Beholden (The Belonging Duet, #2)(88)

I pull back and her eyes are liquid. I lift her and slide her shorts and thong off. I’m completely unprepared when she hops off the counter and backs me against it.

She’s completely bare and she hooks her finger in my belt loop and pulls me against her. My hands glide across her delicate back to her round ass and I grip it roughly, lifting her up. Her hands fumble with the button and my jeans fall around my ankles.

With her mouth fused to mine, I shake my jeans off and grind down against her as she tries to line herself up with my dick.

“Not yet, baby,” I manage to choke out as I try to find the bed or a couch.

“Hurry,” she moans and then pushes her lips to mine.

Not able to see where the hell I’m going, I walk into the table.

Perfect.

“I’m going to f*ck you so hard right now, but I promise I’ll be sweet next time.” I give her warning because the very thin thread is about to snap and I can’t control myself.

Her hand wraps around my dick and I almost drop her. “I don’t need sweet. I just need you.”

Jesus Christ that feels f*cking amazing.

“You’ve got me, baby.”

She glides her hand up and down and I’m harder than I’ve ever been.

“Promise?” she asks, placing a kiss on my neck.

“Oh yeah, I promise.” I lay her on the table and pull her hips close.

Before she can say another word, I push inside her.

Home.

I’m home and I don’t plan on leaving again.

Her eyes close and I lift her hips and sink deeper. Wet, hot, and mine.

She moans and I wrap her legs around my back and lift her up. I can’t get deep enough. I want her to feel me everywhere. I’m like an animal needing to possess her. There will be no doubt when we finish how I feel.

“Catherine,” I say through gritted teeth. “Look at me.”

When her deep brown eyes meet mine, her hands cup my face. “Take me.”

I snap. The words I need to hear from her. With her back on the table, I take this time to plunge into her again. I ride her in and out, allowing her to milk my cock as I lose my f*cking mind. She’s every breath I breathe, every beat of my heart, and I never want it to stop.

“Fuck. I’m losing it.”

Needing her to come, I put my thumb on her clit and rub in circles. I feel her clench and I have to bite my tongue to stop from finishing right then. Her hands find my arms and she holds on while I pound her relentlessly. Each thrust I lose myself in her. I claim her each time I slide in and out. The need to protect her, keep her safe, and ensure she never runs from me again surges through my body.

“I f*cking love you. You’re mine.”

My fingers press harder into her clit and I feel her thighs tighten around my hips. I f*ck her harder and as her eyes stay locked on mine, I can feel her get closer, her nails digging into my forearms. She scrapes them down my arms as she falls apart. I can’t last much longer.

My hands grip her thighs roughly and she screams my name over and over.

“Catherine!” I call out as I slam against her harder and lose myself over the edge while her * squeezes around my cock draining every ounce of me until I’m empty.

My head drops and rests on her breasts as our breathing calms.

That was intense.

I close my eyes and focus on her heart beating beneath me. Catherine’s hands slide slowly up and down my back when she lets out a deep breath.

If she pulls away, I’m gonna lose my shit.

“How long are you here for?” she asks, already sounding defeated.

“Forever.”

She huffs, “I don’t think that’s funny.”

“I wasn’t kidding.”

Why does everything with this woman need to be so damn complicated?

“Jackson, be serious.”

Standing up, I put my hands on her sides and look at her. I need to make sure she sees everything in my heart when I get this out. Considering she seems to need me to spell it out, it’s best I give myself little room for misinterpretation.

“I sold Raven.”

Her eyes go wide. “You what?”

“I sold it. It’s gone.”

“Why?” Catherine’s mouth falls open.

“Because I love you. Because a life without you isn’t the life I want. Because every day I think of you. Every moment I want to be with you. So you being in California and me being in New York isn’t working. The day you left me, I made a choice.”

“But, Jackson, you can’t.”

“I did.”

“This is crazy,” she says and starts to shift under me.

“Goddammit, Catherine,” I say, growing frustrated as I pin her down from getting away.

She tries to slide out from under me and can’t. Trying to hide from me, she puts her hands over her face.

Here we go.

“Why don’t you get it?” I ask pulling her hands away.

“Get what?”

I take her hands in mine and pour my heart out. “I’m not leaving. I choose you. You’re it for me. I love you—infinitely.”

“But you can’t give everything up for me. You’ll resent me.”

I rub small circles on her tiny palms. “Catherine, I didn’t give everything up because of you. I gave it up for me. For us. I loved you enough to let you go, but I love you enough to give up everything for you. You didn’t ask me to do this. I did this because my life without you doesn’t work. This is your dream and I won’t ask you to choose, but you, you are my dream.”