“Jemma…” His eyes blazed down at her.
“But I got lucky. Seems some guy had decided to bring his girlfriend to that old frat house that night, too. Maybe he wanted to scare her. Maybe it was their make-out spot, I never found out for sure but…” Jemma shook her head. “They were outside and they heard my screams. They came running in and they saw Gage on top of me. I was bleeding and begging for help and he told them to just get the fuck away.” She swiped at the tear on her cheek. “They didn’t get away. The guy charged at Gage.” The guy…his name was Ben. Ben helped me. Ben and Julie. “Gage dropped the knife. I-I picked it up. His back was to me and I was yelling for him to stop. To just stop.”
Some guys can’t take no for an answer.
“He spun around and lunged at me. And I drove that knife right into his chest.” Her breath heaved out. I told him. I told Gray everything. Her chest felt lighter. Her racing heart was slowing down. “Ben and his girlfriend, Julie, they told the cops what they’d seen. I wasn’t charged with anything—”
“Because you damn well shouldn’t have been.”
“But I left campus after that. I came back here. Decided to stay.” I was safe here. “I’d always loved baking and desserts and I—and I realized I had a knack for what I was doing.” Chocolates were the ultimate comfort. She knew that for a fact. “I had money from my mom’s life insurance, so I used it to buy the shop, and Holly Jolly Chocolatier was born.”
Grayson just stared down at her.
“That’s my secret.”
There was no missing his fury. “You’ve been keeping this inside…for all these years?”
“Gray—”
He caught her hands in his and pulled her up so that she was standing right in front of him, caged between his body and the couch. “I am so fucking sorry you went through that hell.”
She swallowed.
“I wish that you’d never known pain a day in your life. I wish that I’d been there, that I’d known you then. Because you can absolutely be certain of this…I would have believed you.”
She couldn’t look away from his eyes. So much emotion there. Not just fury. Pain. Need.
And…
“You’re brave, Jemma. Brave and strong and smart, and you don’t have to keep your past secret. You did nothing wrong. It was all him. Not you.”
She knew that. Knew that Gage had been sick. But she also knew… “People look at you differently, once they find out that you’ve taken a life.”
A muscle flexed along his hard jaw. “Yes,” he gritted out, “they do.”
She understood right then that Grayson had killed. CIA—she knew what it meant. He’d been a spy. And if his missions were classified, she might never learn of the battles he’d faced. But she could feel his pain, just as surely as she knew he felt hers.
Two lost souls. Was that what they really were? Because as she stood before him, Jemma didn’t feel so lost. She actually felt as if she’d just found something that had been missing from her life for too long.
Someone.
“Gage is dead.” She’d watched his body be put into the ground. “So he’s not the one after me. He was the only threat I had.” She didn’t have any idea who could be targeting her now. “Why is this happening?”
His hand lifted and curled under her chin. “I don’t know, but you aren’t facing it alone. You don’t have to ever face anything alone again. I’m right here, sweetheart, and I’m not going any place.”
But…there was one place she wanted him to go—no, them to go. His bedroom. “Will you make love to me?” She hadn’t realized how much courage it would take to say those words. Her breath hitched and her hands trembled as she waited for his response.
Grayson smiled at her. “Oh, sweetheart, it would be my absolute pleasure.” His head bent and his lips took hers. Softly. Carefully. She wrapped her arms around his neck and held on tight. There would be no stopping. No turning back. She wanted to be with Grayson. She wanted to let go…
To go wild.
With him.
He picked her up, still kissing her, and he carried her through the cabin. She hadn’t ever been carried before, and he made her feel… protected. Precious.
He lowered her onto the bed and the mattress dipped beneath her weight. He pulled back and turned on the little lamp that waited on the bedside table. “I want to see you,” Grayson told her.
And she wanted to savor every single moment with him.
Watching her, Grayson yanked off his shirt and tossed it aside. Her gaze raked greedily over him—he had a gorgeous body. Wide shoulders, strong chest, abs that rippled. More than a six pack.
She should be taking off her clothes, too. Shouldn’t she? Uh, yeah, you kind of have to do that. Jemma pulled her shirt over her head and dropped it on the floor. She started to kick out of her boots…
“Let me,” Grayson said, voice a deep, dark temptation. He caught her left boot. Slid down the zipper. That low hiss seemed incredibly loud. He eased off her boot and her sock and his fingers slid along the edge of her calf, massaging her ever so gently.