Fighting Solitude (On The Ropes #3)(79)

“I can. And I will. I always do. Eliza. Flint. You. Mia. The list just keeps on growing. And, last night, Davenport put his f*cking hands on you because of me. I don’t know what to do with that.” I barked a manic laugh. “Clearly my subconscious does though.”

I was gearing up for another round of word vomit when she interrupted me.

“You…you love me?” Her voice was so packed with genuine surprise that it almost offended me.

Grabbing her shoulders, I leaned her away and caught her equally disbelieving gaze. “Are you kidding me?”

She shook her head.

“Of course I love you. I always have. I’ve felt it my entire life, but something just clicked recently. It was like I’d buried it so deep within myself that, when it finally made it to the surface, we went from friends to soul mates in the span of a minute.”

She didn’t reply, but her breath shuddered. Her eyes filled with unshed tears, and a mixture of hope and fear showed on her face.

She was busy chewing on her lip when she lifted her hands and silently signed, You think we’re soul mates?

“Without a question,” I replied instantly.

“But what about—”

I narrowed my eyes and reminded her, “My cock is still inside you. Don’t even say it.”

“It’s just—”

“Goddamn it. Don’t!” I growled. “I love you, Liv. Whatever you’re thinking right now, get that shit out of your head.” I palmed each side of her face and dropped my forehead to hers. “I love you. I love you. I love you.”

She swallowed hard and closed her eyes. “I love you too.”

“Good to know,” I breathed, pressing my lips against hers.

“I always have. Even when I wasn’t supposed to.”

I smiled a real honest-to-God smile.

“And I trust you, Quarry. So, if you want me to move into this absolutely incredible house, it will be hard, but I’ll figure out a way to be happy about it.” She giggled, and my veins flooded with relief.

Just that simple.

Just Liv.

Two minutes ago, I’d been on the verge of breaking down, but somehow, she’d flipped the switch. Calmed me in ways no one in the world had ever been able to accomplish—not even me.

“You serious about moving in here with me?” I whispered against her lips while sporting an impossibly wide grin.

She nodded and opened her mouth, rolling her tongue with mine.

I took it greedily, my cock thickening all over again.

“And I’m talking one bedroom. We share a bed. No more of that roommate shit.”

Her hands glided over my shoulders and up the back of my neck. “Okay,” she murmured, rising up on my cock. “But I want you to talk to me about your dream. I hated the way you rushed out this morning.”

I forced her down quickly, smirking when her throaty groan rumbled against my mouth. “Can I make you come first?”

“I already came.”

My eyebrows popped in surprise. “You did?”

She laughed. “You were in the middle of some kind of barbaric mating ritual, but yeah, I came.”

“Sorry about that,” I lied, dropping my hands to her hips and rocking back and forth.

“Mmm,” she purred. “Why don’t I believe you?” Her head fell back as she started moving over me again.

I was about to take her hard and see if I could make her come again. But then she whispered, “You love me.”

I smiled to myself and decided the f*ck would have to wait.

“Every. Single. Day,” I replied, reclining her down on the couch and then showing her exactly how much.





LUCKILY, IT WAS WINTER, BECAUSE when Quarry and I finally made it off the lonely couch in the middle of our enormous new living room, I realized I’d have to wear a scarf for at least a week. My neck was black and blue with a combination of hickies and bite marks. And he didn’t look any better. He had claw marks covering his entire back. They were so pronounced that they could easily be made out even amongst the dense black tattoos. I made him swear on his life that he’d keep a shirt on at the gym until they healed. He made fun of me but reluctantly agreed.

We went to brunch that morning with my parents, where Quarry bluntly informed my dad about the new house and made it quite apparent to everyone at the table that this wasn’t another roommate situation by repeatedly mentioning the need for a security panel in “our bedroom.” My father didn’t miss it. Neither did my mom. Dad’s response was to scowl as Quarry possessively draped his arm around my shoulders. Mom’s response was to shriek with joy. (I’d like to disturbingly note that she then quietly tugged at my scarf and exaggerated a knowing wink.) I couldn’t stop the laugh that bubbled from my throat. My mom was crazy. And, if possible, I loved her even more for it.

After brunch, we made a brief stop at the wings place near the highway, and then my parents headed back to Chicago. Quarry and I went back to the new house, where he changed and went to work out. I spent the first hour taking measurements of each room. Then I made my way out to the gym and watched my man—the one I’d been in love with my entire life and who I now knew loved me too. And it came with the added bonus of him thinking we were soul mates, a fact I’d always thought but never dreamed he would too. And, for the first time, I could admit that I trusted him with not only my life, but my heart as well.