Total pages in book: 28
Estimated words: 26282 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 131(@200wpm)___ 105(@250wpm)___ 88(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 26282 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 131(@200wpm)___ 105(@250wpm)___ 88(@300wpm)
“Touch me,” I gasp.
Something flickers across his face, and I don’t know what emotion that is. I can’t name it because it’s gone too quickly.
“Are you sure you’re not too sore?”
I’m a little sore, but not too sore. Besides, if I tell him that, he won’t touch me. Instead, I tell the truth. “I ache for you.”
Those are the only words he needs because the next thing I know, his hands are moving lower and lower. He traces me underneath the water until he finds my mound and palms it. He massages my aching flesh. “What do you need, kitten?”
“Finger me,” I insist as he finds that magic spot with his thumb. He circles it slowly, working one of his blunt digits into my channel. It feels so good to be filled by him. It’s not as good as his cock. Nothing is, but having some part of Roman’s body in mine feels natural, like this was always meant to be.
He thrusts his fingers in and out, working me into a frenzy until I’m crying out his name again and again. Fully sated, I lean back against the tub.
He pulls me from the water, wraps my body in a soft towel, and dries my skin. He dries every part of me so tenderly before he carries me to his big bed and sets me down. He unwraps the towel slowly, staring at my body as though it’s a precious gift he’s been given.
I want to whisper the words that have been rattling around in my head for three days. I want to tell him that I love him, but I’m not sure if he’ll say the words back.
“I love your body,” Roman says, interrupting my thoughts as he caresses my rounded tummy. I watch his fingers move along my skin and remember that flicker of emotion on his face earlier.
I capture one of his big hands in mine and press it to my face. “I like your fingers. I like your hands.”
He’s quiet, pain flickering across his expression.
I don’t want him to think for a moment that I don’t love every inch of his body. He’s shown me so much acceptance, and I want to give that gift back to him. “I don’t care about the arthritis or the way they’re gnarled. They belong to you, so they’re special to me.”
He swallows and says, “Mom used to smash them. I told you I was a troublemaker, had a mouth on me, and a mean streak. She would get frustrated with me, so she’d break my fingers.”
I gasp. “That’s horrible.”
He’s staring at a spot above my head, not looking into my eyes. “I didn’t make things easy for her growing up.”
“You still didn’t deserve it.” I cup his face. “You were a little boy who didn’t deserve any of it.”
His gaze meets mine. “She left me behind with my drunk father, and he turned his fists on me. When I robbed the bank, I thought I would make enough money that I could show my mom that I was worth staying for and my dad that I didn’t deserve to have the shit beaten out of me.”
He shakes his head. “Kids get involved in criminal stuff not because they’re bored, but because they want something. Respect or protection. It’s never about the money.”
My heart breaks as I hear his story. My poor mountain man has not had an easy life. I slide my hand down from his face and put it over his heart. “You’re my safe place, but I need you to know that I’m yours.”
He slips inside my body, and we make love at a slow, unhurried pace. We stare into each other’s eyes, and this is exactly what I wanted.
When it’s over, he pulls me onto his chest and rests his chin on my head. His fingers absently trace designs on my back. “I want to marry you now.”
I crane my neck to look up at him. “Now?”
He chuckles. “Well, as soon as these thunderstorms end. There’s a place I want to take you. It’s beautiful, and I think you’ll enjoy getting married there…unless you’ve already planned out the perfect wedding.”
I’ve never given much thought to my future outside of paying off the debts for my brother and starting over in my own place. But now, all I want is a life with Roman. “That sounds pretty amazing.”
Roman
Something is tickling my fingers, and it wakes me from a restful slumber. Since Gabby started staying here, I’ve been sleeping through the night. There’s something about having her by my side that lets me rest easy.
I don’t ever plan to be apart from her again and knowing that she agreed to marry me as soon as possible fills me with happiness and contentment. After decades of feeling lost and unmoored in this world, I found her, my center, my anchor, my one place of refuge.