Colters' Daughter (Colters' Legacy #3)(34)

Her shoulders sagging, she turned and walked slowly to the couch where she sank into the cushions. But the leather that had felt warm and comforting before was now cold and unwelcoming.

She pulled the thin blanket around her body and up to her chin. She wouldn’t cry. Not now. She’d managed to go a long time without tears.

Her eyelids drooped and she nestled her head against the arm of the sofa. Her heart ached, but it went even deeper. Soul deep.

Now that she’d actually hurt Max, she realized she didn’t have the stomach for revenge. Unintentional or not, she knew that she’d suffer just as much as he would.

She wanted him back. Wanted his hands on her. His mouth. She wanted him to smile at her. She wanted him to love her.

When Callie awoke, she lay still a moment and stared dully toward the fireplace. The hearth looked cold and empty. Pretty symbolic.

She stirred and twisted the kink from her neck. When she stared down the couch, she saw Max sitting at the end, his gaze fixed on her.

“Max.”

She hastily sat up and the blanket fell to her waist.

He cocked his head to the side as his stare slid down her body. “Why didn’t you dress?”

She glanced down, frowned and then looked back up at him. “You told me to stay naked.”

“Hmmm.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

Okay, she sounded defensive. Hell, she was defensive. She was seriously teetering here and definitely working without a safety net.

“Just that on some level you trust me. I haven’t completely lost it.”

She sighed. “I’m so sorry, Max. I didn’t mean to make you feel bad.”

He scooted forward on the couch and put a finger to her mouth. “Shhh. You won’t apologize for the way you feel. It’s my fault. I pushed too hard, too fast. It’s easy to forget that we’ve been apart for so many months. I’d love nothing more than to forget it and go back to the way things were before… Before I hurt you. That’s on me, though. I can’t expect to gain back everything we lost in a day. So it’s me who is sorry, Callie. Your hesitation hurt me more than I expected. I can’t bear the thought that you’d worry I’d in some way hurt you.”

She leaned forward until her forehead rested on his mouth. “I don’t think you’d hurt me, Max. I don’t. I want this to work.”

He laid his hand on the back of her head and then gently stroked over her hair as he kissed her forehead.

“I want this to work too, Callie. I shouldn’t have reacted as I did. You have the right to question me. You have the right to stop me at any time if you don’t feel comfortable. I don’t want you to feel like you ever have to suck it up and deal when you’re frightened or unsure just because you don’t want to hurt my feelings.”

She closed her eyes and smiled as she circled his neck with her arms. “I really didn’t mean to hurt you, Max. I guess you’re right. I’m just a little unsure. I’m still unbalanced by it all. A few days ago I was alone and unhappy. Now such a short time later, I’m with you in Denver and we’re flying into the wind again.”

He cupped her face and brushed his lips across her cheek and then pulled her against him to cradle her in his arms.

“I’m sorry, dolcezza,” he murmured against her hair. “I’m sorry I hurt you. I’m sorry I overreacted earlier.”

She snuggled against his chest. “Think we could take up where we left off?”

He chuckled softly. “I can arrange that.”

She slid off his lap and went to her knees in front of him. She eased her thighs apart and slowly turned her hands palms up on top of her thighs.

His nostrils flared with his quick intake of breath. “How beautiful you are, Callie. There on your knees, your eyes and mouth so sweet you take my breath away.”

She stared back at him, her heart squeezing so hard in her chest she became light-headed. She put all her conviction into her gaze, her expression, the position of her body. She wanted there to be no doubt. She was his. This time… This time would be right. This time would be different.

For the first time since Max had stormed back into her life she didn’t feel foolish for thinking that things could be worked out between them. She was able to look at him with love, and in time she knew that her trust would be complete and whole again.

Maybe not overnight, but it would come.

She had faith.

She had love.

She had…hope. Sweet, healing hope.

Chapter Sixteen

Max absorbed the love in Callie’s eyes like a man dying of thirst. She was a balm to every ache in his soul. He wanted to possess her. He wanted to own her. He wanted her to light up for him—only him.But he also wanted her to be free. He never wanted to crush her spirit and the zest with which she embraced life.

She was special.

She was his.

He rose to stand before her and stared down as she looked up into his eyes. They burned with trust where before there had been a subtle wariness to her gaze. He knew he wasn’t completely there yet, but she wanted to trust him and that was a huge step forward.

Slowly he undid the fly of his pants and pushed them over his hips until his c**k jutted free of confinement. He wrapped his hand around the base and gave a short pull but then squeezed the tip when he found just how precariously close he was to coming undone under the caress of her gaze.