Total pages in book: 155
Estimated words: 146392 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 732(@200wpm)___ 586(@250wpm)___ 488(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 146392 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 732(@200wpm)___ 586(@250wpm)___ 488(@300wpm)
He wouldn’t be around to give her any peace at all.
He felt his jaw go tight and he moved in, whispering directly in her ear. “They want to know who The Jester is. I have no idea what they’re talking about. I think he’s some kind of arms dealer. They have a picture of me walking down a street in Berlin with him. But I don’t know him, Lou. That picture’s a fake.”
He felt her head nod against his. “Okay. We need to buy some time, but I know they’re listening. We can’t say anything about you not knowing. We shouldn’t say much at all.”
She was right. And maybe all that crap about no one missing her was just that. Crap. Someone would miss her. If she was alone, Coop would come over to make sure she didn’t need anything. Tristan’s sister, Brianna, was over there all the time.
Someone would hear Bud whining. Tasha would drop by, and she would know Lou would never leave the dog by himself.
They had to buy time and not give away the fact that he had no information to give them.
He would make some up if he had to. He would send them to someone who could handle himself. He just had to figure out who that was.
She backed away from him. “I also heard them talking about how I’m not your girlfriend and it would have been better to bring Devi in. I worry if they think I’m not the person to make you talk, they’ll move faster to get rid of me.”
“Do you honestly believe I would let that happen?”
“I don’t know.”
He was overwhelmed and not thinking straight. The last couple of weeks had been pretty fucking awful, and he hadn’t had her around to help him find his center. They were at a breaking point. He’d tried so hard to keep his hands off her so he could stay in her life, but all he’d managed to do was put them in this shitty position. “You are my whole world, Louisa Ward. Girlfriend doesn’t begin to cover how I feel about you. I didn’t think we were ready. I didn’t think I was good enough for you, but that doesn’t matter now. I realize that. I should have listened to you. You always were so much smarter than me. They want to know how much they can get me to do if it spares you a moment of pain? I can show them.”
He did what he should have done years and years ago. He leaned over, ignoring the ache in his muscles, and slid a hand around her neck, holding her still.
Her eyes flared as he stared down at her.
“TJ,” she began.
“Tell me you don’t want me and I can step back.”
“You’re the one who doesn’t want me. You don’t have to do this.”
“I should have done this a long time ago. I don’t think you’re going to listen to words. I think I have to show you. This might be my last chance.”
“TJ,” his name came out of her mouth again, this time softer, a plea, but he didn’t know for what.
To kiss her? To walk away from her? All he knew was she hadn’t told him no, and that was what it would take to stop him. He lowered his lips to hers and attempted to satisfy over a decade’s worth of longing.
Soft. She was so fucking soft. And warm. He let his hands find her waist and gently explored her lips. He loved her lips. They were full and plump, and he loved it when she smiled or frowned or pouted. He loved her every expression, and damn, but he loved how they felt beneath his own. The world went fuzzy around him, narrowing down to her. Only her.
He’d always known if he put his hands on her, his mouth on her, his cock in her, that he would be beyond obsessed, and he felt it overtake him like a wave.
This was it. There would be no going back. If they survived, he would do anything he had to in order to be what she needed him to be. It was still a terrible idea and he could lose her, but now, in this place where everything was ripped down to its core, he knew he had to try.
He had to have this moment with her. No matter what came after.
He would have his one moment with Lou and then he would do whatever he could to save her. Even if it meant sacrificing himself.
TJ felt the moment she gave over. Her chest crushed against his, and her arms went around his shoulders, clutching him like she would never let him go.
It was all he needed. He let his tongue surge inside her mouth, drinking in the way she tasted, the silky glide of her tongue against his. It wasn’t awkward in any way. This was the opposite. This felt like something they’d done a million times, and yet it was new and fresh and always would be.