Total pages in book: 99
Estimated words: 94094 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 470(@200wpm)___ 376(@250wpm)___ 314(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 94094 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 470(@200wpm)___ 376(@250wpm)___ 314(@300wpm)
However, the kiss never comes. I knit my brows in confusion.
* * *
Gregor
I’m so close to having the one thing I long for. Her lips are so close to mine, I can almost taste her. Yet, something feels so wrong.
“Chlo,” I whisper as she trembles in my hold.
It’s going to kill me to do this, but I know she’s not ready. I can read it in her body. She’s still terrified of taking this next step. As much as I want this kiss, I want her with me when it happens.
My first thought is to kiss her into submission, but that goes against all my rules of trust and care for my woman. That’s not what Chloe needs. This time I’m putting her first.
When she opens her eyes, I see a mix of fear and hurt. Just like that, I’m losing her again. We were having such a good time. I thought I would finally reach her tonight. The connection was there. Her eyes said she was open.
Yet the trembling in her body tells me all I need to know. I’ll always go with what I know when it comes to her needs. However, now she’s slipping right through my fingers once again. My need for control bucks up against my understanding of her fragility. I ache to the depths of my soul for the hurt I’ve caused.
“If I could turn back time, I’d make this all right again,” I murmur.
“But that’s the thing. You can’t do that. You told me I could always trust you, but I couldn’t. You left me. You broke my heart when you said you wouldn’t.”
That burns because it’s the truth. When I told her that I believed we could find a way to make it work. I’d planned to take her with me.
I work my jaw, loathing myself. This wariness is my doing. I offer her the only thing I know for sure.
“I love you, Chloe. I’m so sorry. Know that I do love you.”
I release her and go out to the deck to clear my head. This is starting to feel more impossible with each day. I may have lost her forever.
Never, you’re no quitter.
Chapter 29
Missed Steps
Chloe
Another night, another date. Once again, dinner was amazing, as it has been on the last few dates we’ve been on. I’m reluctant each time Brodi comes to sweep me off my feet, but I also know this is what I told him to do. To work for my heart if that’s what he truly wants.
Yet, my emotional and mental states are as conflicted as ever about cracking open the door. Perhaps I should’ve placed a lock and dead bolt on it because Brodi seems to be pushing it open no matter what I think I want.
“Have I told you how beautiful you are this evening?” His velvety voice pulls me from my thoughts.
He reaches to stretch and twirl a lock of hair around his finger. I’d spent hours trying to flat iron it, but I couldn’t get it anywhere near as immaculate as my girl back home. In the end, I wet it down with water and conditioner and let my curls spring back to life.
“You’ve said it a few times,” I reply.
“I like your hair better this way. It’s like you. It looks one way to the eye but reveals so much more to the touch,” he says.
His words tug at something deep within. Our eyes lock and I can tell he wants to lean in for a kiss. I haven’t allowed things to go that far.
I’ve been doing a better job of keeping my wits about me. At least, I’m trying my best to do better at keeping my wits about me. The smoldering look in his gray eyes at the moment threatens all my sanity. I force myself to turn away from him and the energy swirling between us.
“Where are you taking me?” I ask as I look out the window of the SUV.
“I thought we could take a stroll,” he replies as we come to a stop.
Brodi opens his door to step out, reaching back in to help me exit the vehicle as well. The first thing to assault my senses is the ocean air. The saltiness settles on my tongue and burns my nostrils.
My wild curls whip around my face. I can’t help the smile that comes to my lips as I remember our trip to Rockaway Beach—what seems like forever ago. It was a summer night, but the breeze off the ocean and bay made the night cool.
Brodi had taken off his shirt to cover me as we walked the shore. I still remember that night because it was the first time he told me he loved me. I look out at the water and wonder if he thought of that night before bringing me here. It’s a night I haven’t allowed myself to think about in such a long time.