Sweet Pain (Amatucci Family #3) - Sadie Jacks Page 0,88
you, always.” Sleep took me under in a one fell swoop.
Chapter 27 – Ryker
Her body went limp against me. I’d never realized the intimacy of holding someone as they slept. That complete and utter trust to slide into oblivion. It was a treasure I hoped never to grow tired of. To take for granted.
The candles’ flickering glow provided soft light in the room that I now considered ‘ours’ instead of just mine. Her words flickered through my mind again. ‘It’s only been three weeks. Are we moving too fast?’
Snickering at the thought, I curled around her tighter, shivered as the heat finally fled from my overly warm skin. It would be stupidly fast if it were anyone but Willow. Most of my flings lasted barely this long, but I’d never cared. Was usually looking for the next one.
I wasn’t rabidly guarding the woman. Hell, I was more likely to be ushering her out the door with a nice piece of jewelry or shopping trip to thank her for her time and attention to detail. The idea of even contemplating that reality with Willow had my belly twisting in knives and jealous rage.
She sighed in her sleep, nuzzled her nose against my chest. As if she’d felt my emotions, she tried to calm me. Let me know she was still here.
Fuck, I loved this woman. Had I known she was out there, and in my own fucking city, I would have found her sooner. The idea that I could love someone as much as I loved this woman was still a bit foreign to me. That she could love me in return…I still wasn’t sure what I’d done to earn it, but I was holding it tight with both hands.
Holding her tight.
We’d both been broken. Hell, still were in many ways. But our broken and jagged pieces aligned perfectly. They made us stronger, together.
My wrist buzzed with a reminder notification. CHASE GALA streamed across the screen of the mini computer. I bared my teeth in a grin. We had about a week before I could slay those monsters for her. Rescue her once and for all from the dungeon her parents had put her in.
The fuckers didn’t even give her a tiny room in a tall tower. Instead, they’d put her down with the victims, the criminals. The monsters and the prey.
But my girl had showed them. Shoved their plans for her life back in their faces. And she was going to topple their world.
We both would.
Together.
Getting up from the bed, I went to the bathroom and wetted a rag. I needed to clean both of us up. Once we were clean, I grabbed the blankets from the floor, blew out the candles, and curled around my reason for being as I followed her into sleep.
**
I glared against the bright light that seemed to have locked onto my eyes like heat-seeking missiles of death. Groaning, I turned over. Reached out for my girl.
The bed was empty and her side of the sheets were cool. She’d been gone for a while. I sat up, looked around the room.
“Willow?” I called out.
“Out here, Ryker.” Her voice was a little muffled.
I got out of bed, pulled my sleep pants on. My sweatpants would need a good washing before I wore them again. I smiled as memories from last night flashed through my head. While I hadn’t gotten to color in her tattoo, I was in no way disappointed with how things ended last night.
Really it just made me hungry for her this morning. I walked out the bedroom door into the living area. There she was. My t-shirt skimming her upper thighs, her hair a messy knot on her head. Her ass playing peek-a-boo as she whisked something in a bowl.
“What’cha cooking, good looking?” I said as I walked up behind her. I slid my hands over her hips. Leaning down, I pressed my lips to her neck. Inhaled. “You smell good in the morning.”
She chuckled. “I already brushed my teeth, so we’re all clear of dragon breath.” She moved her head just a bit. I kissed her neck again. Her gritty mmm had my lips twitching.
“Pancakes,” she said after a minute.
I nodded. “Syrup and peanut butter or butter and powdered sugar?” I asked as I got some glasses down from the cabinet. I blinked a couple times as I saw a huge cake on the counter under some plastic wrap. “Is that actually a giant penis cake?”