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“ S o he’s staying with you tonight?”

Clara tugged at a thread on her bedsheet as she pressed the phone to her ear, Indie on the other end. “Yeah, he’s staying with me tonight. He made me dinner, refused to let me help him clean up after, and now he’s doing a perimeter check.”

“Will he stay tomorrow night as well?”

“I don’t know. He’ll probably want to stay until we figure out all this hospital stuff.” Not probably—definitely.

“Clara…can I give you some advice?”

“Always.” Even when she didn’t like her cousin’s advice, she usually needed it.

“You love him. So love him.”

She hung her head. Her mother had said something similar.

“I know he hurt you when he ended things after the hospital trip,” Indie continued. “But I think he wants to be better. And maybe this little break with you has scared him enough that he’ll do better next time.”

“I do love him,” she whispered.

“I know. And take it from someone who never felt like she got enough time with the man she loved—if he’s there and he loves you, don’t waste another second.”

She frowned. “Indie, maybe you should just call Colt and talk to him. You had that fight a year ago and have barely spoken since.”

There was a small pause. “Because it hurts to talk to him.”

“Sometimes you have to hurt before you can feel better again.”

“I think there’s just too much that’s happened.” She sighed. “I do need to speak to him though. He didn’t sign the papers.”

Clara straightened. “What?”

“He sent them back blank. Actually, not blank. He wrote a note in black pen saying, ‘You’re dreaming if you think I’ll ever sign this, Cricket.’”

Cricket…it was the nickname Colt used for Indie. “What are you going to do?”

“He doesn’t have to sign them for me to get a divorce. I can let the courts handle it if I have to.”

There was something in Indie’s voice…some regret, but also uncertainty. Was she having second thoughts about the divorce? “If you need anything from me, you know I’m here.”

“I do know. Thanks, Clara.”

The click of the front door opening sounded from the hall, and Clara sighed. “I’ve got to go. Holden’s back.”

“Remember what I said.”

Clara smiled as she said goodbye and hung up. She needed a shower, then maybe if she felt brave, she’d go out and see Holden in the living room.

She stepped into the bathroom and her gaze went straight to her neck. The bruising from the break-in was just about gone, but sometimes she swore she could feel that arm around her neck.

Gently, she touched the skin, her chest rising on a deep inhale.

When a figure appeared behind her, she gasped, only for the air to rush out of her when she recognized Holden. “I didn’t hear you come in.”

“Sorry. Your door was ajar and I wanted to check on you.” He stood behind her, dwarfing her as he looked at her neck. Fury flashed over his face before he lightly grazed her skin right where her fingers had just been. His touch was gentle and warm. “I hate that you got hurt.”

“I got off fairly lightly compared to Malcolm and Scarlett.”

Holden growled. “You shouldn’t have been in danger at all.” He lowered his head and kissed her shoulder. “The thought of someone hurting you kills me.”

A shiver ran down her spine.

He kissed her neck this time. It was so light that it felt like a whisper over her skin. “I need you safe.”

“Safety’s never guaranteed.”

He paused, maybe because he knew she wasn’t just talking about the kind of safety that came from external factors.

Then he kissed her again. “I will do everything in my power to protect you. But if I can’t, if the enemy is some kind of sickness, then I’ll look after you in every other way. I’m not going anywhere.” He said the last four words slowly, like he knew she needed them said emphatically.

“You won’t run?”

He gripped her hips and looked up at her in the mirror, fire in his eyes. “Never again.”

She believed him.

He kissed her again. Her eyes shuttered and all she could do was feel him. The strength of his body against her back. The power in his hands as he held her. And the softness of his kisses up her neck.

She tilted her head, giving him more access. Her fingers threaded through his hair, and when she turned to look at him, their gazes held for a split second before his mouth claimed hers.

She groaned, leaning into him as he slipped his tongue between her lips. Humming at the feel of his hands trailing over her body. She closed a hand over his and guided it toward her breast. When he cupped her, he growled, a low, deep sound that shot straight between her legs.

He found her nipple and grazed it back and forth, making her insides turn molten.

When he released her breast, she wanted to protest. But then his hands went to the hem of her shirt and she lifted her arms to help him. Once the shirt was off, he immediately unclasped the button of her jeans. Every time his fingers grazed her belly, her skin burned.

When she only wore a bra and panties, he lifted her and set her on the counter before stepping between her thighs. She removed his shirt and jeans just as quickly as he’d dealt with hers.

As she pushed his pants down, his mouth returned to her neck. He stepped out of his jeans, but his entire focus remained on Clara as he flipped down the cup of her bra and took one nipple between his lips.

She gasped, her head flying back, and pulled at his hair…as her fingers played over the strength in his shoulders.

He was everything. And he made her burn for him.

As he sucked her nipple, she writhed against him. Needing more, she reached down and slipped her hand inside his briefs.

His muscles tensed, and she wrapped her fingers around his length, not missing the sharp, masculine gasp that cut through the air.

She moved her hand up and down, exploring and feeling and loving him.

“What do you do to me?” he growled.

She reached up with her other hand and cupped his nape, bringing his mouth back to her. As she did, she guided his cock toward her entrance before sliding her panties to the side.

“Clara—”

“I’m ready for you, Holden. I’ve been ready for you for so long.”

His eyes were all fire. Slowly, he slipped inside her. Filling her. Loving her. Giving her everything.

Blood roared between Holden’s ears, a flame burning inside him. He could drown in Clara, and he’d die a happy fucking man.

He found her lips again, kissing her. Tasting her. Taking everything that she had to give him and giving it all back.

She wrapped her legs around his waist and drew him closer. He growled at the feel of her walls hugging his cock.

“I love you, Clara.” The words fell from his lips, so damn overdue. “I’ve loved you for so long.”

Tear gathered in her eyes. “I feel like I’ve waited a lifetime to hear you say that.”

“I’ll say it every day.”

“I love you too, Holden. You own my love.”

His world narrowed to just her. To the indigo of her eyes. The wisps of hair, and all the lines and shadows that made up Clara.

He would spend the rest of his life loving this woman.

He slid out of her before plunging back in.

The air that escaped her lips was somewhere between a gasp and a sigh. And he felt it too. All of it.

He started moving in slow, deep, rhythmic thrusts as he once again found her neck with his lips…kissing and sucking.

It never felt like enough.

He reached for her nipple and ran his thumb over the hard peak, grazing it back and forth.

Every sound she made was fucking music to his ears.

He lifted her and turned, pressing her to the cool tiled wall, never separating them.

His thrusts became deeper…faster. He slid his hand down her side, and when he ran his thumb over her clit, her entire body shuddered and arched. Her head tipped back, and her eyes closed as a moan cut from her throat.

There was no hesitation or inhibition…this was all Clara, and she was fucking gorgeous.

Her fingers dug into his skin, her head dropping forward and burrowing into his chest. She was close. And he wanted to see her fall. To feel her walls pulse around his cock.

He pressed his mouth to her ear and nipped her lobe. “Let go, honey.”

One more roll of her clit with his thumb, and suddenly her entire body tensed. Her fingers curled around his shoulders and she cried out, her scream bouncing off the walls, her body wrapped so tightly around him, he could barely move.

And he couldn’t take his damn eyes off her. For a moment, he forgot time and place. He forgot everything but her.

He kept thrusting, but too soon the sheer fucking sight of her losing control tipped him over the edge. He growled as he shattered, his head dropping into the crook of her neck, sucking her skin as he continued to move until he had nothing left.

Then, finally, there was stillness. He leaned into Clara, breathing her in as both their chests moved quickly.

When he finally had the strength to move again, he stepped away from the wall and carried her into the shower. He took his time washing her. Exploring every inch of her body as he pressed light kisses to her skin, loving her.

And it was there, under the stream of water while Clara was still in his arms, that she cupped his cheeks. “We’re done running, right? This is it?”

“It’s you and me, Clara. We’re in this forever.”

She studied his eyes. “You’re not scared?”

“I’m terrified. But someone told me to feel the fear and love you anyway. So that’s what I’m doing.”

Her eyes softened and she kissed him again, but this kiss was softer. Slower. A gentle admission of love and a promise of forever.