Colt nuzzled her ear, kissing the slight hurt he’d caused. “Look at me.”
She swallowed noisily, taking two tries to lift her head, stare back at him. Those beautiful eyes peering into his. And he knew he was lost. That she’d forever hold his heart. His love.
He shifted. Lifted her up a bit higher, using his weight to hold her in place as he traced the line of her jaw with his fingertips. “Christ, you’re beautiful. I…”
How could he say he loved her when he hadn’t come close to finding redemption? When her life still hung in the balance?
Ellis smiled, mimicking his touch with one hand on his cheek. “Me, too. Now, shut up and love me.”
Love me.
Those two words set him off. Had him thrusting up into her. Hard. Unrelenting. She clung to his shoulders. Heels locked at the small of his back, body rising and lowering with each punishing stroke. She chanted his name against his ear, urging him on, biting at the muscles cording in his neck.
Too much. The wet sounds as he pounded into her. The needy moans crushed against his neck. The slide of her skin over his as she shimmied from the force. It pushed him over.
A few more hard thrusts, and he was coming. Cock emptying inside of her in endless spurts. His face buried in all of that soft hair. The touch of citrus mixing with the sharp aroma of sex. The press of her fingers against his shoulders as she crested, again.
Colt leaned fully against the door, locking his knees so he didn’t take them both to the floor. Not that he thought she’d even notice. Her eyes were squeezed shut against his neck, her chest heaving as she gasped in air. Tremors moved through her arms, shivering down her torso, and he wasn’t sure how she held on.
“Brett.”
His name. Whispered. The soft sound loosening something in his chest. Warming it. And he realized it didn’t matter if she’d come to the same conclusion. If she was just as lost as he was. If she couldn’t picture her life without him in it. He believed enough for both of them. And he’d wait. As long as it took. Days, months, years. He’d gladly spend his entire life proving what they had was real.
Which meant making her comfortable. And pressed against the door, his body crushing hers, their combined releases soaking their skin, wasn’t seeing to that comfort.
Colt eased back. Not enough to lower her. He wasn’t quite ready for that. Just a few inches. “Shower?”
Christ, he really needed to get more than one word out at a time. Even though this new Ellis was an operative. Could hold her own against armed men. Could probably kick Colt’s ass ifshe really wanted to. She was still essentially the woman he’d cherished all that time in the service. Still highly intellectual. She needed words. Conversation. Him expressing himself, instead of barking out what sounded like orders because his damn brain was too fried to process more.
He’d spent so much time shutting down, holding everything tightly inside, that he’d forgotten how to let it go. Show her how he felt when the words wouldn’t quite form on his tongue, yet.
She chuckled, glazed eyes focusing on him. “You going to do all the work? Because I’m not sure I can lift my arms.”
“Promise. Hold on.”
He wrapped his arms around her—one at her waist, the other under her ass. Tugged her in close then turned, kicking his jeans and boxers off to one side as he headed for the shower still pressed together. His weakening erection still inside her.
Ellis inhaled, and her rough exhalation spoke volumes. Her body contracted a few more times before he stopped outside the glass doors, aware he needed to put her down. Get them both fully naked. Warm up the water first. Grab some towels. But damn, it was hard. Getting his fingers to lift from her skin, let his dick slide out of her sex.
Took him a few tries, but he managed it. Made quick work of turning on the taps and getting a couple of towels. Testing the water before motioning her in. She smiled, drew her finger along his chest, then stepped inside. Sighing as the water cascaded along her skin.
She made room for him, moving into his arms the moment he shut the door. And just like that, time stopped. Everything but the two of them encased in glass and steam fading from his mind. No threat. No men trying to kill her. Just her body tight against his. Safe. Loved.
Ellis slid her arms beneath his, palming his back as she pulled herself even tighter. She didn’t speak. Just stood with him beneath the spray. Content.
He smiled against her hair. “You know, eventually I’m going to get it right. Spend hours with you beneath my hands. My mouth. I might even manage to set the scene. Light some candles. Soft music in the background.”
She eased back. Looked up. “Or, you could take me, again, right here in the shower. Because all I really need is you.”
CHAPTER TWENTY
All I really need is you.
Ellis had actually said it. Out loud. To Brett. All but confessed she was madly in love with him. That nothing had faded while they’d been apart. That her love hadn’t just been resurrected but intensified since falling into his arms. And she was powerless to stop it.
Didn’t want to, if she was being honest. Brett had grabbed her attention and her heart from the start. And she’d love the man until she died. No hesitations. No regrets.
Brett froze. Just stood there, water spraying across his skin, his arms wrapped around her. Breath held, his eyes focused on her. His lips slightly parted. His heartbeat echoed through her chest. Steady. Strong.
