Total pages in book: 91
Estimated words: 88212 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 441(@200wpm)___ 353(@250wpm)___ 294(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 88212 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 441(@200wpm)___ 353(@250wpm)___ 294(@300wpm)
I hear that kid in me screaming out again, wishing his parents would come back to him.
“I needed my dad, but it was like I lost both my parents at the same time. And I feel bad for judging him because I know he needed help. It was too much for him, but it was too much for me too, and he wasn’t there for me.” I quiet for a moment, a mix of profound pain and guilt, considering that awful time in my life, before adding, “Neither of them was.”
As I take a deep breath, Dax offers another tender stroke. “I’m so sorry you had to go through that. I can’t even imagine how painful that must’ve been.”
I swallow, my throat not feeling as tight now that I got that out.
“Weird,” I say. “I’ve always felt like if I said some of that shit out loud, it would be too much for me and I’d wind up so out of control, I’d never recover. But it actually feels nice to say it out loud to someone I trust.” No, that’s not right. “To you, Dax.”
His lips curl into a gentle smile. “I’m glad you knew you could trust me with that. I’ll always be here for you.”
As comforting as it’s been, there’s one drawback. “I guess I had to find a way to fuck up date night after all.” I break eye contact for the first time since I unburdened myself of all that horrible shit. Feeling guilty for ruining what had been such a fun night with my boyfriend.
With his hand still on my cheek, he turns me toward him. “You didn’t ruin anything. Today has been…perfect. This is what I want. To get to know the real Miles Tanner, the good and the bad. It doesn’t scare me.”
His words prod at something within me, and my chin trembles. “It scares me sometimes,” I confess, once again less like the man I’ve become and more like the kid who found out his mom and dad had, each in their own way, abandoned him.
Dax glides his hand across my flesh, to the back of my head, threading his fingers through the strands. The sensation is so tender, so soothing.
“But when we’re together, and when you touch me, it’s like I can drown out all that bullshit and just focus on us. Like nothing else in the world fucking matters.”
He leans close, his lips greeting mine, offering that familiar rush, pushing away all the darkness. I shove him back against the wall as we embrace, kissing passionately as I lose myself in the experience.
Finally, he pulls away, his breath hitching. “Does that feel better?”
“You have no fucking idea how much better.” My lips are on his throat in no time. I nibble and lick, suck as all those painful memories dissolve from my awareness and it’s just me and him again.
“Then touch me as much as you need to.”
I accept the invitation, my hands sliding greedily under the hem of his shirt as my teeth trail along his flesh.
28
Dax
No one’s touch has ever felt this good. Every stroke of Miles’s skin against mine, every point of contact between us is somehow more. Not just pleasure, though it definitely delivers on that front, but emotion I’ve never experienced. Especially after what he shared with me. I know how hard it is for Miles to let people in, and having him open up to me like that is indescribable.
“Touch me,” I beg, needing to feel him everywhere, not wanting an inch of my skin to go unexplored.
“I am.” He shoves my shirt up, brushing one thumb over each nipple. Pleasure vibrates through me, leaving little aftershocks in its wake. “You said I get to touch you as much as I want. That means I get to decide how much and when…unless you tell me otherwise.”
I don’t want to take my words back because I do want Miles to know he has free rein of my body. I’m offering myself up to him, as eager for him to take what he wants as he is, but I also want everything right now, my body hungry and needy for the pleasure Miles can give me. “You’re going to torture me, aren’t you?”
“Maybe.” He gives me a mischievous grin. I love learning each of his smiles, each of his facial expressions and voices. He leans in, lashing his tongue over one of my nipples. “Do you consider this torture?”
My hands settle on his hips, a shiver running through me. “Yessss,” I hiss out.
“But you love it, don’t you? You love letting me do whatever I want to you, touch you when and how I want, making you go wild for me.”
“Kiss me, Miles.” He cocks a brow, and I say, “Please,” just before his mouth crushes against mine, his tongue slipping inside. I pull him closer while he kisses the hell out of me, our cocks rubbing together as he grinds against me. Kissing Miles is… I don’t even have the words. His secrets still on his lips, this part of him that feels like is reserved for me. I want whatever he’ll give me, want to take it all, to hold his truths and savor the way he feels.