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My other hand finds her hip. Finally. “Keep going.”
“You’re seriously going to make me spell it out?”
“Please.” I hold her gaze, letting her see everything I feel. “Because I need to hear it. All of it.”
“I need you.” Her voice breaks. “Not just for the arrangement. Not just for…” She waves her hand between us. “This. I need your stupid texts at 3 AM. Your terrible jokes. Your smile. The way you look at me like—like that. Like I’m worth something.”
“You are.” My chest tightens. “You’re worth everything.”
“See? That. I need that. And it terrifies me because what if?—”
“It’s everything you’ve ever wanted?”
“What if you realize I’m not? What if you see all the broken pieces and decide they’re not worth fixing? What if?—”
I can’t take it anymore. I kiss her, swallowing her fears. She’s everything I’ve been craving. My fingers tangle in her hair as I pull back just enough to speak against her mouth.
“I’ve seen every piece of you, Naomi Smith. The broken ones, the sharp edges, all of it. And I’m still here. When are you going to believe in me?”
“Now.” Her voice shakes. “I’m sorry it took so long.”
My hands frame her face, thumbs brushing away her tears. Holy shit, she means it. “Really?”
“Yes. I believe in you.” Each word hits deep inside. “I trust you.”
“One more time.”
“I—” She gasps as I brush my lips along her jaw. “Brandon…”
“Hmm?” I graze my teeth against her neck, feeling her fingers dig into my shoulders.
“I trust you. I want you.”
I search her eyes. No walls. No deflection. Just Naomi, raw and real, and mine. “You mean that?”
“Yes.” Her fingers thread through my hair, and I’m gone. “But if you make me say it again…”
I laugh, the sound rumbling up from somewhere deep and happy. “What? What are you going to do about it?”
“I might have to show you instead.”
“How?”
“By starting with thanking you properly for giving me the choice.” Her fingers trace lower on my chest. “For letting me come to you.”
“Bed and silk sheets, cupcake.” Because if she keeps touching me like that…
“Not for that.” She drops to her knees, her fingers working at my belt while my brain shuts down. “I want pancakes in the morning and stupid arguments. I want you following me into bathrooms with baking soda. I want?—”
I drag in a breath as she frees my cock. Every muscle in my body tenses with the need to move, to take, to claim.
“I want you to stay. Even when I push you away. Even when I’m difficult. I’m done running. Whatever this thing is between us, I’m all in.” She looks up through her lashes. “The good, the bad, the ugly. I want it all with you.”
“Naomi…” My fingers thread through her hair, gentle despite every instinct screaming at me to take control. “I’m not exactly easy either.”
“We’re both fucked up. But maybe… maybe that’s okay?”
“Is it?”