Dirty Sexy Alphas (Twenty Book Box Set) - Hannah Ford Page 0,53

a stop on a gravel turnout, under an old acacia tree.

“As you wish,” he said, quoting from The Princess Bride.

I rolled my eyes, not falling for his charming act. “Talk,” I said. “You came here to talk to me, so talk. And then afterward you’re going to drop me off at my apartment and go back to your wife.”

He leaned back in his seat, rubbing a hand over his face. “I miss you,” he said. And his tone told me it was the hardest sentence he’d ever spoken. Like he didn’t want to admit it to me, let alone himself.

“I went three years without you,” I told him. “It’s been a day and you’re already whining.”

“I deserve that.”

“You deserve a lot more,” I said, anger lacing my tone.

“I don’t know how to make it up to you,” he said. “How to prove to you that you’re the only one who matters.”

“You can’t,” I said, sorrow filling my words. “I’m terrified that loving you means signing up for a broken heart.”

His eyes softened, and when he reached over for my hand, I didn’t have the strength to yank it away.

“You can trust me,” he insisted.

“I tried that,” I said, shaking my head through the tears that threaten. “And then Alexa showed up.”

“I need you,” he said, his voice ragged and raw. “Alexa was a terrible mistake I made—and believe me, I’m paying for it now.”

A car drove by, making me jump. I felt like I was standing at cross roads, except there were a thousand different choices, and none of them seemed right.

“Where are you staying?” I asked, shoving away all the doubts and fears. Maybe it was the two drinks. Maybe it was the presence of Landon.

“The Four Seasons, downtown.”

“Do you think we could go there?” I asked, my heart hammering harder.

I knew it was all wrong, that Landon was bad news, would always be bad news, and that he had never truly been able to be honest with me. He was always going to keep a part of himself and his life secret, so I would never be allowed all the way in.

But the truth was, I could never resist him.

He didn’t answer, just put the car in gear.

We stood in silence in the elevator, as the floors dinged ever upward, until we emerged on the penthouse floor. He led me to a door marked City Suite, and I stepped through as he held the door for me.

Polished marble floors led me to floor-to-ceiling windows, overlooking the sparkling city below. I stared at the glimmering lights as Landon uncorked a bottle of red wine, pouring two glasses and bringing me one. We stood side by side, watching the city. It was surreal, to be so far from home and yet still with him, right now.

He flew here for me.

Something about that had softened the walls I’d put up. A soft touch, few whispered words, and I knew they’d crumble all over again.

I sipped at the wine as he led me through the living room, anticipation building like a rising tide.

I expected him to lead me to the bed, but he didn’t. He paused, taking off his cufflinks, slipping off his jacket and draping it over the back of a chair. And then we walked through another doorway.

The bathroom was just as big as the bedroom, with a jetted, double-sized tub sitting under a big picture window. We were on the highest floor of the tallest building in downtown, so there were no window coverings to block out the stars and the moon. He took my wine glass, setting it down on the edge of the tub.

He leaned forward, as if he planned to touch me, but instead of slipping his hand around my back, he turned the faucet handle just behind me.

Water poured out, the sound echoing in the cavernous space.

He took my face in his hands, let’s his thumb stroke back and forth along my jaw line as he tipped my head back, claiming my mouth with a kiss.

It was soft and deep all at once, his tongue tracing across my mouth, begging my lips to part. I obliged, letting him slip his tongue inside my mouth as he tangled his fingers in my hair.

The sound of running water faded as I stepped closer, my hands sliding up his back, wrapping around his shoulders. One of his hands was still buried in my hair as the other found its way to the buttons on my shirt, and one-by-one