every deliberate stroke a step closer to what’s sure to be an earth-shattering orgasm. Tenderness shines through his eyes as he watches me, and my throat swells as I fight back the tears.
It doesn’t take a mind reader to know his thoughts are on us, on all that’s going to happen once we leave the safety of this bed. The protection of this moment. With a force unequal to any I’ve felt before, my body detonates. My nails bite into his biceps as I soundlessly cry out his name. My head swirls in a fog, and I grip him tighter through the aftershocks that wrack my limbs. He growls into my neck, his strokes still constant and controlled, but the sting of his teeth and heat that pours from his body, signal his release. He drops on top of me, not bothering to hold himself up and shield me from his weight.
I’m breathless, pressed deep into the mattress while he’s buried inside me, and I’ve never felt safer or more taken care of, more connected to another human being.
He rolls off me, and I’m instantly slapped in the face with the loss of his presence and the harsh reality of what’s to come.
This is good-bye. For now.
Fear grips me from within, and my muscles shake uncontrollably.
“Come here, baby. It’s okay.” He pulls me close, rolling to his side so that we’re face-to-face. His glare burns into mine. “One day at a time. One minute at a time if you have to.” He pulls my hands to his chest, holding them to his pounding heart. “No decision is permanent, except this one.”
I nod and focus on how clear and determined he looks now. Nothing like the man I saw last night who was filled with doubt and anger.
“Whatever happens, you keep in contact with me at all times, understand? If I don’t hear from you, I’m going after you.”
“But—”
He shakes his head. “Nope. No buts. You’re not in this alone. Not anymore.”
Warmth overtakes me and I suck in a deep breath. All I’ve ever been in this is alone. But not now.
“Stay public. As much as you can, try to stay public. If you’re forced to be alone with him, always have your phone.”
I nod. “Okay.”
He nods too. “Good.” His eyes slam shut, and he brings my bunched hands to his mouth, kisses my knuckles then drops them back to press against his chest. When he opens his eyes, I cringe against the worry and pain reflected in them. “And please, if you can get out of, you know, if you can avoid—fuck!” He groans and shakes his head.
Sex. I get it.
I won’t make him say it. “I will. I promise. Headache, period, whatever I have to do to get out of it, I promise I will.”
He shakes his head, mouth twisted in a disgusted frown.
“Mason.” I rest my forehead against his. “God, I’m going to hate every second of this. Being away from you will kill me. I’ll do this quickly. Knowing that Lana’s vindication and you, the two most important things to me in this entire world, are waiting for me on the other end, I’ll make the most of every second and see this through. I promise.”
He rolls his head back and forth against mine, growling. “I can’t fucking believe I’m letting this happen.”
“I can.”
He blinks open his eyes.
“You have a good heart, Mase.”
“Fuck, don’t say that. I’m allowing the woman I love to be in the arms of some sick fuck. I deserve to be castrated for that!”
“Stop it. No more looking back. It’s only forward for us. Forward and forever.” I grip his face, forcing him to look at me. “Promise me we’re never saying good-bye.”
I nods. “I promise.”
“Say it.” I need to hear it.
“I’ll never say good-bye.”
“And neither will I. Never. No good-byes. Forward and forever.”
A weak smile touches his lips. “The two effs.”
“Well, for us there will be three.” I wink with the hope of lightening his mood.
“You have a dirty mind, Miss Trixy.” He pulls at my lower lip with his thumb, and I suck it deep into my mouth, eliciting a growl from his chest.
“We have a few more hours before I need to head home. I’ll show you how dirty my mind is.”
His expression sobers, and he places a small kiss on my lips. “Promise me you’ll stay safe.”
“For you? Always.”
Twenty-nine
Mason
Three days feels like three months.
So far, Trix is no closer to finding her sister’s killer. She’s kept me informed through