“I can’t be without you again,” I say, so low I’m not sure if he’ll hear it. But I needed to say it, if only for myself, because there is no way in Hell I’d survive being apart from this man again. I’d do anything to avoid feeling that pain, the agony that ripped me apart for eighty-five days and left me a shell of the woman he fell in love with. I wrap my arm tighter around his body. “I don’t care if this is all we ever are. I don’t need anything besides this. But I’ll always need it.”
His hand is on my chin, tilting my head up to meet his gaze. That stare of his causes me to stop breathing as he studies me. Always watching. It’s so extreme, full of unspoken words as he remains silent. I take the opportunity to admire his features, the features I’ve missed so much. Soft eyes. Full, slightly-chapped lips with my favorite slit running down the middle. Smile lines that wreck me. Mild stubble that I reach up and run my finger across. He shifts to his side, pulling me even closer so we’re chest to chest, my body completely flattened against his. His lips meet my forehead and he holds them there, humming softly against my skin. I feel my body completely relax next to his. All the stress, all the tension, all the sadness and misery of the past eighty-five days dissolves instantly as he wraps himself around my body. I’m completely smothered, completely cocooned in his long limbs, wild mess of hair, and hot breath.
He’s in my bed. In my fucking bed. And I never want him to leave it.
“Hey. Are you okay?”
Reese’s voice cuts into my thoughts, causing me to roll over. He pulls me against his body so we’re lying just like we were in my memory. I smile, wrapping my arms around him and pressing my lips against his chest.
“I’m more than okay. I have you in my bed.” A low laugh rumbles in his throat as I dig into the muscles in his back with my fingers. “Do you remember the first night you were in it?”
“Yes,” he answers without hesitation. “Do you remember what you said to me before we fell asleep?”
I glance up at him, momentarily stunned he remembers, and nod once. “That I couldn’t be without you again.”
His eyes focus on my mouth as he brushes my hair off my shoulder. “That. And you said you didn’t care if that was all we ever were. That you didn’t need anything else.” He pauses, his eyes reaching mine. “I almost asked you to marry me right then.”
My heart thunders in my chest. “Really?”
“Really.” He leans forward and captures my mouth in a tender kiss, his tongue lightly brushing against my lips, seeking entry. I give it to him and moan softly into his mouth. He pulls back after several seconds, blinking heavily before locking onto my eyes. “I knew then, Dylan. I knew way before then you were it for me. And I would’ve never let that be all we ever were.” He kisses my cheek, my jaw, and the side of my mouth. “You were always meant to be mine. Even before I knew it.”
I kiss his jaw before tucking my face underneath his head and relishing in his scent. “Damn straight.”
He wraps me against him, pressing his mouth to my hair. “You’re so romantic, love.”
I chuckle, feeling his body shake with laughter as he holds me. “You’re hard to compete with. Shall I try?”
“If you want.”
I nuzzle closer. “Will you marry me?”
He laughs, dropping a kiss to the top of my head. “Hell yes, I will.”
And for some reason, hearing his answer does something to me. Even though I said yes to him six months ago, it does something to me. “I was yours when I was sixteen.”
I feel his reaction to what I’ve just said. The way his grip on me tightens. The pause in his breathing and the shuddering exhale that follows. “Damn straight,” he finally replies after several seconds of silence.
And I smile as I’m pulled closer. Never close enough.