He couldn’t remember ever wanting a woman so badly, and yet once again, the kiss gentled in a way he hadn’t experienced before.
There was heat and urgency, and there was something else there as well, and instinctively he knew what it was…
Their bodies knew what their minds struggled to accept. This was the end.
Her legs parted and he settled between them.
He pushed into her slowly, their breathing shallow and rough as they each tried to make it last.
When he was buried all the way inside, he pressed his face to her neck and stayed perfectly still.
Ava.
They moved slowly, the mating slow and hedonistic as though they were in some sort of trance.
Her hands found his face, forcing him to look at her as their pace quickened. “Say my name, Luc.”
He tried to look away, but she wouldn’t let him. “Please.”
Luc let out a sound of outrage as he understood what she was really asking for. Forgiveness. A chance.
And he cared about her.
But he wouldn’t take the risk.
Instead of saying anything, he buried his face against her neck, exploding with a gasp.
He felt her convulse around him seconds later, their bodies shuddering together in a harmony that their hearts would never find.
Luc wanted to linger, and it was because he wanted to, he forced himself to move the second the aftershocks came to a stop.
He stood, pulling his pants back on without looking at her, quietly picking up her clothes, handing them to her without making eye contact.
“Luc?” Her voice was questioning.
“You should go, Sims.”
She sucked in a breath. “Seriously? What was this, a booty call?”
He shrugged. “I didn’t ask you here; you just showed up.”
Pain flashed across her face, but he refused to relent. “Sims, we knew what this was coming to. No relationship, remember? I’m not going to put any woman through being married to a cop, not knowing if he’s coming home each night. Especially not you.”
Her eyes narrowed as she stood, pulling on her panties and bra as she continued to glare at him. “Why especially not me, Luc? Is it the same reason why you showed up today, sacrificing your own reputation for the sake of my career.”
She was trying to coax him into an admission, and he sidestepped.
He gritted his teeth. “You got what you wanted, Sims. Did they offer you the anchorwoman position, or did you take your ammunition and go to a competitor?”
“They offered it,” she said quietly. “They were a little shocked at first, but they said it was too big of an exclusive to pass up, even if it’s not their original vision.”
His heart soared on her behalf just for a minute, but her next words shut him down.
“But I’m not going back to CBC.”
Huh? “Why, you get a sweeter offer somewhere else?”
“Nope. I quit.”
“You what?”
What the hell?
She lifted a shoulder. “Well I guess technically I haven’t quit yet, but I plan on it.”
“What the fuck, Sims. Journalism is your life. You were born to tell stories.”
She lifted her chin, met his eyes. “Maybe there’s something I want more.”
Something hot and hopeful surged through him, but he stifled it before he could identify it.
Luc turned away. “You betrayed me, Sims. Let’s just leave it at that.”
“No way, it’s too late for that, Luc. Don’t play this game. You don’t get to invite me in, make love to me like a man in love, and then decide you’re still mad at me after all.”
He left the room, but she followed.
“You want me to grovel, I will,” she said. “I should.”
“Yeah, you should, Sims.” He retrieved his beer, taking a reluctant sip.
She spread her arms. “Okay. Let’s go. I was wrong, Luc. So, so wrong. I knew something was weird about the Shayna Johnson incident weeks ago, and I should have asked you about it.”
He turned away.
She kept going. “And when I talked to Beverly Jensen and learned about what happened with Mike, I should have told you that too. And when I put the pieces together that your dad had called in favors—”