Ready for You (Ready #3)(66)

“Is this why you ran? Is that why you never came back to me?”

“It was my fault, Garrett. I destroyed everything, and I didn’t deserve you anymore,” I whispered. I still don’t deserve him.

With conviction, he cradled my face between his palms. “I don’t care what that sorry excuse for a doctor told you, Mia. None of this was your fault. Do you understand?”

I didn’t answer, so he pressed on. “Look at me. I will not let you carry this burden on your shoulders anymore, Mia. Let it go.”

“I can’t,” I said.

“Yes, you can.” He placed a tender kiss on my forehead and silently cradled me in his arms. “Why didn’t you tell me? All those times I stormed out of here, angry with you over what happened, you could have come out and told me the truth.”

“No matter how it happened, it doesn’t change the outcome. Whether or not I chose to walk out of the clinic, I am still the reason our child died.”

“Baby, you can’t keep punishing yourself. We both have to stop living in the past, and we need to learn to move on, but we can’t do that if we’re still being tugged backward. Please, let it go.”

I nuzzled my head in his chest, feeling safe and protected. “I don’t know how,” I answered honestly.

“Can I show you?” he asked.

Lifting my head, I nodded. He smoothed down my hair, letting his fingers run through the damp strands. His head bent down, and he kissed my cheek, lingered over my collarbone, and hovered at my lips.

“You let me love you, every day, forever,” he whispered.

When his lips finally touched mine, I felt every raw emotion he felt being transmitted through our kiss. Love, compassion, desire, and devotion all tangled together as his mouth moved against mine. He untied my robe and slipped it off my shoulders. He kissed the hollow of my neck, and trailed kisses along my collar bone. The towel at his waist disappeared to the floor as he laid me back against the pillows.

“I love you, Mia. I loved you when we were barely old enough to know what true love was. I loved you when you left me, and I’ve loved you every day since. No matter what happens in our lives, that will be the one constant. I will always love you.”

I should have stopped him. As his fingers grazed my skin, leaving a blazing trail in their wake, I should have steadied his hand and told him everything. The story wasn’t finished, and I tried to form the words on my lips, but I couldn’t bring myself to say them aloud.

Would he treat me differently, pull away, or worse…leave?

Unable to bear the thoughts swirling in my mind, I let his touch linger and intensify, as I remained silent, keeping my secret safe for another day.

He took me slowly, making each thrust surge through me like a crashing wave. I wrapped my legs around him, needing to feel him closer, and I savored the sensation.

“I love you, Garrett,” I cried as my orgasm took over, and my body shook.

As soon as the words left my lips, his mouth took mine in a fierce kiss. His pace quickened, and moments later, he cried out my name as he came.

Rather than feeling like we were making up for the time we’d lost, we spent the morning cuddled in each other’s arms as we planned a future, instead of dwelling in the past.

Chapter Twenty-Two

~Mia~

“You know, we can just pick something up at the grocery store for the party,” Garrett reminded me for the tenth time.

I was attempting to bake, and it wasn’t going well. I was a terrible cook, and baking definitely fell into that category. As batter flew from the mixer, he surveyed the disaster in my kitchen. He gave me a lazy grin, and I powered down the mixer.

“No, I want to make something from scratch. I want your sister and Leah to like me.”

His smile grew wider, and I could sense he was holding back his laughter. His eyes flickered with amusement, and his entire body quaked as he tried to hold himself together.

“What?” I asked, folding my arms over my chest with a bit of annoyance.

“You have chocolate batter all over your face.”

The deep masculine laughter he’d been keeping at bay came barreling out as soon as my eyes widened in horror. We only had an hour left until we had to be at Leah’s house, and I still had nothing to bring. I had no perfectly baked brownies, no chocolate chip cookies—nothing. I just had a bunch of weird lumpy-looking batter.

Garrett sauntered forward and pulled me into his arms, grasping my hips with his strong, firm hands. “You don’t need to stress, baby. Leah already loves you. She’s told me a dozen times, and she’s threatened bodily harm if I hurt you. And Clare just needs to get to know you. She barely remembers you, but she couldn’t be happier for us.”

“Okay, but are you sure you don’t want someone else with a bit more culinary expertise? I mean, at this rate, you might die from starvation before our second wedding anniversary.” The words had slipped out of my mouth, and I sucked in a sharp breath as soon as they had been uttered.

We’d talked about the future, and I thought that meant our future would be together, but that didn’t mean he wanted to marry me.

He had wanted to once, but maybe he’d since changed his mind.

He still might after I finally come clean.

My panicked eyes turned up to his, and he only smiled.

“There’s no one else I’d rather have than you, bad cooking and all.”