“Life without parole,” he bends down, tipping my chin upward, his touch burning my skin. “I got life without parole for you, and you couldn’t even say ‘thank you.’”
Without thinking, I brush my fingers over his hand, feeling the callouses there. “I can’t fix what happened now, but I’m so sorry.”
His expression breaks for a split second, the anger dissipating. “Don’t fucking play with me.”
“I’m not,” I squeeze his hand, hating the way it feels so familiar in a way that I don’t understand. “I didn’t know what happened to you.I didn’t know. I loved you, Noah.” The words come out without me even realizing it, and Noah freezes.
“You didn’t. We were just kids.”
“And that’s how I know I did,” I argue, squeezing my eyes shut, as he drags me to my feet. I have no fucking idea what he’s going to do, but at this point, he can have it all.
I surrender. I’m so tired of running.
“All the fucked up stuff that happened,” my mouth keeps moving, as he grips my arm and tugs me toward the woods. “I didn’t forget you, Noah. I just didn’tknowyou anymore. You were?—”
He shoves me back against the tree, the collision knocking the breath out of me. “I don’t know what you’re trying to do right now.” His voice has an edge now. “Fuck with my head? Try to make it out like you still care?”
I shake my head and look away. “I don’t know. I’m just sorry.”
“Then show me.”
I whip my eyes back to his. “I’ll turn myself in.”
He chuckles sardonically. “They’ll still throw me in prison for escaping, and let’s be honest, a confession won’t mean shit for me. They’ll never believe me.” He runs his thumb along my jaw, setting it on fire and sending a shiver down my spine.
“Then what do you want me to do?” I choke out, our bodies pressed together.
His lips brush across my cheek to my ear. “Give me what I really want.” He pauses. “You.”
I suck in a sharp breath and slip my hand between us, running down his hard abdomen and feeling him shiver inresponse. I drop lower, until my hand brushes over the top of his jeans, his cock rigid against me. His breath catches as I squeeze.
Oh fuck.
The younger Rue never knew this is what she wanted from Noah Anders. But the adult Rue… Yeah, I knowthisis what I always imagined would’ve happened had he stayed in Moccasin Cove.
And there would’ve been no Matthew.
I close the distance then, my mouth colliding with his, as I let the fantasy take over—that Noah wants me because he loves me still, not because it’s a part of some sick revenge plot.
His hands move frantically over my body, running the curve of my hips, as his mouth pulls from mine, trailing along my jaw. My chest heaves as his fingers unsnap the button on my jeans, and I squeeze his dick again.
“Rue,” he murmurs, his hand lingering against my skin. I expect him to slip beneath the fabric, but instead, he violently shoves it all down.
I gasp, the cold assaulting the warm, wet place. “Fuck,” I shiver.
But Noah doesn’t stop. His hands move quickly, shoving my sweater up and revealing my breasts. My nipples ache against the cold, and I struggle to get control of my violent shudders.
But then his mouth over my nipple, sucking and pulling me into his mouth, and his hand glides between my legs. He groans as he coats his fingers in my wetness.
I do want you, Noah.
And maybe that realization is why his touches, while desperate, suddenly grow gentler. He strokes my clit, and arousal I haven’t felt in so long, pours through my body. I arch back against the tree, rocking my hips against his touch.
“Noah,” I pant, as my fingers curl through the softness of his hair. I close my eyes, still letting myself pretend like this isn’t just revenge for him.
And I give way to every fiber of me that was holding back.
“There it is,” he groans into my chest. “Come for me, Rue.”
