Total pages in book: 75
Estimated words: 74122 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 371(@200wpm)___ 296(@250wpm)___ 247(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 74122 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 371(@200wpm)___ 296(@250wpm)___ 247(@300wpm)
“Why?” she asked softly, her eyes shiny and filling with what he knew would soon spill over and down her cheeks.
Fuck. He hated when women cried. Especially Emma.
Though he wasn’t quite sure how to answer her question, he gave it a shot and hoped he didn’t sound too much like a stupid fuck.
“You’re good for me, Em. Never thought I’d say that to any woman. Never thought I’d want somethin’ long term with one, either. But I’m gonna be thirty-six years old. Built a successful business from the ground up. Found my family, my brothers. But I need somethin’ else. Didn’t realize it ‘til you walked in the door, lookin’ all awkward as fuck. You got to me, Em, not just in the dick, but here.” He slapped his hand on his chest over his heart. “Never thought it could happen to me. Saw my brothers goin’ down left an’ right. Gotta admit, kinda laughed at ‘em, ‘til I saw how their women were right for ‘em. Perfect. Made ‘em whole. Made ‘em better. Complete. Maybe I’m soundin’ like a fuckin’ pussy sayin’ all this. An’, honestly, don’t give a flyin’ fuck. But I tell you shit I’ve never told anyone else an’ that’s sayin’ somethin’. Never spilled my guts to just any snatch in my bed before. An’ you know why? ‘Cause they were just pussy. Nothin’ more, nothin’ less. That ain’t you, Emma. Ain’t just pussy. You’re so much more than that. An’ now I’m done talkin’ ‘bout this shit before I grow a pair of tits an’ my balls disappear into my cunt.”
The whole time he was spilling his guts, her mouth hung open, her eyes were wide and her face had become pale.
He must have scared the shit out of her. Because his speech scared the shit out of him. But it was said, and he wasn’t taking it back. Not that he could even if he wanted to.
“Dawson,” she whispered.
He closed his eyes, waiting for the rejection. Waiting for her to tell him that this was all just temporary. That they’d never be a thing. That he was a means to an end. That there was only one reason why she was in his life.
And that reason wasn’t him.
Because why the fuck would she want to spend the rest of her life with someone like him? An uneducated biker and strip club manager.
She wouldn’t.
“Dawson, look at me.”
Fuck. The ache in his chest was now unbearable. She just needed to put him out of his misery. Pull the trigger...
Tell him he’s a stupid fuck for even thinking those thoughts.
“Look at me!” she demanded loudly.
His eyes popped open, and he saw something in her face that made his gut twist and his heart stop.
A lone tear rolled down from the corner of her eye, disappearing into the blonde hair that was spread out around her like a satin cape.
“I didn’t realize it until you started talking...”
That I’m a stupid fuck?
“Just how I felt...”
An’ you wanted to run out of the room screamin’?
“And I’m not sure I should tell you this...”
She was killing him. This hesitation, this uncertainty.
“But...”
HOLY FUCK!
“Dawson... I think...”
“Emma,” he finally barked because he had no more patience left. None. Zip. Zero. It was like she was digging a knife slowly into his heart. The pain was deep and unbearable.
“I love you.”
His head jerked back.
What?
Wait. What?
He glanced over his shoulder to make sure no one was behind him. That she wasn’t saying that to anyone else but him.
She reached up and cupped his cheek. “Does that freak you out? Because I have to admit that it freaks me out a bit.”
Fuck yeah, it freaked him the fuck out. It was the last thing he expected to come out of her mouth.
“Fuck, baby girl,” was the only thing he could say because, fuck him, he had no idea how to respond to the bomb she just dropped. He already had flayed himself open enough to her.
Instead, he lowered his head and took her mouth, licking her bottom lip that now belonged to him, tangling their tongues, exploring every part of it. She groaned as he took the kiss deeper. He dug his fingers into her hair, fisting them tight, holding her down, claiming her as his.
Because now there was no doubt she was his. And no matter what happened in their life with the shitty hands they’ve been dealt, he knew one thing for sure, he was not letting her go.
Not now. Not ever.
When he finally broke the kiss, she stared up at him in a daze. “I need to get to work.”
“Yeah.” They both did. But the woman just admitted something that almost blew his brains out. He needed to respond to that. “Gotta tell you somethin’, baby girl.”
“What’s that?”
“Never had anyone tell me that before.”
“But—”
He knew where she was going with that, so he cut her off. “No, Em. Not even her.” His mother had never said those three words to him. Not once that he could remember. “So let me tell you how fuckin’ special that is to me. An’ I also gotta say that if what I’m feelin’ is love, then,” he sucked in a breath, steeled himself then admitted, “I love you, too. Just wanna let you know.”