Total pages in book: 38
Estimated words: 35307 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 177(@200wpm)___ 141(@250wpm)___ 118(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 35307 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 177(@200wpm)___ 141(@250wpm)___ 118(@300wpm)
For the longest time, I just stare into the dark with tears in my eyes, fucking terrified he blames me and will never forgive me, no matter what I say.
Jail would be preferable to that. I can't live without him. I know that now. I tried that for two days after we had sex the first time. It'll be so much worse this time because I know how I feel about him now.
Every piece of my heart belongs to him. He's left his mark all over it. Hell, he's left it all over me, changing me in ways I never saw coming. I don't want him to stop now.
I bury my face in a throw pillow and cry.
I think I cry myself to sleep because the next thing I know, something glides down the side of my face.
"Wake up, princess."
I stretch toward the warmth of his hand and the sound of his voice, reluctant to leave the safety of sleep. And then my brain fully registers that he's here. He's touching me.
I bolt upright with a gasp, my eyes locking on his face in the dim light. He looks exhausted, like he just climbed a mountain and fought a damn bear. But he's still so fucking beautiful to me.
"I didn't do it," I blurt, tears welling in my eyes as soon as his gaze locks with mine. "I swear to you, I didn't leak your manuscript, River."
Alarm flares in his eyes before he moves, scooping me up into his arms. I twist my fingers up in his shirt, clinging to him, like that'll keep him from hating me.
"I swear, I didn't do it," I choke out, unable to stop the tears flowing down my cheeks. I'm so fucking scared.
"Hey," he whispers, wrapping his arms around me. His hand drifts down my back. "I know. I know you didn't do this."
The conviction in his tone calms me like nothing else. I crane my head back, looking up at him. "You believe me?"
"Of course I do." He brushes his thumbs across my cheeks, his expression soft. "You wouldn't do this, even if you hated me."
"Why?" He just told me he believes me… and I'm asking for an explanation. What the fuck is wrong with me?
"A few reasons," he says, a tiny smile flickering on his lips, as if the question amuses him. "First, you're a fucking terrible criminal. You always give away your plans because of that temper. Second, stalking and harassment are your things, not theft. Third, you love me."
I go still on his lap, not even breathing. "What? I…"
Before I can even process that he knows how I feel about him, he has me pinned to the couch, his hard body covering mine. "You going to make me fuck you into telling me the truth?" he growls. "You know I will."
"I…I…" I gulp, panicking at the look in his eyes. This is not how I was supposed to tell him. I wasn't supposed to be crying! He wasn't supposed to have had the worst day ever.
Suddenly, saying it with him inside me feels a lot less cliché than it did a few hours ago. But…he already knows. Why the hell am I hesitating now? He knows, and he's still here, looking at me like he wants to eat me alive. He knows.
"I do," I whisper, my voice shaking. "I'm so damn in love with you, River."
His eyes fall closed, his forehead pressing to mine. His body shudders, as if my confession is working its way through his entire system.
"I didn't post your manuscript. I swear, I didn't," I say, still a little afraid he thinks I did it. "But it may have been my fault."
He flicks his eyes open, a question in them.
"I…um, I left the manuscript on the counter by the register yesterday. I thought it would be safe there," I whisper miserably. "But now I'm terrified that it wasn't. If someone got their hands on it because of me, I'll never forgive myself. I won't blame you if you sue me or press charges or never want to see me again."
"It wasn't your fault, princess," he says, his tone weary. "It was my assistant."
"What?" I blink, certain I heard him wrong.
"That's where I've been all day," he sighs, sitting up and pulling me up with him.
"Sam leaked your manuscript?"
"Not on purpose." He burrows his face into my throat. He's tense, stressed. I'm not sure how to help him, so I wrap my arms around him. "She got a fucking email from someone posing as my editor, saying she needed a copy of the file. She didn't check the email address closely enough and sent it. By the time she realized there was a problem, it was already too late. But instead of telling either of us what happened, she panicked." He sighs again. "She's been avoiding my calls because she didn't know how to tell me. She hoped it'd just go away, until it leaked."