Darker Water (38 page)

“I…I don’t know what I would say.”

“Then I guess I would have to come up with
something to cover the awkward silence. And even though I’d really
want to fill it by kissing you, I’d probably feel like that was a
bit presumptuous after all the horrible things I’ve done to you. So
I might try something else.”

“Like what?”

“Like maybe telling you that—” He took a step
towards me. “Can I touch you, Lane? Just…just…your arm or your
shoulder or…your cheek?”

I wanted to say yes so badly, but I knew one
touch would turn into something neither of us could control. We’d
end up in bed with nothing solved or different, and it would keep
happening. And a month from now, I would wake up knowing that
sleeping with someone you love is a terrible thing to do when that
love isn’t returned.

“It’s okay,” he said, nodding, understanding
what my silence meant. “It’s okay, Lane. You don’t owe me
anything.” When I moved to go around him, he deliberately stepped
in front of me, his hands tucked in his back pockets. “But I’m
going to take it anyway because I’m still a selfish prick, and I
can’t let you walk out that door.”

I stood there like an idiot, tears running
down my face, not knowing what to do because it had taken all my
strength just to
start
walking. And now all that strength
and the little bit of momentum I’d had was gone, so I was stuck
standing there in front of him, waiting for…for something that
would never happen. “Can you please just let me leave?”

“No, not like this. Not yet.” Staring
straight at me, he mumbled something. He said it again, a little
louder this time, his head bowed forward. “Because I haven’t worked
up enough courage to tell you I’m in love with you yet.”

“What?”

He blew out a breath and ran his hand through
his hair. “I’m in love with you, Lane. And it feels— Well, I can’t
honestly say it feels good right now because I’m really nervous
about how you’re gonna react. But it feels right, and I don’t want
it to stop.”

“Do you really mean that?”

“I don’t say things I don’t mean.” So quiet,
so still.

I didn’t want to move before he did but
nothing could stop my heart from pounding even faster and a warmth
filling every part of me. Just like nothing could stop the stupid
amount of tears that were sliding down my cheeks or the sudden
peace I felt knowing I wasn’t going to hurt anymore, because we
would be okay.

I could tell he was afraid to look at me and
couldn’t stop his body from trembling. “Come here.” My heart
skipped when he obeyed me, something he’d never been particularly
good at. He stopped about two feet in front of me. “Closer.” Again
he obeyed. “Look at me.” He swallowed, raising his head, his eyes
shy and unsure. “Now say it again.”

“Aw, come on.”

“Say it again, Carson.”

He let out his breath really slowly, maybe to
give himself time. “I love you. Every part of you, not just the
parts I’ve already told you I love. I need you to be in my life,
Lane. Permanently.”

It took me a minute to speak because I’d
never, ever expected this moment. So I had to think about what it
meant and what would happen. After I did, I smiled. Because I
wasn’t afraid. I didn’t need to be, not anymore.

“Then you’d better be really, really good to
me.”

“I can do that.” He kissed me gently, only
our lips touching.

If we were both waiting for the other to make
a move, we were going to be here all day. I cradled his face in
both of my hands and deepened the kiss, felt him respond, relax,
and then want more. As good as kissing him had always been, it felt
even better than I remembered, as if he’d stopped holding back the
last tiny bit of himself.

“You really love me?” I asked, lifting my
chin so he could reach my neck more easily.

“Yeah, I really do.”

“Show me how much.”

He picked me up and walked across the
bedroom, pulling my sandals off along the way. “I can’t believe I
almost screwed this up, Lane.” But instead of lying me down on the
bed, he kept walking. “I can’t believe it.”

I jolted when I felt him set me down on my
feet inside the bathtub and turn the faucet on. “What are you
doing?” Without answering, he got in and started pulling off my
clothes. It became a race to move faster than the water level
raised. When we were in our underwear, he sat down and yanked me
onto his lap, wrapping my legs around his waist.

After another kiss, he said, “Your lips will
be on mine for the foreseeable future, so if you have anything to
say, say it now.”

“Does this mean I get to use your bathtub
whenever I want to?”

He laughed. “
Our
bathtub. And only if
you leave me a little room.”

“Doable. I want another drawer.”

“I’ll give you four, but no more than that.
’Cause that’s all I have.”

“I could probably be convinced to share.” I
swallowed. “I don’t want to separate sex and love.”

“Good. Because you’ll never need to.” He ran
his fingertips along my jaw, stopping to cup my chin so I couldn’t
turn away. “When I tell you that you’re beautiful and I love you
and you’re my world, it’s because it’s true.”

“Thank you.” My lips brushed his. “When I
tell you to go get me a drink, it’s because you need to get me a
drink.”

“Okay, that’s it—no more talking for
you.”

We stopped laughing, only because it kept us
from kissing. And feeling. And loving.

there was a woman who, though not stunningly
beautiful, thought herself to be. Because she was in love with a
man who made her feel that way. And despite himself, he was in love
with her.

After all of the princes who’d turned into
frogs and had damaged the woman’s heart, it took a man who was not
a prince to mend it. And in return, she mended his. For even though
he’d long believed himself the lowest of creatures, he wasn’t. His
heart was locked away, deep inside of him, and he had never allowed
anyone in for fear they would discover how truly ugly it was.

But what he didn’t know was that his heart
was pure and beautiful and strong. And all he needed was the right
woman to unlock it and set him free…with a kiss.

Please keep reading to learn more about book two in
this series, how to get a free novella, and how to hear about my
new releases

~

If you enjoyed
Darker Water
, please consider
leaving a review. Each review helps get the novel in front of other
potential readers and is
greatly
appreciated. Seriously, for
an author, there is no greater gift than when you leave a review or
tell a friend about our book. Well okay, there might be a
few
greater gifts (convertibles, trips to Vegas, pool boys,
etc.), but reviews and telling your friends about the book are
right up there.

According to the CDC, an average of 24 people
per
minute
are victims of rape, physical violence, or stalking
by their partner
, in the US alone. That’s over 12 million
women and men per year. More than 1 in 3 women (35.6%) and 1 in 4
men (28.5%) will experience this type of violence in their
lifetime.

If you are involved in an abusive relationship, there
are
so
many people who want to help you. But they can’t help
if they don’t know. You
have
to tell someone. You
have
to ask for help. You aren’t alone.

Call the National Domestic Violence Hotline or the
hotline in your country

1.800.799.SAFE (7233)

www.thehotline.org

Once & Forever #2

~ Coming early 2015 ~

Once and Forever will be a series of at least seven
stand-alone novels. Each story uses a theme or symbol from a
fairytale, but only as a starting point. Because while fairytales
aren’t real, love
is
.

Virtually Impossible
is Hayden’s story, and
this how his fairytale begins:

there was a woman who made the mistake of trusting
the wrong man. And that mistake led to another. And another and
another, each more damaging than the last. But the woman was as
ignorant of her mistakes as she was of the damage they caused.
Until she was punished for them. But because all knew she'd acted
out of youth and naiveté, imagined love and true stupidity, her
punishment was not grave.

However the woman believed she had not paid
enough for what she'd done and how stupid she had been. So the
punishment she gave herself was far, far more severe. She locked
herself behind glass, only coming out from behind it when she was
forced to, which wasn't often. And the longer she stayed behind the
glass, the safer she fel,t until she didn't see it as a prison at
all. Until she loved it for its beauty and depended on it for its
clarity.

For you see, her cage was made from one-way
glass and the mirror faced out, so the woman never had to look upon
her own reflection. And when she saw the world beyond the glass,
things were clear and simple and fair, for she was not part of the
world but separate from it. And from behind the glass, there was
nothing hidden from her and everything to hide behind.

Day after day she toiled, working hard to
repay the wrong she'd unwittingly done and the people she'd
unwittingly hurt. And thus she was so focused that she didn't
notice how the glass pressed in on her, how stagnant and lifeless
the air became. And when she finally realized, it didn't matter
anymore, for she knew the tiny box was what she justly deserved for
believing the lies told to her. So of her own volition, she
remained behind the glass, knowing that one day she would have no
more mistakes to make, no one left to hurt, no more sins to pay
for, and no more air to breathe.

~

Look for
Virtually Impossible
early
next year, and sign up for my newsletter to hear when it will be
available for pre-order, when it will be released, and more about
the other books in this series.

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