Page 38 of Believe In Us

Her lips were kiss-swollen, her eyes dark, her mouth parted slightly as she breathed fast and short. “Let me take you to your bedroom,” I said.

For a moment it looked like she was starting to hesitate, which was maybe a smart thing, but she whispered, “Please.”

Sweet fucking hell, Chloe saying “please” in her low, throaty, barely-above-a-whisper voice, and with her sitting in my lap, soft and warm, I would’ve given her the world, just handed it to her on a platter. What I wanted, though, was to lose myself in the world of this fire burning between us. So I adjusted her in my arms and lifted her.

She squeaked a little. “You like pink, don’t you?” I teased, noticing her fluffy pink socks for the first time.

“I love pink.”

“It suits you.” There went my heart again, with that little curl of warmth around it and that tricky twist that Chloe, and only Chloe, elicited.

I didn’t think we’d encounter anyone else on this walk, but I hustled down the hallway just in case. I nudged the door open, closing it quietly behind us. I aimed straight for her bedroom and eased her down. Moonlight was falling through the windows.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Lincoln

No universe

“You didn’t leave a light on,” I said.

“I like the moonlight.”

We stood there for a moment, and for the first time, uncertainty snaked through me. My cynical voice, which was so often absent when it came to Chloe, reminded me that I was damaged emotional goods. I’d always figured my fear of losing someone I loved again would keep me from falling in love, would keep me from wanting more than anything superficial.

Since the fire, I’d gone out of my way to keep encounters surface-level, and they were few and far between. It hadn’t been too difficult. The lifestyle of being a hotshot firefighter didn’t lend itself to much spare time. But this, with Chloe, was beyond anything I’d experienced or even contemplated. The force of it was too powerful for me to know how to defend myself.

She lifted her chin a little, blinking. “If you’ve changed your mind,” she began.

“As if,” I said flatly. Because maybe I had that cynical voice trying to reason with me, but there was no going back.

The flicker of insecurity and vulnerability in her gaze, felt like a sharp blade dragged over my heart. As if she expected me to think better of it, to decide I didn’t want her enough to override my own hesitation. I surprised even myself when I reached for the tie on her robe, sliding it through my fingers to unravel it as I tugged her close to me, slow and sure.

When she was right there, her sweet mouth inches away from mine, I said, “There is no universe where I don’t want you, Chloe. You need to understand that.”

Her eyes went a little wide. My words were true and spoken with an intensity that felt like a vow, because it was one. There was no universe where I wouldn’t want Chloe. Hell, I’d wanted her since the first time I’d laid eyes on her. Now that I had given in to the force of my want for her, it was even more powerful.

“Lincoln,” she began.

I shook my head sharply. “Whatever you feel about what two people you trusted did, don’t you dare let that be about you. You were the collateral damage in their choices. But it was never about you,” I said flatly. “With you and me—” I reached for her hand, curling it in mine, our hands clasped between us where I could feel the beat of her heart and she could feel mine, almost as if our joined hands held a heartbeat of their own. “This is real.”

She blinked before whispering, “I know.”

I had the best of intentions to go slowly, but it was more than a little difficult to keep things under control, because once her lips met mine again, it felt like falling, literally. My heart was in her hands, my need was clamoring so loud there was no ignoring it, everything else caught in the current, as if swept into a rushing river.

I savored the sweetness of her mouth, the little sounds she made at the back of her throat. I unwrapped her like the present she was, her robe falling to the floor. She was once again wearing that faded, near-threadbare t-shirt, which, to be honest, was sexy as fuck. I loved how she was soft and curvy, her breasts just a little more than a handful. As the fiery seconds burned by, I got her down to just her panties and her fluffy pink socks. She broke away, gasping for air, as we stood at the foot of her bed.

“You’re wearing too many clothes.” She boldly dragged her hand over the length of my arousal, and I made quick work of that, tossing my t-shirt off and kicking my sweatpants to the floor. She moved to take her socks off and I shook my head.

“I love them. Plus I don’t want your feet to get cold.”

I meant that. The sense of protectiveness I felt for her was startling, even to me. I wanted her to feel safe and comfortable at all times. I also wanted her to lose her mind tonight. I knew I was going to lose mine. Hell, I already had.

Moments later, I stretched out on the bed beside her, the moonlight gilding her in a silvery glow. Her hands were just as curious and greedy as mine. She mapped my chest, trailing her fingertips over my shoulder, murmuring, “You have great shoulders.”

I chuckled. “Not as nice as yours.” I dusted a kiss on the curve of one before giving as much attention as I could to her breasts, sucking each nipple, cupping them lightly, savoring the way she arched into me. I teased my hands between her thighs, finding her panties slick and wet. I was so hard I ached, but I clung to what little discipline I had.

I paused for a moment, trying to slow the crescendo of need rolling through me. But then, Chloe shifted her leg, sliding it against mine, and electricity shimmered over my skin, sparking hot and fast. We were both restless. I forced myself to take a slow breath, sort of succeeding but barely.