shock runs through me. It only lasts for a second, as my desire for Galen is so strong, the needs of my body far outweigh any emotional entanglements.

It’s the moment. It’s just the heat of the moment, and nothing more.

Galen gets a tighter grip on my shoulders and starts to thrust. First, he uses slow strokes, piercing me until I can feel it all the way from my slick outer lips to the throbbing of my cervix deep inside.

The slow strokes bring me up to another orgasm, and I thrash against him, digging my nails into his back as my body writhes against his, pinned against the mattress. Then Galen lets out a low groan that sounds like a guttural roar and starts pounding me as hard as he can.

The waves of pleasure are coming so fast I can’t process them. All I can do is ride it, my inner core exploding with orgasm after orgasm. I feel Galen’s cock get thicker and harder inside me as he moans into my ear, every breath becoming more ragged and desperate as he approaches his climax.

“I love you!” he gasps into my ear, and it sounds like a prayer more than a confession. I wrap my arms around him, cradling his head with my hand as I press my cheek to his. When his cock gets even thicker and harder, jerking and throbbing inside me, I feel my inner muscles clenching and spasming as his climax sparks another orgasm from me.

Chest heaving, gasping for breath, we stay locked together for what feels like an eternity, feeling the magic of our bodies meshed together. When Galen rolls off me and hugs me to his chest, I start to feel reality returning, and I wonder what I’ve done.

This was the most intense and emotional sex we’ve ever had—but how do I know it was real? He betrayed me once before, and he could do it again. I’ve heard him say ‘I love you’ before, and it didn’t save me then, so why should it reassure me now?

“Clara,” Galen says softly. He pulls back a little, cupping my cheek and looking into my face. His eyes are huge, glowing with the intensity of an evergreen forest.

“I love you,” he says. “I mean this with my entire heart and soul. I love you, and I want to hold you forever.”

Tears fill my eyes, but I snuggle against Galen’s chest before they can start to streak down my cheeks. I cling to him, wrapping my arms tightly around his waist so I don’t have to look at his face while I process these emotions.

This is not like before… he means it, really, actually means it, this time.

But does that mean my heart will be safe?