Total pages in book: 123
Estimated words: 114467 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 572(@200wpm)___ 458(@250wpm)___ 382(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 114467 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 572(@200wpm)___ 458(@250wpm)___ 382(@300wpm)
“Viktor,” she whispers.
“No, if you hear anything else today, it’s that I never touched the drug. Not that day. Not since I was clean.” I rub my face. “Right before you walked in or the door opened, I have no idea, but I was standing there and the key chain was there, and it took me maybe half a second to think ‘What the fuck am I doing?’ Everything that I fought for was almost gone in that one second.” I take a deep breath.
“You’re strong.” She moves to get up, and I hold out my hand.
“There is so much that we have to talk about and so much more that I want to say.” I take a deep breath. “So much more that you need to know. But know this. I want you to be proud of me. I want you to be proud to stand by my side. I want to be the man you beam with pride at when you introduce. I want to be the man who holds your fucking hand because I can.” I look up at the ceiling and then look down at her and see the tears running down her face. “There was a plan. I made a plan that I would come for you after I was sober for one year.”
“How much longer do you have?” she asks as her chest trembles.
“Doesn’t matter because I’m learning that some plans need to be altered. Some plans need modifications.”
“Is this one of those plans?” She tries to smile while she cries.
“If you’ll have me,” I tell her. “We have to go slow because I’m not okay with fucking this up.”
She gets up now and walks over to me. Standing in front of me, she’s so close I can smell her.
“Can I talk now?” she asks, and I just nod my head.
“For the record, I am proud of you,” she starts. “It’s not easy to admit when you need help, and you did it.”
“I didn’t have anything to do with the first part,” I try to joke, and she shakes her head.
“You went to rehab, and you stayed the whole ninety days. No one forced you to be there,” she says. “So I’m proud of you and the man you are. I’m proud, so proud that you fight each and every day to stay clean. The struggle is not easy, but every day is one step ahead.” She licks her lips. “I’m happy.” She smiles at me, “Well, not happy, but I’m glad you see it.”
“See what?” I ask her.
“That you are that man. The man who you want to be. You are that man already.” She smiles, and my hand comes up and cups her cheek and my thumb wipe away her tears. “Viktor,” she says my name. “This is when you kiss me.”
“Are you sure you’re ready for this?” I ask her, knowing there will be no turning back. “I don’t know how it is going to go, but I know that I didn’t go through the hell I went through to not have you in the end.”
She steps in closer to me and puts her hands on my chest. She can probably feel my heart beating so fast. “I’m sure,” she says. She moves her hands up my chest and gets on her tippy toes. I lean down, and it happens in slow motion. Or that is just how it feels in my head. Our lips meet, and I swear it is so much better than I remember. My hands go into her hair, pulling out the elastic from her ponytail, and her hair cascades around my fingers. I turn my head and slide my tongue into her mouth, both of us groaning the minute we touch. We kiss each other softly at first, and then I can’t get her close enough. She is plastered to the front of my chest, and my cock is harder than it’s ever been. I could spend all day lost in her kisses, and I’m planning on it. I’m lost in her kiss, in her touch, in everything that she is.
“So,” I say, my lips lingering on hers, “are we going to do this?” Her eyes look up at me. “Dating.”
“Yes,” she whispers out on a sigh of relief. “I don’t care what we call it as long as …”
“As long as we do it together.” I kiss her lips again. “Are we doing this secretly?”
“I think the secret is out of the bag after last night.” She tilts her head to the side. “But if you think we should keep it undercover …?”
“I’d rather not,” I tell her. “If that is okay with you.”
She nods her head. “It’s more than okay with me.” Her fingers go into the hair on the back of my neck. “How are you feeling?”