I know he’ll run at some point. I’m only trying to hold onto him as long as I can.
His hand gently lifts my chin as he gazes into my eyes, worry etching his brow. “Hey, where’d you go?”
I smile. “I’m here.”
“No, you left me for a moment.” He pulls me to his chest. “We don’t have to do this, Scarlett. We don’t have to have sex for me to stay.”
I shake my head. “No, I want this.” He makes my body feel everything I’ve hoped was possible, and I want it all before he walks out of my life. Ten years from now, I don’t want to regret that I didn’t share this with him.
“But—”
I reach for his neck and pull his mouth to mine, kissing him so that there’s no question of what I want. It’s the permission he needs, and he pushes me down on the bed, kissing me as he lies next to me.
His hand splays on my abdomen. My muscles tighten in anticipation. His breath is on my neck, and his mouth trails kisses on my neck and chest. When his mouth finds my breast, I gasp, and my hips rise off the bed. His hand on my stomach pushes me down, then slides lower over my panties.
I gasp for air as I’m bombarded by feelings I’ve only dreamed of. I’m not a virgin, although I’m far from experienced. Both guys I slept with before were inept and awkward. Tucker is neither. But it’s more than that. For the first time in my life, I truly trust someone. I trust him enough to completely give myself to him. The irony that it’s Tucker Price I’ve chosen to trust isn’t lost on me.
His head raises, and he looks into my face. I pull his mouth to mine, needing more, needing him.
He pulls my panties down, then rises on his elbow and takes them off the rest of the way. I’m naked, exposed. But this is Tucker, and he stares at me with awe and longing, and it makes me want so much more. Sex, yes, but something more meaningful.
His hand slides between my legs as he kisses me again. I reach down and feel him through his underwear, and he moans. “Scarlett.”
Then he gets up, and panic washes through me. Has he changed his mind? I push up on my elbows to see him sitting on the side of the bed, taking off his underwear. He reaches to the floor, digging in his shorts. When he turns around, holding a foil square, he sees my face and tenses. His free hand cups my face and lowers his mouth to mine, pushing me back down on the bed. “Relax. I’m not going anywhere.”
I look up at him and smile.
His mouth finds my breast while his hand is between my legs again. An ache builds deep inside, begging to be filled. I lift my hips up as I gasp, “Tucker. I want you.”
He’s gone again, but this time he’s putting on a condom, then positioning himself between my legs. He braces his arms on either side of my head and stares into my eyes. I close my eyes, wanting to feel every second of this. To make it last forever in my memory, if this is the only chance I get with him.
“Scarlett, open your eyes.”
I do as he says, looking up at him with confusion.
His eyes burn bright with desire. “I want you to see me when I come into you. I want you to know I’m here. I want you to know I see you.”
His words spin my world upside down. He knows. He knows me and my fear, even though I’ve never said it. My gaze is locked on his as he enters me, slow and gentle. When he’s all the way in, his pace picks up and a knot of desperate need grows deep inside me. I need more of him. I tilt my pelvis up, and he sinks deeper, his eyes rolling back into his head. Then his gaze returns to mine. I’m climbing, and I’m spinning out of control.
His hand brushes my hair out of my face. I need more. So much more. “Tucker, please.”
My words set something loose, and he kisses me and everything moves faster. His breath is hot on the side of my face. I cling to him, needing him deeper until finally, I’m falling off a cliff, and I call out his name in a strangled voice.
He’s close behind me, grunting. Then he kisses me, his mouth demanding, claiming, as though what we just did wasn’t enough to bind us together.
There’s a crack in the armor encasing my heart. I’ve handed Tucker the opportunity to get closer to me than anyone has ever gotten.
Or I’ve given him the opportunity to destroy me.
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Chapter Twenty
Later in the afternoon, Tucker calls and tells me that he has a mandatory team meeting Saturday night. “I’m sorry, Scarlett.” But I’m sure I hear relief in his voice.
“I never told you that you had to see me, Tucker. It’s okay.” I know I sound a little defensive, and I hate it.
He’s silent. “I’ll call you tomorrow.”