“I got a really long overdue kick in the ass and woke up. I’m here to claim what’s mine. After tonight, there will be no room for uncertainty when it comes to us. I promised you that once, and I monumentally failed.”
I see her confusion and a spark of anger. She opens her mouth, but I move quickly, sealing my lips over hers and threading my fingers through her hair. She resists at first then fists my shirt and swirls her tongue against mine. Our mouths move desperately together, both of us fighting for control.
My head screams at me to slow down, cherish her, worship each taste, but desire takes over. “Mine,” I growl into her mouth and tilt her head gently, taking control possessively.
She whimpers and moans, driving me harder. My body comes alive with need.
Her hands unclench and travel up my chest and neck then cup my cheeks, her finger gripping at my beard. I make a move to lean us back and she freezes.
“Stop!” she chokes out against my mouth and physically breaks us apart.
Neither of us moves for a few minutes; the only sound is us trying to get our breathing under control. She drops her head to her chest for a spilt-second before raising her face back to mine.
“What exactly does all that mean? Swift kick in the ass? Claiming what’s yours?”
“Claire told me about the job offer, opened my eyes to how close I am to losing you for good. I can’t accept that. I won’t accept that.”
Her eyes narrow into slits, the air in the room turning ice cold. She leaps up, shoving me hard on my ass, and stalks to the living room. When she turns back to me, I barely stumble to my feet.
That spark of anger from a few minutes ago turns into an inferno. “Let me get this straight. You’ve blown me off for over a month, after leaving here the day before my birthday with promises to return. Twenty-four hours later, you basically shut me out. Months of promises of love, futures, and life-long commitments disintegrated into ashes. I’m forced to deal with scraps of time you threw me late at night or early in the morning, which never really amounted to more than a casual conversation that felt like strangers.”
Her hands fly through the air as she shouts, fury radiating with each word. I know I should feel terrible. I should drop back to my knees and worship at her feet, but instead, the blood starts to sizzle through my veins, energizing me. This is what I wanted. I imagined nothing less from her.
“I’ve asked you, begged you to talk to me. I’ve been available for any measly scrap of attention you’d throw my way, telling myself you were going through a tough time. I berated myself to the point of being sick because of the loneliness, all the while trying to be supportive and give you time to come to terms. Every minute you were with Sasha, I questioned whether it would be the day she finally got her claws in you, and I was only a memory. Nicky told me to give you time when I was at the point of giving up. So I did, because I love you that much.
“You knew I was alone on Christmas. You know how much this holiday means to me, yet you never offered to be with me. Out of nowhere, you sneak your way back, in the middle of the night, because you hear I have a job offer? The most lucrative and exciting job offer of my career, I might add, and say you’re CLAIMING ME!?!”
That’s all it takes, and I’m moving. She doesn’t have time to turn and run before I haul her over my shoulder. She struggles, beating my lower back, shouting obscenities then squeals in a high-pitched voice as she flies through the air and lands on the sofa. She scrambles to move, but I’m quicker, pinning her arms above her head and her lower body between my knees.
Her eyes lock with mine, burning in defiance. She kicks and squirms beneath me, fighting hard. I have to struggle to keep hold of her arms while fighting my own battle to control my now raging hard-on. There’s no doubt she’ll deck me for the timing.
And I deserve it. But damn if she isn’t fucking sexy. This is how I know she owns me. Watching her wiggle to get loose and possibly castrate me for