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He tilts my chin up toward him to inspect the corners of my eyes. If he was expecting tears, he didn’t find them. “I still haven’t figured out why you haven’t learned to believe in yourself.”
Damn it. “Who says I don’t.”
“I’m observant, Snow. In just a few hours, I know three vital things about you.”
Curiosity has me all—Tell me.
But anxiety has me stuck at—Please don’t tell me. Please don’t make me feel.
“You’re a survivor.” He lowers his voice a bit. “You’re remarkable in bed.”
The levity of his comment takes the edge off, so I chuckle and give his thigh a squeeze. “You’re not so bad yourself.”
His face softens, but just before words come out again, he sighs heavily.
One hard swallow. One organ punch. Two blinks too much.
I’m not going to like three. I know it.
“You’re suffocating in your own insecurity, Snow.”
Insecure.Accurate, but weird coming from someone else’s mouth, especially someone who has only been conscious for half the time we’ve met.
“Yeah,” I smash my lips together and nod, “…that’s what happens when life offers you no security.”
“That…” He reaches for my hand while staring at the carvings on the ceiling, both of us on our backs, talking about the weight on our chests.
“That what?”
He shakes his head. “You deserved to feel secure.”
Guilt creeps up my esophagus. “I kind of did, sometimes. Mama Rosa…she gave me the one thing life denied me.” I tilt my head in his direction. “It wasn’t security… she accepted me, despite all the mistakes I’ve made.”
He meets my gaze. “Mom’s kind of awesome like that.” A hand extends outward, inviting me to rest in the crook of his arm.
I take it.
Despite my predicament, I find the positive: in this very moment— whether it be the last, the first, or somewhere in between— I’m happy. Basking in the safety of Styx’s arms feels good, natural. Right.
I swallow, turn on my side, and rest my cheek on his bare chest, my body sore in all the right places—my heart too.
He sails his fingers down the indent of my spine. “I like your kind of awkward, Snow.” He shifts around, and I peek out of my hiding spot to find my panties looped around his finger and hanging in the air. “I did not expect these.”
“Thoseare all I have. They’re the cheapest ones, and they don’t grab at me in weird places.”
“They did look good, surprisingly.” He drops them on the floor and reaches for my leg, crossing it over his thighs. “Then again, with a body like this, I think everything looks good on you.”
He likes to cuddle, and that makes me smile even wider.
“As for the panties…” Bringing his lips closer to my ear, Styx whispers, “I wanted to rip them off you so bad.”
My laughter and heartbeat nearly suffocate me as I gag on the excitement.
“We’ll have to try that next time.”
Next time.The fluttering in my chest in uncontrollable. That’s hope’s wings spluttering about and filling me with warmth.
Reality clips them dead.
