He released a shaky breath. “It’s kind of hard to get a hard-on over a woman who lies about being pregnant to get you back, manipulating you into marrying her because she knows the pain and guilt you felt when your mother left…that because I’d opened my mouth, told my father what I’d seen, my sisters grew up without their mother. She knew I wouldn’t want that for my own child.” He shoved both hands in his pockets. “I told her, you see, about you and me.”
Alex stood frozen, struggling to take it all in.
“She called that morning, the morning after you gave yourself to me.” His voice shook on the last word, so much longing in his gaze, she struggled for breath. “I told her that she had to stop calling, that I was in love with you. She broke down, told me she was pregnant. After that, after she told me she was carrying my child…” He shook his head. “I didn’t think I had any other choice. So I went back to her. And fuck, leaving you that day…it was the hardest thing I’ve ever done.” His nostrils flared. “I found out months later there was no baby, never had been. I told her we were through.”
Alex was stunned. How could Emily do that to him? Lie and scheme like that? “What happened?” she whispered.
“She threatened to kill herself if I left. If I told anyone what she’d done. Convinced me she’d fall apart if I didn’t stay. I planned to leave when she was better, but every time I thought she was doing okay, that finally I could leave, she’d relapse. I was stuck in that nightmare for four years.
“Then I caught her in bed with Steve—another ploy, this time an attempt to make me jealous, to get our relationship back. It blew up in her face. I left.”
“Oh my God.” He’d been through hell because of that selfish bitch.
“It gets worse. I found out yesterday there’s nothing wrong with her, there never was. She’s been manipulating me all these years. Her family cut her off after what happened between us, and she was biding her time with Steve until I wised up and took her back. She used her fake illness to keep me tied to her.” He held Alex’s gaze. “But you threw a monkey wrench in the works and screwed up her plan to win me back. So she pulled the suicide card again. That’s why I was with her, why I couldn’t tell you what was going on. I was afraid what she’d do—that she’d harm herself. She gave me no other choice. I was trying to convince her to get the help I thought she needed.”
He moved in then, brushing her hair over her shoulder, cupping the side of her neck, gently moving his thumb along her jaw. “I’ve loved you since that first time, Alex.” He shook his head. “No. If I’m honest, long before then. But you were still so young, and I knew you weren’t ready for what I wanted with you. Then I broke up with Emily, and as soon as I saw you again, I knew I had to have you, that I couldn’t wait any longer.”
Her head was spinning. He loved her. He had always loved her. “What about blackmailing me into your bed?”
“You don’t trust easily, Alex, and I’d already hurt you. I didn’t know how else to get you to give me another chance, to spend time with me, to let me love you like you deserved.”
“You were never going to sell this place?”
He shook his head and pulled out his cell phone, opened his text messages, and showed her a reply from David Cannon.
Thanks for the referral. My car looks amazing.
“You sent Mr. Cannon to us?”
“No.” He shook his head. “I referred him; the decision was his. I barely know the man, so this wasn’t a favor to me. We aren’t business associates. I just met him through a friend.”
“He’s not the first, is he?”
He shook his head. “I believe in you, in this place.”
She sucked in a breath, the lump clogging her throat suddenly escaping on a giant sob. All the emotion she’d held back over the last few days—the last few years—came rushing forward. She had no hope of holding it back. She shook her head. “No Emily?”
“No Emily.” He ran his thumb over her lower lip.
“And you…you love me?”
“Yes, I love you. So fucking much,” he choked.
Her body started to tremble so hard her legs felt weak. He pulled her into his arms, hands going to her butt. He lifted her off the ground, and she wrapped her legs around his waist, arms circling his neck. Hot tears streamed down her face and soaked into his shirt.
He kissed the top of her head. “I know I went about this all the wrong way, and I’ve acted like a jealous, overbearing asshole, but I promise you this—it stops now, baby. You didn’t deserve any of it. I let my past get in the way of our future. I won’t let that happen again.”
She tightened her arms around his neck. “I’m not your mom, and I’m not Emily, Deke,” she choked. “I would never hurt you like that. Ever.”
“I know, baby.”
She vaguely felt him move. Heard him kick the door, tell Rusty to open up. Then they were going up the stairs to her apartment, and the next thing she knew, Deacon was lowering her onto her bed.
She’d been so damn blind, had turned Deacon into some kind of power-hungry monster in her head. All to protect herself from the truth, a truth she’d been too afraid to face. She’d acted like a coward, had pushed him away all those months ago instead of taking a risk, afraid to love, to be loved in return.
But she’d known, deep down under all the baggage, the pain she hid behind, she’d known that Deacon would never hurt her, would never do anything to hurt his sisters. She knew this because she knew him.
And because of three magical, wonderful words.
Deacon loved her.
Chapter Twenty-One
Deacon removed her boots, letting them fall to the floor. Crawling up the mattress, he came down on top of her. It felt so good to have her beneath him. He’d been craving this, being able to touch her, feel her warm, smooth skin beneath his fingers. She felt small, almost fragile right then, and he slid his arms around her, holding her to him.
Jesus, he couldn’t believe she was giving him another chance, that she was finally his.
“Alex?” Her body shook, and her eyes were screwed shut, big fat tears rolling down her cheeks. She was killing him. “Baby…” He tried to brush away her tears but more replaced them instantly. “Sweetheart, please don’t cry… What can I do? How can I make it better?”
“Kiss it b-better,” she sobbed.
Her legs were wrapped around his waist, and he became aware of the heat between her thighs, the way she was flush against his abs, scalding him through her panties. He groaned. “You want me to kiss it better?”
“Y-yes.”
She wiggled beneath him, and he chuckled. “Where do you want your kiss?” He lifted up and dragged her T-shirt higher, revealing her taut belly. Leaning down, he licked and sucked the smooth skin, holding her immobile when she wiggled harder. Trailing hot kisses across her ribs, he moved the shirt higher. “What about here?”
She moaned softly when he wrapped his lips around a peaked nipple and gently sucked. She smelled of arousal and the vanilla soap she used, and something more, something purely Alex. His cock throbbed against his zipper, starving for more, desperate to get inside her. He kissed and sucked, then moved to the other side, to that sexy purple bar piercing her perfect little nipple, tonguing it gently, making her writhe and gasp.
“You like that?” He blew on her damp flesh, cursing under his breath when she lifted her hips, rubbing herself against his stomach.
Fingers threading through his hair, she pulled the strands at the same time, holding him to her. “Harder,” she whimpered.
He did as she asked, sucking harder and tugging gently until her hips were thrusting against him. “You want to come, sweetheart?”
“Yes. Please, Deacon.”
He’d gotten a glimpse of her like this, so beautifully vulnerable, unguarded, when he’d made love to her in the garage, but he’d never seen her this way, this open, this free of restraint. She took his breath away, humbled him. “You’re so beautiful.” He dragged her s
hirt up and over her head, needing her completely bared to him, then slid her panties down her legs. She reared up, tugged at the buttons of his shirt, and he took over, yanking it over his head, then made quick work of the rest of his clothes.
When he covered her again, he groaned at the feel of her bare skin against his. Her legs wrapped around his hips, and she ground against him. Jesus. He was hanging on by a goddamned thread.
Sliding a hand up the side of her neck, fingers sinking into her dark, silky hair, he took her mouth, kissing her like he’d wanted to the minute she walked into the garage. She returned his kiss, wild and hungry, rubbing herself against him, gasping into his mouth. Alex was almost frantic in her need, desperate for him. He loved it, loved her like this. Loved her. And as much as he wanted to hold her down, take charge, pound out all the frustration, the hurt he’d caused her, he knew what she needed.
Wrapping his arms around her, he rolled to his back. Her hands immediately went to his cock, fisting him, positioning herself over him. “That’s it, Alex, take it.” Her hands landed on his shoulders, and she sank down hard. Jesus, she was slick and hot, and wrapped around him so tight he was close to losing it. Flinging her head back, she cried out, hips undulating in a way that made him hiss through gritted teeth. “Take what you need, baby. I’m all yours. I’ve always been yours.”
The tears had slowed, but another sob broke past her swollen lips. Her fingers flexed, nails biting into his skin when she ground down hard, making them both moan. Then her eyes finally opened, those sexy, exotic eyes still glistening from her tears holding his. She didn’t speak, just held his gaze as she moved on top of him, taking what she needed.
The woman was beautiful. Completely bare. Dark hair, wild around her shoulders. She took his breath away. But it was her eyes that held him transfixed—they hid nothing, gave him everything, showed him everything. He slid his hands up her thighs, gripped her hips, and thrust up into her. “Say you’re mine, Alex. Say it.”
Her movements grew frantic, her breathing erratic, skin flushed with her fast-approaching climax. He felt her tighten around him and slid his thumb up and over her clit, massaging the tight bud. “I’m not going anywhere, sweetheart. Ever. I promise you that.”
Her lips trembled.
“Say it,” he whispered.
“Yours. I’m yours,” she cried, then threw her head back, screaming his name as she came.
He didn’t take his eyes off her, not when his balls drew tight, and not when his own release tore through him, turning him into nothing but a gasping, shaking mess beneath her.
He didn’t know how long they lay there afterward, her body draped over his, her breath tickling his throat with every exhale. He threaded his fingers though her hair and waited. Waited for her to process everything he’d said, to allow it to sink in. He wasn’t going anywhere. Alex was his.
Finally she lifted her head and looked down at him. “So, you and me, huh?”
He couldn’t read her expression. “Yep.”
“No arrangement, no blackmail. Just…you and me.”
“Uh-huh.”
She lowered her head back to his chest, quiet again. After several minutes, he gave her hair a tug. “You got something to add to that?” His heart felt like it was pounding in his throat, damn near choking him.
When she lifted up again, she was grinning. “Oh, did I forget something?”
“You damn well know you did.” He gave her ass a light slap.
She tapped her finger against her lip. “Let me see. Oh, I know… Yes, Deacon, you are a stud machine in the sack.” Her grin got wider. “Better?”
“Don’t mess with me, woman, not after the last couple days. Now say it, or I’ll be forced to punish you.” He flipped her onto her back and stared down at her. “I need to hear you say the words.” He knew he sounded desperate, needy as hell, but that was because he was.
Her grin faded, and her eyes grew serious. She cupped his face in her hands and held his gaze. “Deacon West, I have loved you since I was fourteen years old. That has never changed, can never change. I will always love you. Always.”
He sucked in a breath. “Jesus.” Then, groaning, he buried his face against her throat. She rubbed his back while he pulled himself together enough to talk. But when he lifted up again, he couldn’t find the words. There weren’t any to express what he felt in that moment, so he kissed her, pouring everything he felt into that kiss. And when she wrapped her legs around his hips, urging him to take her again, he didn’t think he had ever been—could ever be—happier. He sank inside her and made love to his woman, reassuring her, loving her the way he knew she needed.
“You and me,” he whispered into her hair.
Epilogue
Four months later
Alex’s bare skin felt flushed, and not just from the sun’s heat beating down. Deacon kissed his way up to the sensitive skin below her ear. “You hungry?”
She brushed her fingers through his hair, away from his forehead, and grinned. “Starving.”
“I better feed you then.” Taking her hands, he helped her into a sitting position on the hood of his father’s Pontiac, his thighs still between hers. He took a step back, then stopped, head tilting to the side. “Wait, don’t move…just, stay like that for a second.”
“Why?” She darted a glance down at herself. “Is there a bug on me or something?”
He shook his head, laughter dancing in his gorgeous green eyes. “No. I’m memorizing the way you look right now, locking it away in my mind. Recently fucked, sitting on the hood of the Pontiac, sun lighting up that amazing golden skin, while the breeze ruffles your hair.” He rubbed his hand over his mouth. “Beautiful doesn’t cut it, Alex.”
She swallowed hard, emotion clogging her throat. “You don’t look too shabby yourself, Mr. CEO.” Bare chest, jeans still undone, sweat glistening his skin, hair mussed from her fingers tugging on it. “Like someone just rocked your world,” she teased.
Deacon had surprised her when she woke, telling her they were going on a picnic. As soon as he’d driven Jacob’s old car out of the garage, she knew what he had in mind. The fantasy he’d told her about four months ago. It felt like such a long time ago now, when she’d been so afraid of her feelings, afraid to love him. But Deke made it easy. The guy wasn’t hard to love.
“You rock my world every damn day just by being in it.” He moved back in close, tugged down her skirt, and lifted her to the ground. Then, taking her hand, he led her over to the picnic blanket he had laid out by the lake. The area was completely secluded, idyllic, peaceful.
She stood there and looked out across the water. “It’s so beautiful.”
His fingers slipped around hers. “Yeah, I’ve never seen anything more stunning.”
She turned back. His voice had gone incredibly deep, and he was staring up at her, already kneeling on the blanket. She tried to climb down beside him, but he stopped her. “Just stand there for me.”
“What?” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small velvet box. “Deacon…”
“Alex…”
“Shit,” she breathed.
He chuckled nervously and licked his lips, fingers tightening around her now trembling ones. “You are the most amazing woman I’ve ever met. You’re tough, loyal—God, incredibly sexy. But you’re much more than that. I’m so thankful you let me in, trusted me with your heart.” He took a shuddering breath. “I want to spend the rest of my life with you.” He pressed a kiss against the inside of her wrist, and she struggled to breathe. “Alexandra Maria Franco, will you marry me?”
Her already weak knees just kind of gave out from underneath her, and she sank down in front of him, her vision blurred. “Yeah. Shit. Yes, I’ll marry you.”
He pulled her in tight, hand cupping her face, and kissed her hard and deep. “I’ll make you happy, baby. I promise.”
“You make me happy every day.” She was crying freely, happy tears. She’d done that more than once in the last few
months. Before Deacon had forced his way back into her life, she hadn’t believed this kind of joy was even possible. That she would ever have this. But he proved her wrong every day. There was so much emotion on his handsome face, his love for her open and honest.
He smiled wide, the one that showed off that sexy dimple. “You know what this means, right?”
Sniffing, she buried her face in his neck, but he pulled her back up, wiping the tears from her cheeks. “The girls will be pissed that you’re stealing me away from them.” She chuckled. “You can tell them, but wait till I’m long gone.” Of course she was joking. Rusty and Piper couldn’t be happier for the both of them.
“I’m sure they’ll get over it. I want you waking up in my bed every morning. No more of this living in two different apartments.” He lay back on the blanket and pulled her onto his chest. “They’ll still get to see you every day, then you can come home to me every night.”
Going up onto her elbow, she stared down at him. “I like the sound of that.” Then she leaned in and kissed him. “Now how about a replay of that fantasy of yours?”
His gaze darkened. “I’m yours to command. Always.”
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Acknowledgments
First, to my husband and two children, thank you for putting up with me. And for the tea and chocolate deliveries! I love you guys.
To my editor, Karen Grove, thank you for your encouragement and support and the hard work you put into making this book the best it can be.
To Nicola Davidson, my friend and critique partner. As always, you are the wind beneath my wings!
To Mel Cryer, my amazing beta reader, thank you for always being excited to read one of my books.
Crashed (Entangled Indulgence) Page 18
