Total pages in book: 91
Estimated words: 84085 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 420(@200wpm)___ 336(@250wpm)___ 280(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 84085 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 420(@200wpm)___ 336(@250wpm)___ 280(@300wpm)
Will flushed, his eyes darting away. “Whatever. You’re still an annoying, bossy asshole,” he muttered under his breath.
Dropping his voice to a warm whisper, Charlie nuzzled the side of Will’s head as he said, “You still can’t take a compliment, baby.” He lightly kissed Will’s cheekbone and hands grabbed Charlie’s arms. Fingers dug in and part of him tensed, expecting Will to shove him away, but he didn’t. Will just hung on to him, body trembling. “Give us a second chance. Let’s get to know each other. Let’s see if it’s at all possible for you to love me again.”
A harsh laugh broke from Will’s throat. “Loving you was never the problem, Charlie. It’s you leaving. I can’t…I can’t watch you walk away from me a second time. I won’t survive it.”
“Not going to happen,” Charlie swore. He lifted his head so that he could look Will in the eyes. “If it means giving up being a mercenary, I’ll do it. The guys wouldn’t be surprised in the least. They know how I feel about you. If you want, I’ll follow you around the world. I’ll keep you safe while you heal all the sick people you find.”
Will frowned and shook his head. Fingers dug even deeper into his biceps, holding him tight as if he were afraid of him slipping away. “No. Absolutely not. You love what you do. You can’t give that up for me. You’d be miserable. It would be like asking me to stop being a doctor. It’s who we are.”
“Then we talk about it. We figure it out together. No more secrets. No more lies.” Charlie leaned in and kissed away a tear. “Together. We get to know each other again.”
“Did I ever really know you?” Will whispered.
“You did.” Charlie pressed another kiss to the corner of his mouth. “You didn’t know my job, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t hide myself from you.” He chuckled brokenly. “My God, baby, I think you’re the only person who’s ever really known me, and for some reason, you still loved me.”
Will jerked in his arms and Charlie was stunned to find blazingly fierce blue eyes glaring at him. “You hurt me, but I always knew that you were a good person at heart. You’re a protector. I saw it in a hundred little things you did for me. You always made sure that I was safe and cared for.”
He couldn’t hold back any longer. He seized Will’s lips in a brutal kiss, but instead of fighting him, Will’s mouth opened instantly, welcoming him inside. His tense body melted against Charlie’s. Their tongues slid together, and they ate at each other as if they were starved.
With each kiss, it felt like Will was handing more of himself over to Charlie, trusting him in a way that Charlie hadn’t experienced since they’d been together in Paris. It was humbling, nearly bringing Charlie to his knees. Never was he going to hurt this man again. His one and only job in this life was to protect his heart.
Will’s long, nimble fingers slipped between them and plucked at the hem of his shirt, pulling it up so he could get at bare skin. His hands slid up and Charlie moaned into his mouth. Last night, Will had been needy and demanding, but content to let Charlie have all the control. Tonight, Will was the aggressor, and it was destroying what working brain cells he had left.
Clothes were torn off and left in a pile at their feet. Will’s naked body against his was like embracing a dancing flame. He scorched everything he touched, and Charlie still wanted more.
His brain gave a final gasp at trying to seize control of the moment when Charlie broke off the searing kiss and gazed at Will’s hooded eyes. “No regrets?”
Will graced him with a lopsided smile. “No regrets. We have some fun tonight. Tomorrow, we talk like adults.”
Charlie smirked at him. “You think we could manage that? Adulting?”
“We have our moments.” With a wild laugh, Will shoved Charlie toward the bed. “Lie on the bed while I find your lube.”
“Top left pocket of the bag,” Charlie instructed as he stretched out on the bed, his hands behind his head. He grinned to himself, enjoying the view of Will’s perfect ass as he bent to dig through his duffle bag. He was definitely skinnier than he remembered. There was a scar by his left shoulder blade that had not been there when they were dating. Yes, he needed to pin Will and closely inspect every inch of his body to learn all the new changes.
But the wicked grin Will flashed him as he held up the bottle of lube and a condom made it clear that inspection was not going to happen tonight.
“What dirty thing are you thinking?” Charlie demanded, his voice barely more than a growl.