Page 202 of Pure Recklessness

‘You love me?’ I asked. I knew he’d just said that he did, but I needed to be sure that I wasn’t imagining it. ‘Even though you could lose everything?’

If anything, now would be the perfect time to dump me. To save his job and the company’s reputation.

‘Yes, I love you.’ Blake took my hands in his. ‘And I can never lose everything. As long as I have you, that’s all I need. It’s more than I could’ve ever hoped for.’

‘But—’

‘Ellie,’ Blake said firmly. ‘I don’t think you understand how deeply I feel for you. What you’ve done for me. How you’ve enriched my life. Before you, I was fucking miserable. Ask my brothers. They’ll take great pleasure in telling you.’

‘You were kind of grumpy when we met.’ I smiled.

‘I was.’ His lips twitched. ‘I wasn’t living. I was existing. I love my work and the company. I always will. But you made me see that wasn’t enough. Even when you’re pursuing your dream career, there’s more to life than work. You showed me that. Made me see how beautiful life could be when you spend it with the right person. And you’re my person.’

‘And you’re mine.’ I kissed his cheek.

‘In the beginning,’ Blake continued, ‘I told myself it was just the sex, but now I see that even back then it was more. It was your drive, your intelligence, your ideas, your determination to succeed. And your curiosity about the world, your desire to travel and your hunger to really live life to the full was fucking infectious. You’ve been through a lot of pain. Your upbringing wasn’t easy. But you didn’t just sit there and bitch about it. You weren’t happy with your life, so you decided to change it. You left everything behind and you made things happen. Do you know how fucking attractive that is? And when I’m with you, I can just be myself. That’s worth more to me than all the money in the world. So whatever the board decides, I’ll accept it. As long as I have your love, I’ll be the richest man in the world.’

Tears rolled down my cheeks.

‘That was so beautiful,’ I sobbed. ‘It was straight out of a romance novel.’

‘Maybe reading so many of them has rubbed off on me,’ Blake joked before taking my face in his hands, swiping away my tears then kissing me.

The kiss was long, slow, heartfelt and filled with a kaleidoscope of emotions.

Need. Passion. Desire. Comfort.

And deep, everlasting love.

Everything was communicated through our lips.

Blake slowly pulled away then frowned.

‘What’s wrong?’ I asked.

‘It just occurred to me that I gave you a long, soppy declaration of my love for you, but didn’t check that you felt the same for me. Fuck. It’ll be really embarrassing if you don’t.’ He scrubbed his jaw.

‘Well, this is awkward…’ I tried and failed to make a serious face, but then burst out laughing. ‘Of course I love you, Percy Bear! I’ve loved you for ages. Months. It’s embarrassing how long I’ve loved you. But I’ve never said those words to anyone before and I was scared. I keep waiting for you to realise that you’d made a mistake. Or to wake up and find out that this has all been a dream. I wanted to wait until after you’d told everyone about us. Just to make sure. I didn’t want you to feel bad or pressured to stay with me if it all got too much.’

Blake shook his head.

‘When have you ever known me to be pressured into doing or saying something I don’t want to?’ Blake said.

‘You don’t get your way all the time.’ I laughed.

‘That’s news to me.’ He smirked. ‘In all seriousness though, you need to understand that I’m with you because I want to be. That will never change. You’re it for me, Doc. You’re everything.’

‘Same,’ I said as my heart expanded ten-fold.

‘I’m the one who should be worried about you wanting to be with someone your own age,’ Blake said. ‘Now that you’ve discovered how amazing sex is, you might want to play the field a little. Experiment with other people.’

‘Are you joking? I don’t have to be with anyone else to know that you’re the gold standard. No one could ever compare. The only man I want is you.’

Blake crushed his lips onto mine and this time the kiss was urgent and frenzied.

And as Blake lay me down on the sofa, lifted up my dress, removed my knickers then slid inside me, all of my concerns slipped away.

Blake was my home.