Forever (Betrothed Book 7) Read online

I’d never been so satisfied without sex. I’d never been so satisfied with one woman. But there was nowhere else in the world I’d rather be. Lying with her, looking at her, was the best thing I could possibly do.

  I came home late that night. It was a long day at the bank, and an even longer one on the streets. Some of my guys told me one of my distributors was trying to undercut me, so I had to take care of that in my usual way. Threats. Violence. The norm.

  When I stepped inside my bedroom, it was four in the morning. I was careful as I walked across the carpet, my boots making an audible thud against the rug from my weight. I ducked into the closet and shed my suit jacket so Patricia could take it to the cleaners tomorrow. My tie was tossed in the laundry basket, and I got rid of the rest of my clothes piece by piece. When I was stripped down to my boxers, I walked over to my nightstand and placed my phone on the surface.

  Annabella was asleep on her side of the bed, so tired she didn’t stir at the sound of my movements. Her hair was a mess on the pillow, and she had the sheets pulled all the way up to her neck because she was cold without me beside her.

  When I looked at my nightstand, I noticed the folded white paper sitting on top. It was folded four times, a single sheet of printer paper made into a square. I knew I hadn’t left it there, so I grabbed it and quietly opened it until it was readable.

  My eyes scanned over the results of a procedure until I understood what it was. Annabella got tested and wanted me to know the outcome.

  She was clean.

  And she was ready.

  My heart started to beat a little faster as I understood the implication. My eyes moved back to Annabella, who was dreaming about a faraway place. This note told me everything I need to know.

  I was hard instantly.

  I folded the paper back up and inserted it into my nightstand drawer. I’d just received great news, but for now, there was nothing I could do about it.

  Just had to be patient a little longer.

  Fourteen

  Annabella

  Damien never mentioned the results I’d left on his nightstand days ago. Maybe nothing needed to be said. Or maybe he decided to be a gentleman and not question me about it. Instead of assuming I was ready to hit the sheets right away, he treated me the same. Gentle. Loving. Patient.

  But a part of me wondered why we continued to wait.

  When he came home every night, we had dinner at the dining table, sometimes with his father, but most of the time, it was just the two of us. The curtains were always open so I could enjoy the sunshine outside while I was home during the day. There was patio furniture on the balcony so I got to sit outside in the middle of the day and let the sunshine tan my skin. Then when he came home, we watched movies and whatever was on TV.

  But most of the time, we fooled around.

  We did everything but the actual act of making love. We kissed each other all night, our fingers digging into each other’s hair, my ankles locked around his waist as I fantasized about feeling him inside me. Before we went to sleep, he always kissed me good night and told me he loved me.

  If felt like we’d been together forever.

  It felt right, like we should’ve been doing this years ago. Like I never should have married Liam, like I should’ve been with Damien this whole time. It was a feeling I couldn’t describe, a closeness I’d never had with my ex-husband, not even on our wedding day. I didn’t believe in fate or soul mates, but I started to wonder if Damien was meant for me.

  I sat on the couch and watched TV alone while I waited for him to come home. Sometimes he had to work late, and even though I hated it, I never complained. I trusted him, so whatever he was doing out there wouldn’t hurt me. He left me because he didn’t want to put me in danger. If I ever expressed concern about his criminal enterprise, he might leave me again.

  I would never ask him to sacrifice his livelihood for me.

  We never discussed it, and I assumed we never would.

  The bedroom door opened, and Damien walked inside. He was dressed casually in jeans and a t-shirt, because he’d left the bank long ago and headed to his other commitments. He sauntered inside with a pizza box tucked under his arm.

  “Ooh…is that for me?”

  “Definitely not for me.” He walked to the sitting area and placed the box on the table in front of the couches. “I don’t want to deal with Patricia’s look of death for any reason, so I always tell her it’s for you.” He slipped off his shoes then sat next to me on the couch.

  “I thought she liked having the night off.”

  “She does. But seeing a greasy-ass pizza walk into this house is borderline insulting, especially when all her cooking is homemade and fresh.”

  “Well, if she tried it, I’m sure she’d change her mind.” Who didn’t like layers of cheese on a crispy crust with fresh marinara sauce? It would change her life.

  “She’s just old-school. You know, family should always eat at home together. They should be talking loudly in the kitchen, spilling wine everywhere, and devouring fresh bread, with recipes that have been in their family for generations.” He looked at the TV to see what I was watching before he turned his gaze back to me. His arm moved over the back of the couch so he could wrap his fingers around the back of my neck. Now he was staring at me as if that was what he wanted to do all night.

  “Traditions change.”

  “Our family can make new traditions.” His fingers moved to my jawline and into the space at the bottom of my cheek. He touched my soft skin as if he were memorizing it. His eyes dropped down to my lips, and he stared for a while before he lifted his gaze and looked in my eyes again.

  My hand moved to his chest, resting on top of the fabric of his black shirt. I could feel the hardness of his pectoral muscles, feel the heat of his body constantly radiating every second of the day. “Our family?” I couldn’t make children with Liam, and that had always made us feel incomplete. When Liam betrayed me, I felt so alone. I’d lost everything and everyone.

  Damien’s hand cupped my cheek as his thumb traced my bottom lip. “Yes.”

  I felt like I belonged with him, like the perfect size glove for his hand. His home felt like my home. His friends felt like my friends. He already shared everything with me, and I wasn’t even his wife. I felt his loyalty, respect, honesty. It was a family I wanted to be a part of, a family I was proud to represent. “Damien…I know this is a bit presumptuous, but we’ve never really talked about it. I’m not sure if I can have children…” I’d always pictured my future with kids, two or three. So, if I couldn’t have them naturally, I would adopt or do anything possible to make my family grow.

  Damien stared at me with no visible reaction. He didn’t cower at the mention of the future, of babies and marriage. He didn’t run like most men would. He continued to adore me with his eyes, as if his feelings for me hadn’t faltered, as if he believed I was still the most desirable woman on the planet. “Whether you can or can’t doesn’t matter. I want to be with you, regardless.”

  It was hard to look at him without needing to cry. When Liam and I had tried to have a baby and failed, I felt responsible for the loss. He never blamed me verbally, but I could feel his accusation every single day. And when he went out and screwed somebody else, I knew he felt entitled to it…because I’d lost his son. It made me feel like less of a woman, like a waste of life. I’d let him down, and I never forgave myself for it. But now that Damien treated me this way, like it made absolutely no difference, it made me realize this was really love. True love. “You’ve never told me if you want to have children or not.”

  He considered my words a long time, like he had to be careful with his answer. “I’ve never thought about it, to be honest. I’ve been alone a long time…until you. But I want you, no matter what, so if children are important to you, I’ll do it.”

  “But you don’t want them?”

  “I wouldn’t say that. My father continues to pester me about continuing the family line, and being a
round Andrew makes me less afraid to be a father myself. Never in a million years did I think Hades would be the family type, and it turns out he’s pretty damn good at it. Do I want to have kids tomorrow? Not really. But someday? Why not.” He continued to outline the bow shape of my bottom lip, to caress me like a treasured belonging. He didn’t say exactly what I wanted to hear, but it was good enough.

  “You talk like you picture us getting married…” That was the future I imagined myself, but it seemed too soon to assume. We hadn’t even slept together yet, and I already visualized my first name with his last name. I’d barely been divorced for a few months, and I was already imagining the style of my wedding dress. Damien was nothing like me, and I doubted he fantasized about these sorts of things.

  “I don’t know much about love, but I know it’s rare, unusual, and impossible to find…especially for someone like me. When I realized how I felt about you, I knew that feeling would last a lifetime. There will never be a day when I suddenly don’t want you, when I get bored of you. I imagine us being together forever. And yes, that probably includes marriage. It’s not like I’m ever gonna let you go anyway.” His hand moved to my cheek then to my strands of hair. He gently pushed it back, tucking it behind my ear so he could see my face with no obstruction. He wasn’t a romantic man, but when he said things like that, he was as gifted as a poet. He spoke from the heart, a heart that had never loved anyone else, and that was what made it so beautiful.

  “This feels right to me. Like I should’ve been with you all along.”

  “I feel the same way.” He leaned in and gave me a kiss on the lips, a gentle touch that was packed with emotion. He sucked my bottom lip into his mouth for a gentle caress before he let me go. “That’s why I’m willing to do anything to keep you. That’s why I won’t kill him, even though I should. Because you’re the only thing that matters to me. And whatever you want…I’ll give it to you.”

  I had no idea what to say to that. What had I done to earn his heart? He could have any woman he wanted, so what was so special about me? I wasn’t a supermodel. I wasn’t a billionaire from a noble family. I was just a woman…nothing special. But my mediocrity told me this love was true, because he loved me for no real reason at all. I looked into his deep green eyes and spoke the words in my soul. “I love you…” I wished I had something stronger to say, but I couldn’t think of any other pairing of words that could do my feelings justice.

  “I know. You loved me from the beginning. You loved me despite my impulsiveness, my unpredictability. You trusted me when you had no reason to, when your trust had been shattered before. I should’ve stayed. I never should’ve left you…and I will always regret that.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a folded white paper. “But I’m here now. Forever.”

  I already knew the contents of the paper without opening it. We were both ready for this, and there was nothing holding us back anymore. I should feel guilty for being over my marriage so quickly, but I wasn’t thinking about my ex at all. I was completely invested and devoted to the man staring at me. And even though it made me a terrible person, I confessed to myself that I was happy Liam had betrayed me.

  Because if he hadn’t…I wouldn’t have this.

  Damien’s eyes stayed on mine and never glanced down at the paper between us. Heartbeats passed as he waited for me to say something, to either open it and read it, or disregard it altogether. When nothing happened, he spoke. “Annabella.” He said my name with ownership, with a tone so deep and sexy. “May I make love to you?”

  My fingers suddenly felt sweaty and numb, and my heart was beating so fast, I felt like a virgin. My nipples hardened in my bra, and my toes curled from excitement and anxiety. There was no reason to say no, and even if there were, it wouldn’t be enough to stop this from happening. I’d given him my papers because I wanted all of him, not just pieces of him. I was so anxious, I felt my head spin, felt the floor shake underneath my feet. “Yes…”

  Naked, we got onto the bed with the sheets kicked to the very bottom. My head was on a soft pillow, and he immediately pulled the strands of my hair away from my face so he could see me perfectly.

  I was all bare skin, my nipples hard and pointed straight at his chest. There were bumps over my arms and legs because I was nervous, even though I had no reason to be. This was Damien…the man I’ve been in love with since the first time we kissed. Being with him was right, so there was no reason to be uneasy. I was just so excited, so aroused by this moment that my body could barely contain it.

  There were no kisses. No whispers. We both breathed deep and hard as we looked into each other’s gazes. It was the sound of two people at maximum exertion, except we weren’t moving at all. We were both on the precipice of the most important moment in our lives, and it made us both lethargic.

  Damien knew exactly how he would take me, part my thighs with his so he could have me in the position he’d already fantasized about. His warm dick immediately came into contact with my clit, and that simple touch was enough to make me shiver. He lay over me more fully, his shoulders and chest blocking my view of the ceiling. He dominated me, cast me in shadow, and stared down at me like he couldn’t wait to possess me. He was calm and ready, and his heavy breathing was just a byproduct of his excitement.

  My hands immediately flattened against those pecs, preparing for the enjoyment I was about to feel. I was bracing myself for impact, prepared to get whiplashed harder than ever before. My heart pounded so forcefully I swore he could hear the beat. My breathing couldn’t be controlled, no matter how much I tried. My desire was almost shameful. I’d never wanted another man this much, and it was a bit humiliating that I could be this aroused by someone, this excited, this out of control.

  Instead of kissing me, he continued to stare at me. This was a moment for our souls to touch, not our bodies to come together with a deep kiss. It was meaningful, as if it was our first time together ever.

  He tilted his hips and pressed down on his hard shaft so his swollen head could slide into my soaked opening. It was tight in the beginning, but once he got his fat crown past my lips, he was able to sink in slowly.

  Deep. Deeper. And so deep he would never come out again.

  I closed my eyes and clawed at his skin because he felt exactly as I remembered. He filled me horizontally as well as vertically, exciting my nerves and bringing me pleasure, which was also mixed with a little pain. It felt so good, so different from any other man I’d been with. It was like our bodies were made to combine just like this.

  Damien watched my performance, watched every subtle expression I made in reaction. He could read my pleasure like words appeared on my face, could sense when he was in too deep by seeing my watery eyes. When he was at the perfect spot, he stilled. “Annabella.”

  My arms moved around his neck, and I brought head face close to mine. “Oh god…” I breathed into his face as I got used to his thick size inside me, and I felt my body stretch to accommodate him. I was squeezing him so tight, and it took a long time for me to let go, for my pussy to relax around his throbbing dick.

  With his forehead against mine, he started to thrust slowly, to slide in and out of me with strokes that were smooth. He didn’t shake me or make my tits move up and down the way they used to when he pounded into me. He took me gentler than he ever had before, like it was the first time I’d ever been with a man at all.

  My hand went to his back, and my nails clawed deep into his skin. My ankles wrapped around his waist and locked together so he couldn’t escape, so he had to stay inside me until we were both finished.

  He pushed into me after every thrust, rubbing my clit just the way I liked. My breathing grew louder, and I pressed on his back every time he was inside me, like I wanted just a little bit more even though it hurt when he came too close to my cervix.

  “Damien…I love you.” I moaned when I felt another thrust deep inside me, when I felt how much he desired me with his impressive hardness. I’d wanted to tell thi
s man I loved him so many times, but I never could. When we were naked in my bed, I’d felt it then, felt it any time we were together. Now I actually got to say the words, say them as much as I wanted without repercussion.

  This man was mine.

  My hand went to his ass and pushed on him harder and harder because I was so close to my release. He brought me to the edge so quickly, excited my clit with his hard body. I moaned and gasped because it felt so good, far better than I remembered it. I’d been living there for over a month, and now that time seemed wasted because we hadn’t been doing this all along.

  His strong arms held his body above mine, his fists pressing into the mattress on either side of me. He held his frame still so his hips could make those deep and smooth thrusts. He wasn’t working at a fast pace, but that smoothness was even more exerting than quick pounding. His skin became sticky with sweat, and the red tint to his face showed his desire.

  “I can’t wait for you to come inside me…” I wasn’t trying to talk dirty or make him come soon. I was just excited to feel his seed inside me, to fell his come drip between my legs the second I got up to use the bathroom. It was a sexy feeling, to feel him inside me long after he was gone.

  He moaned without pausing his thrusts. It was a deep, animalistic sound in the back of his throat. His tone was possessive and masculine, like there was nothing more he wanted besides giving me what I asked for. “Baby…”

  I knew I was going to come the second he was inside me. I’d been fighting off the climax because I wanted to enjoy him a little while before I gave it up. My quick rise to orgasm was embarrassing when it shouldn’t be. I shouldn’t be afraid to show him how much I wanted him, how much I desired him, because he already knew how obsessed I was. It would just make that fat ego bigger, bigger than his already fat cock.

  Damien seemed to know every thought in my mind. “Come for me.”