Page 47 of Truly

A slow smile slips across his face. “Well, Ms. Kelley, I’d hate to disappoint you.”

Something tells me that won’t happen.

CHAPTER 14

Luke

“And I’ve hadmany life experiences since I left this town, but none of them feel the way I feel when I’m with you.”

It’s no wonder this woman has always owned my heart.

I study her, taking in her beauty and intelligence. Her honesty.

I’ve tried to resist her, but I can’t. I want to make her feel good. I want to show her how special she is, how she’s more than a paycheck and an avenue to exploit for personal gain.Although I’ll definitely gain from this interaction.

My heart pounds.

But I stand to lose a lot, too.

Memories of the hurt after she left before are just below the surface, reminding me that I might find myself in that situation again. It would be worse this time. I’m not sure I would survive it in one piece. But as I take her in and consider turning her away, that’s impossible.

I’ve loved her for too long.

Loving her is as natural as breathing. I don’t have to try. And, if I try not to love her, I fail and end up miserable, clinging to the pieces of my life that still make sense and hoping that something changes someday.

Maybe that day is today.

I take a long, deep breath.

I can only hope that Laina feels this way, too. I can only hope that she’ll want to try for more. I can only hope that she’ll want the happiness that has eluded me since she left—happiness that I think she hasn’t been able to find elsewhere, either—and will decide that it’s worth the risk we’ll have to take to try to recapture it. Because one thing is clear to me. My happiness only exists with Laina Kelley.

She landed here for a reason. And maybe that reason is so I can make her mine.

CHAPTER 15

Laina

“Sit down,”Luke says. The words are a command and not a request.

A chill slips down my spine as anticipation starts to get the best of me.

We’ve done this before—too many times to count. I’ve been under him, on top of him, and beside him.But it’s never been like this.

This Luke, the one staring at me with darkened eyes and a delicious smirk, isn’t the sweet and playful guy who took my virginity. This man is confident. Deliberate. And, if I’m really lucky, he’ll take playful to a whole new level.

“May I start by sitting on your face?” I ask, grinning innocently at him.

“Later. Sit in a chair.”

I’m confused about how this will work if I’m sitting at the kitchen table, but I’m curious enough to play along.

“I’m big into foreplay,” I say, facing away from him. “But I’m not really understanding what you’re—oh, wow.Wait. What are you doing?”

Before I can begin the question, my hands are heldtogether behind the chair. My jaw goes slack, and my core heats to a boil.

“Do you trust me?” he asks, his lips brushing the shell of my ear.

I shiver. “Depends.”