told her, “You are not alone. Not anymore. You don’t have to bear the weight of everything that’s happening by yourself anymore. The reason I’m not as worried about your friends and family as you are is because I can see how much stronger you all are together. That guy wasn’t going to get you out of the bar, no matter what. Kody would’ve noticed you were missing in a second. If they hadn’t been drinking, Aspen and Della would’ve picked up on something being off within a heartbeat. Case would travel to the ends of the Earth to find you if you vanish. And the same goes for you. If Kody was the one who suddenly disappeared, I know you wouldn’t let it go. You’re all looking out for one another, but you still have blinders on and can’t see it.”
She exhaled slowly, making that towel dip and dance precariously. I gulped audibly and ordered my eyes to stay locked onto hers. I kept most of my reactions in check, but there was no stopping the swell of my cock behind my zipper. That part of my body couldn’t ignore her, or all her exposed skin, no matter how hard I tried.
“What about you?” Her voice was so quiet I almost didn’t hear her question.
I felt my eyebrows shoot upward as I asked, “What about me?”
“Would you notice if I suddenly disappeared?” She asked it in such an earnest tone I realized she honestly doubted that I was feeling something significant for her.
Normally that kind of obliviousness would enrage me, but she’d been alone for so long, I had to remember she wasn’t used to having anyone looking for her when she wasn’t around.
I gently tugged her closer so our lips were barely a millimeter away from touching. “I don’t plan on letting you out of my sight anytime soon. And if you decide to make me the most important person in your life right now, I won’t complain.”
Her long eyelashes fluttered and her hold on me shifted from my shirt to my neck. Her hands curled around the back of my neck, the edge of her fingernails scraping across sensitive skin.
“I’ve never had anyone to lean on before. I’m not sure I know how to do it.” Her breath was warm against my mouth, and her skin was super soft underneath my hands as I backed her toward the edge of the vanity. I had a hand on the back of her bare thigh right where the towel ended. If my fingers moved just an inch, they would be touching all the places I shouldn’t be thinking about but was.
“I have an entire club of brothers who help me hold on when the weight of the world gets too heavy. Stick with me, and I’ll teach you how to lean and let go.”
Lean she did. Right into me so that our lips touched.
I let her kiss me, slow and sweet, until I couldn’t take it anymore. She was half naked and as close to me as she’d ever been. My self-control had already been put to the test and had reached the end of the line. My palm slid up the back of her thigh, and I heard her gasp over the sound of the water running in the shower. I put a hand on the slight curve of her backside, using my hold on her to lift her up onto the edge of the vanity. I stepped between her long legs, watching as the fabric of the towel shifted and parted in the most enticing way.
I stared at her, maybe asking for permission for the first time in my life instead of assuming she was offering up something she might not be in the right headspace to give.
“Do you want me to kiss you, Pres?” It was the second time I’d asked her if I could kiss her, and instead of feeling burdened by it, I felt like I was stepping foot on new and unexplored ground. There was a level of respect between us that was shockingly poignant and powerful. Even if she said no, I wasn’t going to stop her, if she was the one who kept on kissing me. I would help her work through whatever was going on in her head but keep my cool.
Maybe.
I didn’t move any farther until she nodded slowly and said, “I want you to kiss me.”
Once I had the words and permission, my self-control snapped.
My tongue twisted around