Total pages in book: 102
Estimated words: 97865 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 489(@200wpm)___ 391(@250wpm)___ 326(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 97865 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 489(@200wpm)___ 391(@250wpm)___ 326(@300wpm)
He drags his nose up my neck until the warmth of his breath hits my ear. “Then you have no idea what lengths I’d go to to have you, keep you, cherish you and only you.” He grips my earlobe between his teeth. “I can’t control myself when it comes to you.” My hips jerk, and I moan when he thrusts forward into me. “And that’s never going to change.”
He secures me in his arms and stands, walking us down the hall. He walks us into his bedroom and lays me on his soft sheets. “If that’s too much for you, you need to let me know now. Because I’ll always be crazy in love with you.” He pulls back and enters me with force. “Protective.” Again. “And unbearably possessive. That’s what you do to me.” His hand scoops under my butt to fuck me deeper.
“Theo. . .” I moan his name, pleading, and arch my back off the bed.
“Tell me that’s what you want.”
My heart beats violently against his. These confessions and promises. . . I feel so vulnerable. “I love you, too,” I hum against his lips. “I want all of you. The good, the bad. I even want your unbearable asshole side. God, I must be crazy. I love you—” He cuts my words short, stealing my breath in the most beautiful kiss.
We come together, moaning each other’s name.
It’s well into the night before we wave the white flag. I rest my head on his chest and wrap my leg over his. Our bodies are spent. We’re both exhausted, but the weight of the future keeps us awake. “Theo?” I know he’s nowhere near sleep. His arm wraps around my waist, and he pulls me into him.
“Yeah?”
“So, what happens now?”
“What do you mean?”
I lift my head. “What do we do? About us? And your father.”
He grazes his fingers through my hair. “I’ll set up a meeting with my father and Charles in the morning to present my findings. Give them their ultimatums.”
He makes it sounds so simple. “And if it doesn’t go well?”
He leans up and presses his lips to mine, kissing me briefly. “Then we fight back. I don’t plan on backing down.” He takes control, flipping us. His thick legs hold me in place as his lips drag up my chin to take my mouth in a fervent kiss. When he lets us up for air, his hand drags up my neck and locks into my hair. “I won’t let anything happen to you. I’ll kill him with my bare hands before he has a chance to harm you—”
“Theo—”
“I’m promising you. You’re mine. And no one fucks with what’s mine.”
My chest tightens. This promise is romantic yet scary. We’re not in some fairytale. This is real life. “Theo, I don’t want you to do anything you can’t come back from. If things go bad, don’t risk your life for—”
“I’ll risk everything.”
“Theo—” He cuts me off with his mouth. “Please. . .” His lips suck in my bottom lip. “This will be for nothing if you’re taken away from me in the end.”
“It won’t end like that.”
“How do you know?”
“Because when you love someone, you’ll do anything to stay with them.”
I wrap my arms around him and pull him closer. My heart thumps against my ribcage. The more this settles in, the more worried I become. I’ve never seen Theo rattled. Ever. Until now. And even though he thinks he’s hiding it, I see it. He’s not sure this will work out in his favor, and he’s putting everything on the line. When he pulls away, there’s no hiding the worry in his eyes.
“Everything’s going to be fine. Let’s get some rest.” I nod, and he lies next to me, tucking me into his side. But all I can think about is what he’s risking for me. Would a man who has it all be willing to give up everything for someone who has nothing? My mind flashes back to picturing him in my bed in all its thrifted glory. There’s a slight tug at my gut at the thought that it won’t be enough for him.
Chapter twenty-eight
Theo
I don’t know how long I’ve been standing here, but I can’t seem to pull my eyes away. Fay is fast asleep, wrapped in my sheets, on my bed. She looks so peaceful and at home. This is where she belongs. Once this is over, she’s moving in with me. She’s not going back to that shithole apartment. If it were up to me, I’d have all her shit packed up and moved into my place by the end of the day.
If something goes wrong, at least she’ll be safe here. I pull out my phone and send a message to Grant confirming Fay has full access within the building.