“Focus on your breaths and count backward with me. Ten ... nine ... eight ... seven ... six ... inhale ... five ... four ... three ... two ... one ... exhale ...” Kelcie keeps going through theexercise with me, and when the claustrophobic sensation subsides, she yanks me into a hug, her palm cradling the back of my head.
She holds me as if I’m the most precious thing to her while cooing, “You’re not in that restroom anymore. You’re here with me, where you’re safe and loved.” She drops kisses on the side of my face. “I want you. You’re important to me. I love you.”
I tilt my head back so I can see her face, and desperately needing to hear the words again, I beg, “Please say that again.”
“I want all of you.” Her features tighten with so much love for me, it bathes me in comforting warmth. “You are the most important person in my life.” My heart squeezes in my chest. “I love you with all of my heart, Levi Graye.”
My chest expands with one emotion after another, filling the space until it feels like it might explode. I feel everything from love to damn near obsession when it comes to Kelcie.
Then there’s a moment when I wonder if this is even real. Am I dreaming? How is it possible that this beautiful creature is here with me?
To make sure this is not a dream, I press my palm to Kelcie’s cheek, then to the side of her neck, before settling it over her heart. I feel every beat, and shaking my head, my tone sounds incredulous as I ask, “How can someone as amazing as you love someone like me?”
The corners of her mouth tip up in a tender smile. “Loving you is as easy as breathing.”
Her words patch the cracks in my soul, and I know this is one of those moments I’ll think back on when I’m lying on my deathbed.
This moment is what makes life worth living.
With my eyes imprisoned by hers, my voice is hoarse as I say, “I always believed I wasn’t capable of loving another person.” I move my hand up to the side of her neck and brush my thumb over her jaw. “But you showed me how wrong I was.” I pull her closer until I can press my forehead to hers. “I love you, Kelcie.” My eyes drift closed as the intensity of my emotions for her overwhelms me. “You own every inchof my heart.” I press a kiss to her mouth. “Only you.” My lips nip at hers again. “You’re everything to me.”
I take her in a crushing kiss filled with desperation to show her just how much she means to me.
Kelcie’s hands move into my hair, then down to my chest, before going back up to find my hair again. It’s like she can’t get enough of touching me.
Breaking the kiss, I grab the back of my collar and rip the shirt over my head.
My woman’s eyes zero in on my chest like a heat-seeking missile, her pupils dilating with desire, and not even a second later, her palms and fingers explore every inch of my tattoo.
“So beautiful,” she whispers, looking at me as if I’m a work of art.
The tip of her pointer finger traces the scars she can feel beneath the ink, and her eyes dart up to mine, asking the silent question.
“My mother was ironing clothes when my half brother tugged at the cord. It fell and missed him by mere inches. My stepfather grabbed the iron and pressed it to my chest to show me how badly his son could’ve been hurt.”
“Jesus,” Kelcie whimpers. “And your mother did nothing?”
“She never tried to stop him. My stepfather gave her everything she wanted, and letting him abuse me was the price she was willing to pay for her comfortable life.”
Kelcie’s face crumples with heartbreak. “I’m so sorry, Levi.”
Shaking my head, I say, “It wasn’t your fault or doing.”
“I know, but someone has to say the words to you.” She closes the distance between us and gives me a soft kiss before she begins dropping them all over my neck and chest.
Her kisses and touches turn sensual, and it has me hardening beneath her. The instant she feels me, she presses down on me, and her hips swivel.
Jesus.
Pushing my hands through her hair, I grip fistfuls of the silky strands and pull her head back. Her lips are parted and her eyes hooded from desire, making her look fucking sexy.
With our gazes locked on each other, I thrust up, and we both groan at how good it feels. I do it again, and our breaths burst over our lips.
“Levi.”
Kelcie makes my name sound like a desperate prayer, and it has me yanking her against me while I crush my mouth to hers. I kiss her with every ounce of need I’ve ever had to be loved. I greedily take whatever she’s willing to give me.
Her hips begin to move at a steady pace, and as she presses down on me, I keep thrusting up.
