“I talk because the sound of my voice makes your sister so damn turned on that she can’t see straight.” He slid a Cheeto between his front teeth and bit down.
“Bastard.” I huffed.
“She called me that last night but I think it was all in good fun.”
I clenched my fists.
“Damn.” Chase shook his head. “So much control now, I’m not sure whether I should give you a high five or ask you what the hell happened.”
“I died that’s what happened you ass.”
“White horse.” Chase snapped his fingers. “Where is it?”
I crossed my arms. “Not telling.”
“Dude, do you even realize how bad she wants it? I’m the dream guy I should find it.”
“Nah.” I went to the fridge and pulled out a bottle of water. “I think I’ll let you suffer for a bit, if you’re really the dream guy you’ll find it without my help.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
Lips that taste of tears, they say are the best for kissing—Unknown
Mo
MY HEART STARTED thumping so fast I half expected Tex to start laughing or crack a joke.
“So we’ve graduated from one to two?” I said as I breathlessly lay across his chest, my back pressed against his stomach.
“Yeah.”
“And then—”
“—I do what I have to do to protect you.”
My heart twisted. “You mean you do what the son of a dead Mafia boss does… you do what a guy with a sister to protect does, right Tex?”
He sighed. “Right.”
“And that leaves us?”
“With goodbye.”
“So this is it then.” My voice cracked. “No matter what I say? No matter what I do?”
“Two hours and then you’ll never have to worry about hearing my voice on the other end of the phone, Mo.”
“What if I want to?” The ceiling fan twirled around in circles ignoring each jab of pain that shot through my chest at Tex’s words.
“I won’t be calling Mo, not after the two hours, not ever. I won’t answer your texts, I won’t be available for you. To do this, we have to separate for good.”
My teeth clenched. “I’m tired of the men in my life telling me what’s best for me.”
“Two hours.” He ran his hands up and down my arms. “Take it or leave it, but I strongly suggest you take it.”
“Because you’re going to blow my mind?”
His warm breath tickled my neck as he leaned up and kissed below my ear. “Yeah, something like that.”
“Two hours,” I repeated and crawled off his battered body and made my way towards the door. When I flipped the lock I knew there was no going back. I would love him as much as my heart was able to love.
And I would give him my heart for safekeeping knowing I would never be able to find someone who loved me as deep and as wide as Tex did. This was it.
Most people don’t get moments like the one he was offering me, usually people don’t realize they had a moment until it’s already gone then they’re left to live off the memories.
I had both.
He was giving me both.
Two hours.
I turned just as Tex leaned up on his elbows, his stormy blue eyes beckoning me like a laser beam. Maybe if he wasn’t so broken, I wouldn’t be so attracted. I’d always been a sucker for wounded animals… so it made sense I’d fall for a guy like Tex, one who never fit in, one who never saw the sheer beauty of the man that he was.
It’s why our love made sense.
I was the girl everyone protected from the ugly.
And he was the ugly.
Beauty and the Beast.
“One thing,” Tex whispered.
I took a step towards him and paused. “What?”
He closed his eyes briefly before opening them and saying in such a clear voice I swear the universe shook around me. “I love you more than life.”
“I—”
“Say it in two hours, use those words as your goodbye, Mo, they’ll mean more to both of us.”
Nodding, I took the next three steps to the bed and stared—drank him in as his eyes greedily scanned my body. “Mo?”
“Yeah?”
“Let me love you.”
My hands shook as I reached out for him. He tugged me back onto the bed, our mouths met in an explosion of emotion. Tex gripped my hair and pulled it free from its rubber band, digging his hands into its depths only to pull again as he tilted my head back and slid his tongue down my neck.
“Open for me,” he whispered as his mouth made its way back to mine, his tongue met mine, tasting like whiskey and warmth. He spent at least ten minutes kissing every corner of my face, memorizing it… saying goodbye, and with each kiss my heart both soared and shattered.
This was my last moment with a man I should have had forever with.
My hands dug into his back as I straddled his lap. With a growl Tex threw the remaining towel across the room and unhooked my bra.
“I could worship you like this.” His tongue flicked my collarbone as his mouth descended. “I could die like this.”
“I will die if you stop.”
“Two hours, Mo.” Tex chuckled warmly against my chest. “Patience.”
“Or we could just set a record? Yeah let’s do that.” I wiggled in his lap.
“Stop.” He braced my hips, exhaling a hiss before his eyes darkened. “You never did take instruction well.”