Cruz (Dark and Dirty Sinners' MC #5) - Serena Akeroyd Page 0,117
want him here.
His gaze softened. "I'm not going to push you into anything, Indy. I know how important space is to you, as well as your independence."
I’d had one foot out of the damn door before I’d found out about my niece or nephew, but that timelessness about Cruz got to me.
He was strong, stalwart enough to be there for a hundred years. To hunt me down for a hundred years.
And, to be completely frank, there was plenty I’d prefer to be doing with him than have him hunt me down when his arms were the only place I wanted to be. The only place I found peace.
The fucking MC was what had gotten between us, just like it always did. Nerves hit me, but with it, was a rush of exhilaration as I accepted a hard truth. I needed him.
Sinner or not.
“Space and independence are important to me, and I love that you know that, but, and I should have realized this sooner, they're not as important as you.
“I have no way of classifying this, Cruz, no way that fits or makes any real sense to me, but I just know that I don't want to lose you. And yeah, I'm aware that I'm the one who almost took us to the brink—“
"You might be, but I'd have come after you, Indy. Never doubt that."
And as I stared at the resolve in his eyes, a resolve that was like a goddamn hug on a cold night, I recognized I'd done the impossible—found a man who saw past the surface, who recognized what I was beneath the protective layers I'd spent a lifetime cultivating... and he wanted me anyway.
Twenty-One
Cruz
I woke up with an angel in my bed.
Or, at least, I woke up in an angel's bed.
As I squinted around, restricted by the way I was laying, I found her, and watched her sleep for a handful of moments.
Her breathing was soft, even, well-paced. No stressors. She wasn't having a nightmare, wasn't even having a stressful sleep.
She was calm.
And that soothed me.
Last night, over four hours of work on the lower half of my tattoo, that relentless buzzing in my ears from the tattoo gun, I'd agreed to stay with her on the proviso that I didn't mess with her sleep.
I figured it was a positive that she was sleeping at all, because I knew that had been an issue in the past.
I'd drifted off with her still awake and doing something on her phone, but I'd been too buzzed to do anything.
Even fuck.
And today, my back ached like a bitch from the extensive work but it felt good. The tenderness felt real good.
The extensive work was why I was laying on my belly. Prodding hyper-tenderized flesh wasn't my idea of a good time, that was for fucking sure.
"Looks like you're staying with me, huh?" she mumbled around a yawn as her eyelashes fluttered. She looked at me once, then closed them again.
"If you slept, then I'll stay every night. Prefer to have you hooked on my cock than on Valium."
She snorted at that, and her smile appeared, making the sides of her eyes crease with it. Because they were closed, it was somehow all the more powerful. That she could look like that without even truly being awake and aware.
"You didn't feed me any cock last night."
"Since when were you a cannibal? Murdering stalkers I can deal with, cannibalism? Nuhuh."
"You getting squeamish on me, Cruz?"
“Bet your ass I am. I'm not really that fucking happy with beef, never mind eating a dude's—"
Her eyes popped open, and she eyed me with curiosity. "A dude's what?"
I scowled. "I don't know. Whichever part of the human body is appealing to cannibals. Maybe you'd know?"
Her lips twitched. "Well, it isn't dick. Don't worry. Most men don't have much meat down there."
I snickered. "Ouch."
She winked. "Feel the burn?"
"I do. Even though I don't have any insecurities about my cock." I smirked at her. "And with how you wriggle around on it when I stick it in you, I don't think you have many complaints."
When she wiggled some, my smirk grew.
"There we have our confirmation," I teased, reaching over and pressing my hand to her belly. "Seriously though... you slept well?"
"I did." She yawned again. "Better than last night."
"Your world was in the air. I get it. You're just lucky you didn't go running, and I didn't have to chase your ass down. As it stands, you've earned a punishment but nothing too major."