She played with the hem of her shorts, her leg warm against her hand. “Do you hate me?”
“Of all the stupid—no, I don’t hate you. Some days I wish I did. It would make all of this a hell of a lot easier. You think I can just turn my feelings for you off and on, like a switch? You think a month is sufficient enough time to forget you, to move on, to get you out of my system?” Lincoln leaned across the console, locking her in place with his stormy eyes. “I will never get over you, Sara, never.”
Sara trembled as she stared at him, seeing the fire in his eyes, seeing the truth of his words in the set of his face. She was going to shatter if she didn’t tell him. Sara couldn’t keep the secret inside her any longer. He had to know. Lincoln had to know how she felt about him.
“I love you,” she whispered brokenly.
He froze, his expression turning to granite. Lincoln slowly turned his gaze away to stare out the windshield. His jaw shifted as he inhaled deeply. “Do you mean that?” Lincoln asked roughly, eyes still trained straight ahead.
Sara wordlessly nodded, and then realizing he wasn’t looking at her, she reached for him. Her hand grasped his hard bicep and squeezed, needing him closer. With a groan, Lincoln grabbed her and pulled her onto his lap so that she straddled him. “Tell me again,” he begged, burying his face into the crook of her neck, his fingers digging into her thighs, holding her like he feared she’d vanish if he released his grip on her. His body trembled and tenderness rushed through her.
“I love you, Lincoln,” Sara said, her voice clear and strong. She cupped his sharp jawline in her hands, the rough texture of his unshaven skin tingling against her palms, their eyes so close she saw the gold in them; so close she saw the raw need in them. “I think I love your eyes the most. The color, the shape, even your long, thick eyelashes. They’re silver and gold and I see your soul in them and I see myself in them as well. I love the way they spark to life in anger and humor; the way they’re always locked on me, wherever I am. Like you’re afraid if you look away I’ll disappear or you’ll lose me. You won’t, you know,” she added softly.
Lincoln swallowed. “Do you know how long I’ve longed to hear you say that?”
“That I love your eyes?” she teased.
“Yeah, that too. But that you love me?” Lincoln studied her face, his gaze searching.
“A long time?”
He took a shuddering breath. “You have no idea, Sara. None.”
“You’re right. I don’t. But I’m here now. And I’m yours.”
Their eyes locked. Sara felt the heat and hardness of his body beneath hers, the way the fiery warmth rolled off him and onto her, connecting them, intertwining them with desire and love; invisible tendrils sweeping through her and him, branding them as each other’s.
The opened windows of the truck let balmy air blanket them, marginally cooling the heat of their skin. She fit perfectly to him; her body the missing puzzle piece to make Lincoln whole and vice versa. Sara placed her hands on his firm chest and felt his heart thunder beneath her palm, focusing on that. So many times she’d listen to Lincoln’s heartbeat and centered herself in the steady thrum of it.
He threaded his fingers through hers, those smoky eyes never leaving hers as he declared, “You’re not leaving my sight for a very long time, not until I can convince myself you’re really here and mine, Sara. And I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to fully convince myself of those things, so get used to seeing me. A lot.”
Lincoln’s lips captured hers before she could respond, possessing them, possessing her, telling her that she was his; telling her what she already knew. He tasted like sweetly tart lemons and sunshine and her future. The emotions coursed through her veins, pulsed through her heart, and slammed out of her with all the passion of her being. It was right; she and Lincoln; they were right. She and Cole had been right, but she and Lincoln were right as well. Cole was her past; a past she would never forget, would always hold on to, but Lincoln was her present; her future, and she would hold on to that just as tightly.
***