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Raylan yanks me back again. When I try to shove him once more, he grabs me by the face and kisses me. It’s a rough kiss, his black stubble scratching my face. It’s hard and violent, and I can taste the salt of his sweat. I wrench away from him and slap him across the face. “Don’t you fucking kiss me!” Raylan’s blue eyes are blazing, and he looks completely different from his usual cheerful self. He’s all wolf now, teeth bared and jaw rigid. He grabs me by my ponytail and kisses me again, even harder.
Riona is a constant challenge. She’s strong willed and stubborn as fuck. Determined not to be impressed by me. Intent on always doing things her own way, damn the consequences.
No romance—just a whole lot of experience. I’ve seen a whole lot of ugliness and greed and violence. But I’ve seen gorgeous things too. I’ve seen the sun setting over Victoria Falls. I’ve ridden camels over sand dunes bigger than any ocean wave. I’ve taken a chopper over a volcano half a day before it erupted. And walked on black sand beaches that look like an alien planet.
don’t know at what point in the story I snap, but the next thing I know, my hands are around Barker’s throat and I’ve flung him up against the refrigerator. I’m choking the fucking life out of him while he gags and sputters, trying to pry my fingers off his neck.
The fact that this arrogant piece of shit thought that Riona was interested in him, the fact that he followed her into the bathroom and put his hands on her . . . it makes me want to murder him. Just snuff him out of this world.
“So, are you and the cowboy fucking yet?”
“So . . . you’re just really similar.” “It’s more than that,” Nero says. ”There’s the parts that are the same and the parts that fill up the holes in each other. You don’t know what’s missing inside of you until you find it in someone else.”
Raylan smells nice—not like expensive cologne like Josh. Just like soap and laundry detergent and clean cotton. There’s something natural about him that I like. He doesn’t put product in his hair—it’s soft and messy. He rarely shaves, and he’s got calluses on his hands. But all that seems exotic to me, compared to the tanned and coiffed men I usually date. Raylan is masculine in a different way—by not giving a damn about his clothes or his car or his social status.
Tracking down this motherfucker and protecting Riona can’t happen in the same place at the same time. Let Dante and Cal do the searching—I’m going to take Riona somewhere far away.
I have no advantage with Raylan. If I let go right now, if I give in to this desire, I’ll be completely out of control. I’ll be in totally uncharted territory. I don’t understand my desire for him or how I feel about him as a man. Sometimes he drives me insane. And sometimes I admire him, against my will. None of that is normal for me. None of it is comfortable.
“You scare me.” I’ve never admitted to being intimidated. I’ve never admitted to being afraid, period. “This . . . scares me,” I say, gesturing between the two of us.
“I told myself I wouldn’t kiss you again without your permission.” I swallow hard. “But that was a stupid fucking promise.” He grabs my face between his hands, and he kisses me hard, harder even than he did in the gym.
“Say you’re my girl,” I demand.
“I promise to choose you for the rest of our lives. To choose you over fear or selfishness. Over ambition or other cares. I promise to never let you down again. To always be there for you. I promise to give you every bit of joy this life has to offer. You are the most incredible man I’ve ever known, and I promise to be the wife you deserve.
I promise to choose you over fear or selfishness. Over ambition and other cares.
Is that what love is? Is it putting the other person above your own fears and desires?
And I want that love. I want Raylan.
“Stop?” I say. “Or keep going?” “Keep going,” she gasps. “Say, ‘Please, Daddy.’” She scowls at me, and I could laugh out loud at the pleasure of teasing her. I knew she’d hate that. I flick her nipple with my tongue, making her moan in frustration. “Please, Daddy!” she says petulantly.
“I love you, Riona.”
Before I snatch it up, I tell myself, Trust her. Trust that she hasn’t run away. I read the first line in a glance: Don’t worry, Raylan, I haven’t run away.
. I want to choose you, Raylan. I want to choose you over anything else.”
“I was all set to tell you that I was gonna stay here in Chicago. And darlin’, I’m still willing to do it. I want you to be happy, Riona. If that means staying, then I’ll stay.”
"I love you," I tell her again. "I really love you." "I know," she grins. "I love you, too." I chuckle. "Did that hurt you to say it out loud? Was it hard?" She laughs. "No. I thought it would be hard, but it wasn't. It feels good to tell you finally."
start to feel guilty. “Never mind,” I say. “It’s not so bad. If I was going to have a kid—which I’m not—I guess I could name them Dante.” Dante grins. “I’m holding you to that.”
