Justice Falling (Falling #3)(52)

“Twice!” I held up two fingers which could not to be mistaken for the peace symbol.

He shook his head. “Camille, I’m sorry. It’s my fault. I didn’t intend to shag you in the kitchen. Bloody hell I didn’t intend to shag you at all tonight. Not with Tanner here.”

My eyes widened. “Oh. My. God.” What if Tanner woke and didn’t know where he was. He’d be frightened out of his mind. “I have to go to him.” I pulled my sweater down and looked around for my jeans. Crap! I left them in the kitchen.

Nate opened the door and I rushed in. Grabbing a wad of napkins from the counter I cleaned up the evidence of our pantry romp, threw on my undies and jeans and was clasping the button as I rounded the door to the room that Tanner was sleeping in.

He was still dead to the world. That hit me like a crash dummy vehicle hits a test wall. He was comfortable here.

“Camille, leave him. Let’s talk about this.”

I rounded on Nate then stomped off into the kitchen. Once there, I grabbed my glass of wine and downed it in a couple of gulps. “I can’t believe we did that again! What are we sixteen? Can’t keep our hands off one another long enough to put on a condom? We’re playing with fire, Nate!”

“I know, I know. We’ll figure it out. Whatever happens, I’m sorry.” He looked so panicked, very unlike the normally over-confident, alpha male always in control. Right now he was just a man. A man who, along with his girlfriend, made a couple really bad errors in judgment that could affect the rest of our lives.

“It’s not just you. I was there. Full participant right here.” I raised my hand mockingly. “I… we cannot have a baby right now. We don’t know each other well enough for that level of commitment. I’m just now on track with taking care of Tanner, my job, schooling.”

Oh God it could all be over from two stupid mistakes. Though they felt so incredibly right at the time, the consequences could last a lifetime. I doubted that Nate wanted to be shackled to me and a couple kids.

He rounded on me, pulling me into his warm chest. His hand held my head and I could hear the thud of his heart, strong and comforting. I rubbed my nose against the soft Henley he wore, doing exactly what I wanted to do earlier when he first showed up at my apartment.

“Camille, you listen and you listen good. You are not alone. Not now, not ever again. I know it’s only been a short time but…” His words cracked and I looked up at him. “We’re together and I don’t see that ever changing. I want to be with you. I want to get to know Tanner. Spend more time as a threesome. Over the past few years I’ve been floundering, focused on my career and nothing else. I’ve used women as mere shags.” My body tightened hearing him speak of being intimate with other women. The hard edge of jealousy dug into my heart. He ran his arms up and down my back, relaxing me once more.

“Until you. This. Us. It’s somehow better than anything I ever dreamed I’d have. I’m…” He took a deep breath, cupped my cheeks and kissed me softly. Then he pulled back. “I’m in love with you.”

The entire world slowed, went silent, then stopped moving all together. Nate’s eyes turned an indigo blue. “Did you hear me, Camille?”

I shook my head, feeling hot all over. Numbness filled my senses. If he hadn’t been holding me so tightly I may have turned into mush and melted to the floor. A man loved me. No, not any man. This man. My Nate.

His lips quirked into a knowing grin. “I love you, Precious.”

“Again,” I whispered wanting nothing more than to hear the most beautiful words ever said aloud.

“I love you, Camille Johnston.” He kissed my cheeks.

“Again.”

He kissed my forehead. “I love you.” He kissed each of my closed eyelids. “I love you.” He trailed his open mouth down the side of my cheek, along the edge of my chin. “I love you,” he said one last time before his lips took mine in a hot open-mouthed kiss.

The man of my dreams loved me.

Only in my wildest fantasies did Prince Charming capture the peasant girl and make her his. I wasn’t worthy of him, his love. He still didn’t know about Gems. We hadn’t figured out how to negotiate having a relationship with Tanner in the picture.

“Look Precious, I know this may come as a surprise to you but I’m not the kind of man who bestows accolades of love, willy nilly.” His gaze bore into mine. “I have never told a woman that I loved them, other than Mum and my sisters. Only you.” Honesty, sincerity and yes, love, permeated his words. My strong, confident, alpha male was professing his love for me.

Tears filled and blurred my vision and fell down my cheeks. “Nate, I…”

He stopped me from continuing with the pad of his thumb over my lips.

“Don’t. You don’t have to say anything. Just know I love you. And if my voracious need to mate with you results in us having a wee one, well, then I’ll do everything in my power to be the best father.”

More tears. I could not hold them back any more than I could stop breathing. Nate pulled my face into the crook of his neck, holding me while I cried. He was the perfect man and he loved me. Me.

The orphan girl from New Jersey nobody ever wanted. I was so consumed with my own love for this man I was incapable of putting the feelings into words. Instead, I’d show him. Nate picked me up and walked me to his bedroom. This would only be the second time I’d lain in his bed, but this time, I’d stay. I wouldn’t run.