Page 111 of Loving Taylor

Chapter Thirty-One

Ichecked the time. She would be home at any minute. I knew she was safe because Jeff was her shadow when I wasn’t with her. I wasn't taking any chances with her safety. There wasn’t an active threat; it was more for peace of mind for me. And deep down inside I believed it helped give her the freedom from her fear to live her life.

There were still moments when she hesitated and I could see the debilitating fear in her. And she struggled through it. It was the strength in her that had been born when her parents had been murdered and now it carried her through the difficult times.

Some nights she still suffered from nightmares. I hated that the ordeal had left a lasting fear in her. I could only hope that time would heal the wound.

I was a lucky guy. Having her made me richer than all the money I had in the bank.

I had just finished in the shower and gotten dressed. I felt a thrum of excitement for what the evening would hold.

The front door opened and closed, signaling she was home. I found her sitting on the sofa with her eyes closed. The sight tugged at my heart.

"Rough day?" I asked.

At the sound of my voice she opened her eyes. I leaned down to kiss her.

"Yes. I'm tired," she replied, letting out a heavy sigh.

"You know you don't have to work," I reminded her. We'd had this conversation so many times but she was too stubborn and refused to quit her job.

It was a struggle between my need to care for her and her need to make her own way. Connor had been on my side in that particular argument but that had held no weight with her.

She sighed as I massaged her shoulders to ease the tension from her muscles.

"You know, if you didn't work, we would have more time to spend together," I reminded her.

I had bought a condo not long after we had officially started dating. The house had held too many memories of Eric for me to keep. And Taylor moving in with me had been the next logical step.

With her I found myself embracing the commitment I had dreaded before and I had used every personal rule to avoid it.

"Mmm," she murmured, side-stepping by suggestion. My hands kneaded her tense muscles.

"You're not listening to me, are you?" I asked.

She mumbled a yes.

I lifted my hands from her shoulders, to her vocal disappointment, and sat down beside her.

Her hungry eyes met mine. I knew that look. It told me I could have her right here and now on the sofa. And if it weren't for my other plans I would not have hesitated.

"You like what you see?" I teased with a knowing smirk.

"Yes," she breathed with a touch of a smile.

Our attraction was just as powerful as it had been the first time we had locked eyes. The only difference now was she was confident in what she liked and what she didn’t when it came to the bedroom.

"Why did you stop?" she moaned.

"Because you weren't listening to what I was saying," I told her. I reached for her hand and took it into mine.

"It's because I can't think of anything but you when you touch me," she admitted huskily.

"Really," I said with a mischievous grin, contemplating giving in to my need for her as I leaned closer.

"Yes," she whispered, watching me close the distance between us. Then I kissed her. She tasted so damn good I had to remind myself why we couldn't have hot, wild sex right now. Exercising the little self-control I had, I pulled away before it became impossible to stop.

"As much as I want to take you to bed, we have plans for tonight," I said. It was too important to cancel.