Page 90 of My Destiny

“I’m more than okay,” she pants. She grabs hold of my face, pulling it towards hers. “You’re so good at that—the best I’ve ever had.” Her words make me chuckle, but at the same time they spark something inside me. Is it jealousy? The mere thought of her doing this with another man makes me crazy.She’s mine.

Settling my body between her legs, my mouth softly meets hers as I push all those thoughts out of my head. I’m still unsure if we should be doing this, since a few hours ago she was in hospital. But if this is what she needs, there’s no way I’d deny her. Truth is, I could use the distraction myself.

Pulling out of the kiss, I reach over to the drawer beside the bed. My need to be inside her is overwhelming. She watches my every move as I place the foil packet between my teeth and tear it open. “You still want to do this?” I ask before going any further.

“Absolutely. I need you now more than ever.”

“Jake didn’t, you know… touch you, did he?” I’m not sure how I’ll cope if she says he did.

She shakes her head before answering. “I don’t think so. But I was unconscious most of the time.”

Leaning back on my haunches, I lift her torso off the bed, enfolding her in my arms. Once again, images of her lying bleeding and unconscious on the floor flash through my mind. “I love you,” I whisper, tightening my grip.

She tilts her head back, gazing up at me. “I love you too.” It’s the first time she’s said it back. In my heart I felt she did, but there was always that small seed of doubt.

“You do?”

“With everything I have.” Her arms encircle my waist as she buries her face in my chest. When I hear her sniffle, I know she’s upset again. “I was worried I’d never get the chance to tell you how much you mean to me.”

A lump forms in my throat when I think how close I came to losing her. “I’m so glad you got the chance. I don’t know how I would’ve coped if things turned out…” My words drift off. I can’t even bring myself to finish that sentence.

Laying her back down, I cover her with my body. Our eyes remain locked as I drape one of her legs around my waist and line myself up with her opening. This is a moment I’ll savour.

We moan in unison as I slowly slide inside her, filling her completely. Her eyelids flutter when I withdraw slightly before pushing all the way back in. I’ve never felt so connected to anyone as I do to her. “My life would be meaningless without you in it,” I say, gently brushing the hair back from her forehead. It’s the truth. She completes me and makes me feel whole again.

“I feel exactly the same,” she whispers, tears once again filling her eyes.

“I love you so much.”

“I love you too, Hot Stuff.”

“Knock, knock,” Brooke says from the doorway of my home office. Spinning my chair around, I face her. “Sorry,” she mouths when she realises I’m on a call.

Smiling, I signal with my finger for her to enter, before tapping my lap. I had Claire rearrange all my appointments so I can work from home for the next few days. There was no way I could leave Brooke; she’s been clingy and I can tell she’s not ready to be on her own. If I’m honest, I need her near me too.

I slide my arm around her waist when she seats herself and place a soft kiss on her shoulder. The swelling on her cheek subsided considerably overnight, but the bruises on her face still disturb me.

“I’m grateful they agreed to an early settlement,” I say to Steve, my real estate agent. “It’ll give me some extra time to do the modifications. If you could courier the contract over, I’ll sign it and get it straight back to you.”

“I’ll get on that now,” he replies.

“Talk soon. Oh, and thanks again.”

I’m so happy with what he has found me. The large building at Petersham was built back in 1903 and was originally a furniture storage warehouse, so the open floor plan has ample space for me to work with. It comes with a decent-sized car park around the back, which will be perfect for what I have planned. It’s about a twenty-minute drive with traffic from the penthouse, so not as close as I would’ve liked, but it’s in great condition for its age. That and the sheer size of the place is what sold me in the end. I have limited time to get this project completed, so anything that needed major structural changes or repairs wasn’t an option.

“I’m sorry I interrupted you,” Brooke says, once I end the call.

“Never,” I say. “I was just talking to my real estate agent.”

“Oh. Are you thinking of moving?”

“No, I’m happy here. You’re happy here, right?”

“Yes, why?”

“Just curious.”

“That reminds me,” she says. “I need to think about sorting my place out too. If the leasing agent calls a surprise inspection on me, I’m screwed.” Neither of us have been back to her terrace house since it was vandalised.