Give in to Me (17 page)

“A storage facility? I know nothing about this. Did Kim know?”

“I don’t know. Your father stored your mother’s things there after she died and visited it the last time just before his death. I think it might be nice if you took a look at what’s there.”

There was pain in her eyes as she smiled at me. “I’ve always wished I could know my mother better. My father never really wanted to talk about her after she died. I don’t blame him. Losing the one you love is like losing a part of yourself. It hurts so much that you just want to curl up into a ball and push the world away.”

I heard in her words that she wasn’t just talking about losing her mother or father. She was talking about losing me all those months. Pulling her toward me, I wrapped my arms around her and whispered what I’d wanted to say since the first day away from her. “I’m sorry I left. I didn’t think there was any other way. I didn’t mean to hurt you, Nina. I thought you’d be safer without me around.”

She sniffled once and then again, signaling she was crying. “I might have been safer, but I needed you and you weren’t there. Then when Jordan left, for the first time in my life, I was alone. Every night I’d scroll through my messages to you, forcing myself to believe that you got every one and wanted to respond, even though you didn’t.”

I tilted her head back, cradling her face in my hands. “I did get every one and every time my phone vibrated, another piece of my heart was cut out knowing that you were unhappy. I know I fucked up, but I promise if you give me the chance, I’ll be the man you deserve. Maybe not right now, but I won’t give up until I’ve become that man.”

Nodding, she smiled. “Okay.”

“But you need to accept that life with me is going to be hard for a while. I stayed away because I’m a target. I don’t know why yet, but Karl is playing some deadly game and I’m the prize. That means you’re in danger too. We may have to leave home and hide out in places that are nothing like the hotels I own until Daryl and I figure out what’s going on.”

“I don’t care how hard life is with you. All I know is it’s impossible without you. You’re the one I want to spend the rest of my life with, Tristan. So what if that means we have some rough times? Every couple faces those.”

“Not every couple has to deal with someone wanting to kill them, Nina. I need you to understand that things could get rough. I’ve made sure that if anything happens to me, you’re taken care of for the rest of your life. I promise you don’t have to worry about that.”

A look of horror crossed her face. Jumping to her feet, she cried, “Don’t say that! I just got you back. I can’t think of you being gone again.”

Taking her hand, I looked up into those eyes so sad and worked to fix my blunder. “Baby, I wasn’t saying I was going anywhere. I never want to leave you again. It’s just that I need you to know I’ve taken care of everything.”

“Well, now I need you to take care of me. Money and everything else you have don’t mean a thing to me, Tristan. All I want—all I ever wanted—was you.”

I stood and took her into my arms, nuzzling her neck. “I’m all yours, princess.”

Squirming out of my hold, she pointed her finger at my face. “Good. Now that we got that straightened out, that beard has got to go. It’s time to bring the real Tristan Stone back and put this Daryl twin in the past.

She pointed toward the bathroom, and I nodded. “Your wish is my command.”

Thanks to a pair of scissors, after nearly a half hour, I was just about back to myself. All that was needed was a good shave and the real Tristan Stone would return. Nina sat on the edge of the bathtub watching me do my best gardener act on my beard and stood when I finished lathering my face with shaving cream.

Wrapping her arms around me, she whispered, “I’ve always had this fantasy of shaving a man. You up for making this one come true?”

She was so sexy standing there with one eyebrow arched and a cute twinkle in her eye that I couldn’t say no. I followed her arm as she pointed to the toilet and sat down on the lid. “Have you at least watched someone do this? I don’t want to bleed to death here in this tiny hole-in-the-wall apartment.”

Razor in hand, she smiled down at me and winked. “You’re talking to a woman who’s shaved three-quarters of her body for years. Have faith. You’re in good hands.”

If there was anyone I could trust with a razor next to my throat it was Nina, so I angled my head up toward her. “I think this could be much sexier if you were doing this in that babydoll I bought you.”

She gave me a sexy grin and licked her lips. “How about bra and panties? Does that work for you, Mr. Stone?”

“Ms. Edwards, I like the way you think.”

She placed the disposable razor on the sink and turned her back to me as she slid her suit jacket off, flinging it out into the living room. Turning her head to look over her shoulder, she smiled. “I think this would be better with music.”

Her skirt fell to the floor and I sang my best stripper song. “Ba-da-da-da, da-da-da-da.” I ducked as her clothes flew toward my head, thrilled to see her standing there in just her bra and panties. And ripped stockings.

“You planning to leave those on? I mean, they might be sexy since they look like they go with a garter belt, but now they just look like some wild chipmunks attacked you.”

Nina spun around and put her hand on her hip. “Well, maybe if my gardener hadn’t led me through a jungle of picker bushes, I wouldn’t look like this.” Shaking her head, she looked at me sweetly and asked, “Not sexy enough?”

I left my perch and took her into my arms. “Baby, you’re always sexy enough.”

“Yeah, yeah. Now get back on the toilet so I can finish this shaving a hot guy fantasy of mine.”

Taking my seat on the lid again, I muttered, “That’s some sexy talk there. And I think you’ve become bossy in my absence, Ms. Edwards.”

Nina smiled down at me as she ran the razor up my neck in a single long stroke. “Then maybe somebody needs to show me who the real boss is, Mr. Stone.”

That was exactly what I fully intended on doing just as soon as she finished cleaning off months of hair from my face. I couldn’t keep my hands off her she looked so hot standing there, the same Nina as she was that first night in mismatched bra and panties. Cupping her full ass, I struggled to control myself as she worked diligently to get rid of the rest of my beard.

“Tilt back,” she ordered sweetly as she pushed my head back to shave over my Adam’s Apple and under my chin. “When was the last time you shaved, Tristan? This beard is like wire.”

“I had no reason to shave.”

The simple truth that without her in my life I had no reason to care for myself enough to even shave stopped her hand’s movement, and she gave me one of those gentle smiles that never failed to melt my heart.

“I love you, Tristan.”

“Well, finish this and I’ll show you how much I love you.”

With a wink, she made quick work of the rest of my beard, only cutting me once or twice in her haste to get done, and in just minutes I was back to looking like myself again. I rinsed what remained of the shaving cream from my face and stared into the mirror to see the man I hadn’t been since the night I left Nina.

“I missed this face,” she said sweetly as she wrapped her arms around me from behind.

“This face missed you.” Turning toward her, I kissed her deeply for the first time in what felt like forever. Her soft lips yielded to my eager mouth, desperate to taste her after being away for so long.

Fisting my hand in her hair, I tugged her head back, unable to wait any longer. I wanted her, right there in that tiny apartment bathroom. It wasn’t lavish and it wasn’t the type of reunion I’d dreamed of all those months, but it didn’t matter. Nina was back in my arms.

That’s all that mattered.

My hands slid over her petal soft shoulders and down her back to unclasp her bra. I threw it off to the side and lowered my head to take one deep pink nipple between my lips. Sucking it gently into my mouth, I reveled in the feel of its pebbled softness against my tongue. Nina moaned gently, and I bit down gently at the base of her nipple, remembering how excited it made her.

My gesture was rewarded with a gentle tug of my hair, and my cock throbbed at the sound of her sexy moan. Pulling away, I wrapped by arms around her hips and looked up at her to see her biting her lower lip. She was ready.

“Nina, I want you so fucking bad. Every night I was gone, I thought about this. I wanted this to be everything for us, but I don’t think I can wait until we return to the house or one of the hotels.”

Shaking her head, she smiled that sweet smile that never failed to do me in. “Tristan, it wouldn’t matter where we were. Tiny apartment, grand hotel, our room at home—it doesn’t matter as long as you’re back with me.”

She held out her hand, and I stood up and placed my hand in hers. “Tell me we can be what we used to be, Nina. It’s the only fear I have—that I can’t make up for the mistakes I made. Nothing else in this world terrifies me more than not being able to have you back. Truly back in every way.”

Without a word, she walked out of the bathroom to the bedroom. When she finally turned around, I saw the answer in her eyes. She wasn’t sure about us anymore.

“Tristan, I love you. I think I have since the first moment I saw you. It’s just been so hard between us. And your leaving me alone for so long hurt more than you can ever understand. I want so much to trust that you won’t go again. You say you want me back in your life, really back, but what does that mean?”

I pulled her close and held her to me as I opened my heart. “It means I want all of you. I want you to still walk down that aisle and be my wife. I want you by my side, no matter what. I want to be the man who makes the world a better place for you. I want to be the man who protects you.” I stopped and looked deep into those blue eyes so full of uncertainty. “I want us to finally be happy in that house that meant nothing to me until the night you stepped foot in it.”

“I can handle the not talking thing you do, Tristan. I get that you don’t share what’s inside you a lot. That’s not what makes me doubt you love me. It’s the hidden things, though. Not emotions or how you feel about me, but the secrets. I can’t handle those.”

“Nina, you know everything about me. That I don’t like to talk a lot. The drugs. What my father and brother were. It’s all out there—the bad and the ugly. I swear there’s nothing else to know.”

Frowning, she slowly shook her head. “That’s not true, Tristan. There’s more to you than that.”

“I promise. There’s nothing more, Nina.”

Cupping my face, she looked up at me and shook her head again. “There’s so much more to you than those things, and I’m not talking about the beautiful outside. You’re good and kind, no matter what you want to think, and I love you. That’s why it breaks my heart to even think of you leaving again.”

I covered her hands with mine. “No more leaving. I can’t promise it’s always going to be perfect, but no more leaving.”

None of what I said was a lie. I didn’t want to leave her side ever again. Months away had made me realize I was nothing without her. I didn’t want to hide anything from her anymore either. All the bad inside that had convinced me I’d never find anyone was exposed now, and she’d accepted me, even after she found out about what my family had done. Now I wanted to deserve her.

Nina pulled my face toward hers and kissed me softly. “Together, no matter what. That’s all I needed to hear.”

Pressing my forehead to hers, I whispered, “Together.”

Her acceptance of who I was made me need her more than I’d ever believed I could need another person. Moaning her name, I lifted her onto the bed and gazed down at the perfect creature who’d agreed to be mine. Her legs opened slightly to allow me to slide her panties off her, leaving that beautiful cunt for my eyes to feast upon. I wanted to taste her, to slide my tongue over the tender skin between her legs and savor her juices as she came for me.

I nipped at her inner thigh, aching to be inside her but wanting to prolong our reunion. My cock pressed full against my belly, but now wasn’t the time to plunge into her but to take my time and show her how much I adored her.

She moaned softly as with every kiss I inched closer to my goal. Her hands entwined in my hair, and she urged me to give her what she wanted. I softly placed a kiss where her leg met her body and whispered, “We have forever. No need to rush.”

“But you’re driving me crazy. Please don’t make me wait,” she begged in such a sexy voice that I nearly gave in.

I ran my tongue over the spot I’d just kissed. Looking up at her, my gaze met hers. “I never want this to end. I know it has to, so I’m going to make this last as long as possible. I want you to never forget this night.”

She tilted her hips off the bed, tempting me to move faster, and I was lost. I covered her with my mouth, my tongue lapping against her clit as her hands pulled me into her. Her pussy, wet and needy, tasted so good on my tongue. Sliding one finger inside her, I reveled in how slick her cunt already was, ready and waiting for me to fill her.

Easing another finger into her, I pressed my fingertips against her tender walls, knowing the effect this caused in her. I wanted her to explode from my touch, drenching my fingers until my tongue replaced them to lick her tender folds until her body shook in ecstasy.