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‘I see you, Hannah. I see you when you’re with me and I see you when you’re out in the world. I know your every honest reaction when you laugh or smile for me. I know when your touch is the real you and I know when you slip into the role of the other person.’ His voice was so even that, even though his words were scaring her, for some reason they calmed her too.
‘I don’t know why you need to be her, Hannah, and I won’t ask why, but you need to know that you don’t need her. That armour... Tonight, when I saw you shrug that personality on, it bothered me. I don’t like seeing you hide yourself, because you’re an incredible woman. And I know it’s all a mask. Those flirty touches and smiles and laughter...they’re all a mask.’
Hannah’s throat was thick with unshed tears. ‘Scary’ wasn’t the right word—this was terrifying. The last person who had seen the real her had found her wanting. He hadn’t thought she was special. He’d made sure she knew that it was unthinkable that she could be enough. She couldn’t be that vulnerable again. And, though she knew Matt was leaving in a few days, what if he too decided that she wasn’t worth the effort, now that he’d seen her? Not even for this temporary romance that was unlike anything she had experienced in her life.
Matt pulled her away from his body, cupping her face in his large hands. She tried to turn her face, to hide the tears, but he wouldn’t let her. He wasn’t looking away.
His eyes were pleading. ‘Hannah, I see you, and you’re perfect. Please don’t hide.’
* * *
Hannah opened her eyes, Matt’s words ringing through her mind. He had seen her then and she knew she had seen him too. Because the man who’d wanted her to find her strength hadn’t been cold or distant. That man had been perfect, and she knew like she knew her own heart that this version of him was a mask. But why was he hiding?
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
THE SHORT DRIVE back to Matt’s penthouse felt unbearably long. Hannah refused to look at him, afraid of what she might see on his face. Unfortunately, she’d learnt a long time ago that she had very little control when it came to Matt. Out the corner of her eye, she looked over, seeing no expression on his face at all. He was focussed only on the road.
The tension was uncomfortable. Especially since last night had felt like such a revelation. It had felt like progress. Clearly, she’d been wrong. So Hannah refused to break the silence now.
Replaying the scene at the house in her mind, Hannah was more than a little curious as to why Matt had reacted the way he had. Something was going on. Maybe she could help him deal with it. She cared for him, more and more with each day. That was why she hated the second-guessing she was doing because it didn’t bode well. Not if he was going to be her husband.
Is this what awaits me? she thought. Will this be my marriage? Will I have a husband who will always remain closed off to me?
* * *
Patience was something Matt had always prided himself on. He didn’t lose his temper with people. He tried to make them comfortable. He hardly ever snapped at anyone. It was how he won people over. When people felt safe, they performed at their best. And yet he had snapped at the one woman who meant more to him than anyone else. It would be a massive understatement to say he was annoyed at himself, because now Hannah was quiet. She hadn’t uttered a word since she had told him she was ready to leave, that she had seen all she needed to.
Through parking the car and travelling up to the apartment, Hannah remained silent. Matt noticed just how much further away she stood as they ascended. The physical space irritated him.
The moment the doors slid open, Hannah marched out, making a beeline for her room, but Matt was much quicker. He grabbed her hand and tugged her to him, closing the chasm that was opening up between them. The feel of her pressed against him was exactly right. The only thing that could make this moment any more right was if she hit him with the fiery attitude he so enjoyed. Except she was looking at him with confusion and trepidation.
Do something about it!
He knew exactly what—the best distraction they had. He brushed his lips over hers and felt her stiffen in his arms. Lightly, he grazed his lips over the corner of hers and she relaxed a fraction. Then his lips were trailing over her jaw and she leaned into him. He pressed a peck, barely a tickle, against the soft skin at the base of her ear.
‘Hannah,’ he whispered, and he was rewarded with a reluctant moan. He felt her jaw flex with frustration at her response, making him smile. She could never hide how he made her feel. And he knew he could pull her back to him now, make her forget about what had happened at the house. Her fingers were twisted in the skirt of her dress. She was determined not to give in to him, Matt supposed.
‘Touch me,’ he whispered, sucking her earlobe into his mouth. He knew she would remember the last time he’d said those words to her—seven months ago in a hotel room in Melbourne.
‘Now.’ The low, rough command aroused her. He could see it in her eyes when he pulled away to look at her. The fingers at her sides loosened, slowly raising to slip under his shirt. Muscles tightening at her touch, Matt swallowed down the plea for more. He was in control here. He would make Hannah focus on all the ways they were so good together.
Matt watched the fabric of his shirt lift higher and higher as her hands travelled up his chest. They glided over his skin, leaving behind a trail of blazing heat until she bunched it in her hands and pulled it over his head, leaving his torso gloriously naked.
He loved how confident and demanding Hannah was when it came to her needs. There was nothing sexier than a woman who knew what she wanted. And, despite his slip-up earlier, it was obvious she still wanted him. He would do anything for that look. He couldn’t show his emotions to her or talk about what he felt. What he could do was show her with his body that he was sorry. That he wanted her.
Cradling her face in his hands, Matt covered her lips with his, glorying in that instant high he got every time he kissed her. Her fingers curled into his sides, nails scraping his skin making him growl deep in his throat, an animalistic sound. But that was what Hannah did to him—reduced him to primal want and need. Her touch could turn him to ash and, God, did he want that!
Wanting to taste her, Matt slid his tongue along the seam of her lips. Instantly she parted them on a mewl laced with desire. He wanted to plunder her mouth with his tongue but, after what had happened earlier, he knew that would be wrong. Hannah deserved tenderness. His tongue glided over hers, tasting her sweetness, feeling her shiver against his body. Their breaths were coming in short pants as the electricity between them climbed, charging the very air around them. His lips roved against hers, fingers threading through her hair, a sweet seduction. Her body melted against his a little more with every dance of their tongues.
But Matt was impatient to feel her body on his. When he had stopped her from walking away, his only intention had been to quell her anger. To show her they had something she shouldn’t walk away from. He should have known that a few kisses and touches would never be enough between them. This chemistry they had was more powerful than any will or plan. It consumed them. So it was no surprise that now all Matt wanted was to be with Hannah...inside her.
Lips connected, Matt’s hands travelled down her body, grasping her hips, bunching the fabric of her summer dress. His fingers inched it higher until it was all fisted in his palms. Breaking away only long enough to pull the dress off her, he dropped it to the floor. Standing there in just her underwear, Hannah was a vision, a Botticelli painting brought to life.
But he needed to see, feel, more.
He peeled her bra off her, fusing his lips to hers once more. His fingers traced patterns until they found her nipples. Teasing to the rhythm of his tongue, Hannah sighed his name, and he slipped the fingers of his other hand to her sex, finding her wet and needy.
‘Oh, Hannah...’ He groaned.
