Colters' Woman (Colters' Legacy #1)(35)

She stirred and opened bleary eyes. They flared in surprise when she saw him.

“How did you get in here?”

“Quite easily actually. Why did you lock me out?”

She looked away. He trailed a finger over a lock of her hair that rested on her neck.

“I just needed some time alone,” she said softly.

“That’s understandable, but you don’t have to lock the door to get your point across.”

She looked back at him again, her eyes troubled, uncertainty lurking in their depths.

He sighed. Ethan was right. He should have just explained his involvement with Lacey from the get-go. Then maybe he’d be sliding his dick into Holly’s pu**y instead of lying here with a raging hard-on about to become embroiled in sensitive talk.

He checked his impatience and cupped her cheek in his palm. “Listen to me, baby. There is nothing going on between me and Lacey. I’m sorry if you got the wrong impression.”

Holly shifted and pulled the sheets up higher around her. The gesture looked protective in nature but instead of making her look stronger, it only made her seem more vulnerable.

“I don’t understand.”

Her voice came out soft and breathy, the kind that would make a man instantly hard. If he wasn’t already. She was everything soft and feminine, what a woman should be.

“What don’t you understand, baby?”

She looked away again. “Why didn’t you choose her?”

Adam frowned. That wasn’t what he expected her to say.

“She’s everything I’m not,” Holly continued. “She’s strong, tall, pretty. I bet she doesn’t need anyone.”

Adam leaned back against the pillows, taking Holly with him. He cradled her against his chest, and she laid her cheek on his shoulder. He stroked his hand up and down her arm.

“I won’t lie to you. There was a time when I was attracted to Lacey. I even went as far as to bring her home, introduce her to Ryan and Ethan. But I knew immediately that she wasn’t the one. I didn’t feel a connection with her. Not like I did with you, and it was obvious the others didn’t either. Ryan outright despised her on sight. I still haven’t figured out why. Ethan, well, he was indifferent. I stopped seeing her directly after that.”

Holly stilled against him. He could feel another question coming. One that apparently was difficult for her if her body language was any indicator.

“Ryan said…he said you were a sucker for a woman in distress.”

The light bulb went on immediately. Adam sat up, dragging Holly up with him. He cupped her chin in his hand and forced her to look him directly in the eye.

“Baby, I’ll always protect you, but that isn’t why you’re here. Ryan’s a dumbass. He talks to hear his head rattle, I swear. If you want an explanation as to why you and not her, well I don’t know. I can only tell you what I feel here.”

He clenched his other hand into a fist and thumped his chest. “It’s you, baby. And maybe in time you’ll believe that.”

Her eyes glittered suspiciously in the lamplight.

“I want it to be me.”

“But?” There was clearly a but in her statement. Doubt clouded her voice, and it made him uneasy.

“I’m scared of making the wrong decision. Again.”

“Does it feel wrong?”

She didn’t answer immediately.

“Holly?”

“No, it doesn’t feel wrong. That’s what scares me.”

Adam let out a small sigh of relief. He could fight uncertainty. He couldn’t fight a made up mind. Ethan’s words echoed in his mind. Was he right? Did Adam already love her? It was hard to separate his satisfaction with finding the woman who would complete their family and the idea of love.

He knew one thing. He wasn’t letting her go. If that meant he loved her, then maybe Ethan was right. And he’d try his best to make her love them as well.

He slid his hand down her side and over her hip. “I want to make love to you,” he murmured. “I’ve thought of little else all night.”

She stared up at him, her bottom lip caught between her teeth. He saw hesitation in her expression, but he also saw desire. Was she still afraid of him?

He lowered his head to hers, meeting her lips with his. She tasted sweet. Just like she looked. He wanted to feel those lips around his cock, her wet mouth sucking him deep. He was ready to explode just thinking about it.

“Take your clothes off,” he said hoarsely. “I want to watch you.”

She rose up on her elbow then slowly scooted off the bed. She stood for a moment, staring at him, her bottom lip tucked between her teeth. Then her fingers began to fumble with her pants.

He propped up on his elbow and watched as the smooth skin of her legs came into view. His fingers itched to touch her.

She began unbuttoning her shirt, her hands working down as the shirt loosened around her br**sts. When she parted the shirt, he sucked in his breath. Damn she was beautiful. She had perfect br**sts. They bobbed and swayed as she shrugged completely out of her shirt and let it fall to the floor.

He crooked his finger at her. “Come here.”

She crawled back onto the bed, her eyes bright with desire. Her lips wavered inches from his and then she kissed him. He ran his hand over her shoulder then down her side and underneath her breast. He cupped it in his hand, loving the feel, how it filled his palm.