Total pages in book: 141
Estimated words: 134212 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 671(@200wpm)___ 537(@250wpm)___ 447(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 134212 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 671(@200wpm)___ 537(@250wpm)___ 447(@300wpm)
Their hands hold between them, and they talk like they’ve never been apart, laughing, gasping, touching, feeling. They’re in their own world, and it’s one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen.
“I don’t think we’ll be missed if we leave them for a while.” I glance at Luke, who isn’t without emotion either. I swipe the pad of my thumb under his eye, but he reaches up and catches my hand, taking it to his mouth and kissing my knuckles.
“Come,” he whispers, pulling me out of the room and leading me to his office. I know what he’s going to say before he says it.
He gets me inside and closes the door. “I’ll wait for you as long as I need to, Lo.” Dropping my hand, he clasps my face, bringing his forehead to mine. “Ten years, twenty, one hundred. However long it takes. You’ll never be alone, I promise.”
I nod as best I can in his hold, telling him I get it. I understand. And we stare. For the longest time, we just stare at each other, our hands remaining in place. His green eyes spill sincerity all over me. I need him to know how much he means to me. Words just don’t seem enough anymore.
My eyes drop to his lips and I slowly advance, until our flesh skims so delicately. He breathes out, starting to shake before me, as he pushes his mouth firmer to mine. “Lo, what are you doing?” he asks against my lips. I’m at war in my head, swaying back and forth between accepting and denying us.
My soft lips travel across his and down, reaching his jaw. My heart is pounding as I peck lightly and nuzzle into his scruff. “Loving you,” I whisper.
Acceptance. It’s a beautiful thing. A release.
Sliding my face out of his neck and my hands into his hair, I come nose to nose with him. My lips meet his again, kissing him gently, and his mouth naturally responds to it, opening up to me.
I can feel myself coming to life in his arms, possibly because it’s been years since I’ve been kissed. Desired. It’s been years since I’ve felt so cherished. Treasured. My tongue slips into his mouth, my body pushing against his chest. Our kiss is slow, measured, and careful. It’s just about the most perfect kiss I’ve ever shared with someone, under the most imperfect circumstances.
My heartbeat is strong. So strong.
I search for the absent guilt and moral tangle I should be dealing with.
It’s nowhere to be found.
I wait for the sea of remorse to crash through me.
It doesn’t come.
I compress us tightly together, and Luke’s thumping heart against me jump-starts mine.
And I accept, I can live again. I can be happy and love and be loved.
For us.
For all three of us.
THE END