Her Forever Hero (Unexpected Heroes #3)(68)

“All I’m going to do is hold you, Grace. Because I’ve missed you, and I need to hold you as much as you need to be held.”

At those words, she stopped fighting him. So he lifted her up and carried her to bed, gently laying her down before stripping to his boxers and climbing in next to her, and then pulled her into the safety of his arms.

The two of them still had a winding road ahead of them, but Cam knew that if they didn’t give up on one another, they could weather the storm and make it through anything, just as they’d made it through all the trials that had come before.





“I’ve thought about it, Cam, and you’re right: I’m not going to let my fears keep me hiding in the dark anymore.”

Cam stood in the doorway with a neutral expression on his face. Maybe he’d had enough. Maybe it was too late. She’d run from him one too many times, and maybe he was just finished, but she had to give this her all or she knew she’d be full of even more regrets than she already had. As it was, she had enough to last her a lifetime.

She’d paced in front of his door for nearly fifteen minutes before she worked up the nerve to ring the doorbell. This was it—this was do-or-die. If he turned her away, she would deserve it, but he’d told her he loved her . . .

She was prepared, though, for him to slam the door shut in her face.

When he said nothing after her heartfelt words, a closed door seemed inevitable.

“Are you sure you want my help, Grace? You’ve asked for it before and then you’ve run from me as soon as I try to do what I think is right.”

Grace couldn’t tell what he was feeling or thinking from his tone. It wasn’t exactly cold, but no one could call it warm, either. Fear made her want to turn and run yet again, but she’d convinced herself that she was done running, and certainly done hiding. She’d been through the pits of hell and back. She could get through this moment with the man she now knew she was fated to love until the end of time.

“You’ve been right all along, Cam. I was wrong—you were right. Does that make you feel any better? Does that make you want to help me?”

It hurt her a bit to admit that to this man. But she owed him the right to gloat, if only a little. She’d fought him so hard when all he’d been trying to do was help her.

“That’s a start,” he told her.

“And I’m sorry, Cam, truly sorry for my behavior.”

She tried to open herself up, to let him look into her eyes and see that she was speaking the truth to him. If he could see the honesty in her actions, then maybe he wouldn’t turn her away.

“That’s a little better,” he told her, but his voice was still cool.

“And I want your help. Please, will you help me?”

“All you had to do was ask.”

Before she could say something else, his arm snaked out and he hauled her through the doorway and into his arms. He kicked the door shut behind him, pushed her up against it, and dropped his mouth onto hers, making her forget anything else she’d been prepared to say.

He pulled back, his body hard against hers as the fire leapt in his eyes. “I’ve held back with you, given you time, allowed you to continue running away when you should only run to me. I’m finished with all of that. I’m taking what I want now.”

Grace didn’t know what to say, but his tone, the barely controlled lust radiating from him—everything about him—made her tremble with need. Before she had even a chance to respond, the world turned upside down when he grabbed her and threw her over his shoulder.

Shock stopped her from protesting until he was halfway up the stairs, and then she cried out and began pounding her fists against the unyielding muscle of his back. “Stop this, Cam!”

But just as quickly as the ride had begun, she was dumped from his shoulder and landed sprawling on top of his bed with him looming over her. Before she had a chance to say anything more, he was tearing her clothes off.

Within seconds, she was lying naked before him, a canvas waiting for his artistic touch. She was panting, her breasts heaving, her entire body instantly ready.

“Cam . . .” She wasn’t sure if she was trying to protest or begging him to strip and join her.

“Cry out my name, Grace. I plan on making you scream before this night is over.”

She couldn’t get a single word out as he stripped his own clothes off, and she held her breath as his magnificent erection came free, making her mouth water in anticipation.

“Are you ready for me, Grace?” he asked as he crawled up her body, the weight of his chest pressing against her breasts and the feeling of his solidness against her softness making her moan. “I’ve dreamt of you every single night since we were together last. I want to be inside you. I want to make you come over and over again, and I want to make sure you know that you’re mine—only mine.”

She barely managed to nod her head before his mouth covered hers. As he devoured her with his hot kiss, she clung to his shoulders and she arched her hips in invitation. She didn’t want foreplay, didn’t want sweet and slow.

She wanted fast, hot, and hard. She wanted this man to be out-of-his-mind crazy in lust for her, and only her. And right now she knew he was just as much hers as she was his.

Sliding a hand between their bodies, he cupped her breast, his fingers squeezing her peaked nipple and making moisture surge through her core. She pushed against him again.