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Noelle.
HisNoelle.
She tipped back her head and cried out his name. He felt the soft, inner contractions of her muscles and knew she was coming for him. Faster, rougher, stronger, he pounded into her until he found his own body-quaking release. A release that had him holding her with too much force, but he couldn’t let go.
Not now that he had Noelle. Too much time had been wasted. Too many years lost. There would be no going back. There would only be… “Marry me,” he blurted even as his heart thundered in his chest.
“What?”
He was still inside of her. Still feeling pleasure dance through every nerve in his body. “You said you loved me.”
“I—”
“Marry me.”
“Are you…” Her head moved against the pillow. He needed to see her eyes. Her face. “Are you serious right now?” Noelle asked with a gasp.
He withdrew from her, and absolutely hated that separation. If he had his way, he’d spend the whole holiday season inside of her.
But he needed to do this right. Or, hell, it was probably too late for right. He’d do it better. “Hold the thought.”
“Hold the—” She broke off.
He marched to the bathroom and ditched the condom. On the way back to her, he snagged his sweats. The light from the bedside lamp spilled onto the bed. She’d turned it on when he went into the bathroom. With sheets wrapped around her, Noelle perched on the edge of the mattress and watched him with her deep and wary gaze.
He headed straight for her and dropped to his knees.
Noelle shook her head. “I was afraid this would happen.”
He reached for her hand. Threaded his fingers with hers. “Afraid?” That wasn’t what he wanted. “You never need to be afraid with me.”
“It’s because we had sex. You think that because you’re friends with my brother that now you have to pull some noble BS and propose.” She tugged her hand, trying to pull it back from him even as she shook her head. “The offer is appreciated. Noted. But no thanks.”
No thanks.His heart turned to lead. “This has nothing to do with your brother.”
“Sex can just be sex, Brady. You don’t have to throw a marriage proposal in just because you feel guilty.” She swallowed. Blinked away what had betternotbe tears.
He brought their joined hands to his mouth. Pressed a kiss to her knuckles. “I don’t feel guilty, and with you, it willneverbe just sex.”
“No?” Another click as she swallowed. “Then what will it be?”
“You said you loved me,” he reminded her. When they’d been in his SUV, those words had pierced straight to his core. “That you’d been in love with me for years.” She couldn’t take those words back. Could not. Oh, what the hell would he do if shedidtake them back? Brady realized he was holding his breath.
“Yes.” She stared straight at him. “I said that.”
A smile stretched over his face. “That’s good. So good.”
She kept staring at him. No smile curved her lips.
“It’s good because I’m completely yours, Noelle. I am in love with you.”
A hard shake of her head. “No, you’re not. If you were in love with me, you would have said something sooner.” She tugged harder and this time, he let her go. He let go because there was pain in her voice. “You feel guilty because we had sex.”
“I feelthrilledthat we had sex. And I want to have sex with you over and over again, and one day, I’d love to have that mini-Noelle you mentioned scampering around a Christmas tree. I. Love. You.”
Another shake of her head. “You never saidanyof this before!”
“Neither did you, sweetheart.” Not until hours ago.
