Total pages in book: 106
Estimated words: 98226 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 491(@200wpm)___ 393(@250wpm)___ 327(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 98226 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 491(@200wpm)___ 393(@250wpm)___ 327(@300wpm)
“I’m sorry for what I said last night, for the position I put you in,” he said. “It was unfair. I wanted you so badly that I didn’t consider your feelings for Joel, or your loyalty to him, and I respect and admire both.” He paused. “It’s just, I knew things about him that you didn’t. I had this… aching need to keep you safe, to protect you from him, to show you that you were better and deserved better. That, coupled with my feelings for you, and, well…” He shrugged. “I was blinded. I wanted to save you. I wanted to steal you away. I wanted you all for myself.”
My throat tightened more and more with every new word he spoke.
“It was wrong,” he whispered. “And I apologize for it, the way I handled it all. But I am not sorry for the way I feel about you, only the timing in which those feelings developed.”
I shook my head, because I didn’t want him to be sorry. For any of it.
Theo pressed his forehead to mine, and the moment he did, we both closed our eyes on a relieved sigh.
“Stay,” he whispered. “Be with me now, without anyone else in the way.” He lifted his gaze to meet mine again. “Let me show you the way you deserve to be treated.”
I choked on a sob, throwing my arms around his neck and squeezing him tight. Theo held me steadfast, wrapping me up in his arms completely as if to reassure me that it was all okay, that I was safe, that he didn’t want me to go. And when I pulled back to look at him again, he met my lips with a strong, promising kiss — one I felt like a tattoo on my soul.
“You haven’t slept,” he said, still holding me tight.
“How do you know that?”
“Because I haven’t either.” He shrugged, sweeping my hair out of my eyes. “I couldn’t rest, knowing what I’d said to you, what you must have been thinking of me. And then when Joel came to me this morning…”
I shook my head, burying my face in his chest. “It was the worst night of my life.”
Theo kissed my hair. “I hope to make up for it by giving you the best night of your life, over and over again. But for now,” he said, pulling back and sliding his hand down my arm to grab my hand in his. “We need rest.”
He pulled me toward the stairs, and I followed, my body suddenly drained. I left my bag behind without a second thought, and Theo led us up to the owner’s suite.
It was cool and dark, the curtains drawn over the large windows, and Theo walked me to the bed, pulling back the covers and helping me crawl under them. I kicked my shoes off, and Theo did the same, climbing over me to slip under the sheets, too.
I sighed at the way the mattress took my weight, as if it was wrapping me up in a big hug. It was the softest, most comfortable bed I’d ever been in, and the pillow seemed to shape itself to the exact way my neck and head needed to be supported.
Theo wrapped his arm around my waist, pulling my back into his chest, his legs tangling up with mine. His warmth enveloped me like a cocoon, and I sighed again, snuggling in closer.
There was so much to think about, so much to digest. I had a million questions for Theo but not the strength or alertness to ask a single one.
I succumbed to the exhaustion as it pulled me under, knowing that with Theo’s arms wrapped around me, nothing else mattered.
“Everything is okay now,” he promised with a kiss to the back of my neck.
And then I slipped into a dreamless rest.
When I woke, it was late. Or early, I couldn’t be sure. There was a strong smell of coffee and bacon and something sweet, like maple syrup. I creaked one eye open first, then the next, looking around a little confused.
I was in Theo’s suite.
It all came back to me then, as I took in the view of his bookshelf, his albums, the geometric design of the tables in the sitting area. There was a tray of food on said tables, and the sun was just barely peeking through where the curtains had been drawn back.
My heart thumped hard in my chest, first in excitement and then in discomfort. The memory of what had happened surfaced like oil in salt water, slick and unwelcome. But before I could digest it too much, a warm hand wrapped around my hip from behind.
“Good morning,” Theo said.
I jumped a little at the touch, which made him chuckle before he pressed a gentle kiss to my cheek, his lips soft and warm. I leaned into the gesture with a relieved sigh.