No. He wasn't going to let her shut him out.
All the passion that had been building in him bubbled over as he pressed his mouth to hers and hoped for better results than the last time. At first she latched on to his lip, and he prepared for the worst. Her sweet tongue swept the area, and he moaned.
When it happened, he threaded his fingers into her hair and moved her head for a better angle. He wanted to feel all of her.
Her hands made their way up his back and down his sides. He nearly choked when she slipped her palms over his ass and ground herself hard against him.
He broke away from her mouth and pressed hot kisses against her neck, sucking on the tender skin there and nipping at times.
Her breathing grew ragged. She wrapped her legs around him and rotated her hips. She was close. He could smell it in the air all around them. Her need pulled him in.
"That's it, baby," he cooed in her ear.
His hands slipped to her breasts, and he brushed the hard peaks there.
She moaned loudly and threw her body back hard.
"That's it, Val," he whispered. "Come for me."
She froze. Her body went stiff in his arms, and he struggled to look at her.
"Get off," she said firmly.
Apollo climbed off and watched as she stood.
"What?" he asked, completely and utterly confused.
She stared at him for a few moments before sprinting away.
* * *
Run.
It was all she could think. Run. As fast as she could. Some place far enough away that he couldn't get her. She didn't really think Jenna's place would be better, but there weren't many options.
It didn't matter. She ran. As hard and as fast as she could.
Run until he didn't want her anymore. Or better yet, she didn't want him.
Chapter Thirteen
Apollo stood just outside her door. He didn't know what he had expected, but it couldn't end like this. His feelings were far too strong for him to let it end.
"Val," he said. His voice cracked as he said her name.
He could hear her breathing just on the other side and rested his head against the cold door. She had wanted him. There was no question in his mind.
"I can't," she said quietly.
His heart ached at her words. She was for him. This was his one chance, and he couldn't just let her walk out of his life.
Everyone else had been right. He thought that being without a woman had made him stronger than the others, but he'd been wrong. It'd made him weaker.
"All my life," he said quietly. "I walked alone. Trying to make the most out of a situation that would never be good."
He gave a bitter laugh at his former self.
"It never brought me anything good," he said. "Being that person was lonely. But it didn't matter. Because I knew one day there would be someone I could share my life with. That kept me going, kept me … maybe not happy, but at least not angry."
The air was quiet around him as he struggled to tell her the things nestled close to his heart.
"One by one I watched the men around me find that someone," he said. A lump formed, and he struggled to continue. "When you came, I had given up. The chances were almost zero. But there you were, defying everything that I thought."
He thought of her sweet face and smiled.
"Whatever you might think, I'm not going away," he said. "I'll change. I'll be what you need. I'll make myself a better man, and then you'll want me. I wasn't always a dick, you know."
He nodded to himself. Of course she wouldn't want him in his current state. Everyone had said he was a dick, and now that was only coming back to bite him in the ass.
"Goodnight, Val," he said and turned away.
Being a better man was a good goal. He finally understood what they others had gone through.
He made it to the bottom step when he heard the lock on the door click. Not daring to hope, he turned around.
She stood in the door, eyes glittering with tears, her silhouette outlined by the lights inside.
"You don't need to make yourself a better man," she said quietly.
He climbed up one of the steps and waited.
"I don't want you to change," she said and stepped out onto the porch. She didn't stop until she was right in front of him. "I like you the way you are."
His heart thumped in his chest.
"Well, maybe you could be less dickish at times." She grinned, and he couldn't help but return the smile.
"I can work on that," he mumbled.
Val grabbed his shirt and pulled him down until their mouths were level.
"I don't want you to go home," she whispered.
Every nerve in his body sparked at the same time. Not even waiting, he swooped her up into his arms and carried her inside.