I’m in the kitchen when I hear the crunch of gravel outside, and I smile at the thought of Con being home.

My thoughts are completely about her when in the past, Lily’s arrival would have been the thing that made me smile.

I turn as the door opens, and the rustle of bags signals Constance’s arrival.

What I see takes my breath away.

There’s a shine in her eyes, and a grin on her face that sends thrills through me. I always want to see her this happy.

And she looks so different.

Those shirts of mine have engulfed her, and before that she wore that long dress. Now she’s in a tank top and shorts. And with her change in outfit, there seems to be a new confidence radiating from her.

“Have fun?”

“We got so much stuff. I kept saying to Lily that we had enough, but she told me that we weren’t leaving until we’d spent all the money.”

I laugh. Lily follows behind, her hands also full of bags.

“It’s true. How often do you get to go shopping with someone else’s cash?” She fixes her gaze on me. “We got some amazing bargains. Constance isn’t going to need new clothes for a very long time.”

I sigh. “I’m going to miss you hanging around in my shirts.”

Lily rolls her eyes, and Con blushes. She’s more beautiful than ever.

“Well now you can let her out of the house and not act so much like a caveman.” Lily winks at Constance.

Constance giggles.

“She’d know if I was acting like a caveman. She wouldn’t have even had my shirts to wear.” Lily drops the bags on the floor beside the door, shaking her head as she laughs loudly.

“Well, with that thought I’ll leave you two to it.” She squeezes Constance’s arm. “If you need anything, call me. Adam’s never far away so I can leave the kids with him or bring them with me.”

“I’m looking forward to meeting your family,” Con says.

“We’ll all get together really soon so you can meet everyone.” Lily shoots a look at me. “Don’t let him hide you away up here.”

“I won’t.”

I step behind Constance, placing my hands on her shoulders. “We’ll come and see you guys soon.”

“You’d better.” With a wave, she disappears out the front door, and for a moment we stand there.

I close my eyes. Constance doesn’t smell like she did when she left the house. There’s a sweet scent coming off her like perfume. I’m not sure how I feel about it.

“What else did you two buy?” I ask.

“Lily took me to get some shower gel and shampoo. So I don’t smell so much like you anymore.”

I lean over, my chin brushing her hair. “I liked the way you smelt.”

“Then you probably hate the way I smell right now because I tried about fifty perfume samples.”

I laugh. “But did you enjoy yourself?”

She turns, and she doesn’t need to reply. Her eyes sparkle with happiness. “It was so much fun. Lily’s so nice. I’m looking forward to meeting her family.”

“They’re the best. Max is … well, Max is hard to explain sometimes. He’s very full on, and you can’t argue with him because he’s always right. Rose is Lily, only smaller.”

She laughs. “And Adam?”

“Adam is an idiot.” I pause. “Was an idiot. They were apart a lot of years unnecessarily, and sometimes I think he’s still trying to make up for it. He dotes on all of them.”

“He’s your younger brother, right?”

I nod. “One of them.”

She smiles. We’ve talked about family, and I can almost see her piecing it all together in her head. “And you’re the oldest.”

“Yep. That’s me. Old and living alone on the mountain.”

She shakes her head. “No. Not alone anymore.”

I reach and push a lock of hair back behind her ear.

“I guess not.”

She insists on making dinner.

All the shopping bags still lie on the floor by the door, and I’m content just to see how happy she is. Today’s been good for her. A break away from the house has done her the world of good. Constance is a woman who needs to bathe in the sun—not hide in the shadows like she has been these past few weeks.

It might just break me to let her go, but maybe I should.

My feelings are conflicted like they never have been before. I’ve always known my own mind, but she clouds my judgement.

I watch her from the doorway. The smell of onions and bacon fills the air, and she moves around the kitchen like she owns it.

It’s hers. She owns me.

She moves to the fridge, turning and smiling as she sees me.

“Smells good. What are you making?”

“Well, we’re kinda limited for choice. Someone needs to go grocery shopping.”

I laugh. “I’m really bad at that.”

“I’m making mac and cheese. I made sure the bacon and milk were out of the freezer this morning.”

“What would I do without you?”

She crosses the room, and wraps her arms around my waist, leaning her head on my chest. “I don’t know. What would you do without me?”

I close my eyes as I plant a kiss on the top of her head. “I like you being here. I’m sorry for what I said earlier. I’m so torn about everything right now.”

“I’m sorry too. Thank you for organising today. I promise when I work out what I’m doing, I’ll pay you back.”

“You don’t need to.”

She breaks away, nodding. “I do. You’ve given me so much, and I don’t ever want you to think I’ve taken any of it for granted.”

I grasp her chin, pulling her face to look into my eyes. “I don’t think you take anything for granted. Besides, I like taking care of you. You don’t ever have to leave if you don’t want to.”

She licks her lips. I want to kiss her—take her in my arms and never let her go. But the last thing I want is to freak her out when I’ve sworn she’ll be safe here.

“Thank you.” Her words are soft, and her eyes are so full of warmth I get lost in them for a moment. “I don’t know if I can ever express how grateful I am.”

“You needed help. Still do. I’ll be here for however long you need me.”

She wraps her arms around my waist again. “You make me feel safe.”

I hope she always feels that way.

“I don’t know if I can get up.” I laugh, placing my fork on the plate.

“Well, somehow there are still leftovers. I made a double helping, too.” Constance grins.

“Are you saying I eat a lot?”

She nods, a huge grin on her face. “I’m not saying anything of the sort.”

My jaw drops. “What is this? Make-fun-of-Corey time?”

With the sweetest smile, she reaches across the table and lays her hand on mine. “Would I do that?”

She stands, reaching for my plate, but I’m faster. I grab her around the waist and pull her onto my lap. “Yes, you would.”

Laughing, she wriggles to get away, but my grasp is firm.

“And here we are again.”

Her lips twitch. “Here we are again.”

“I’ll clear the dishes. You go and bury your nose in your book.”

Constance wraps her arms around my neck. “You’re so good to me.”

I run my hands up her spine. “I could say the same about you.”

She swallows and looks down. It’s like her confidence wanes when we’re so close. Again, I want to take things in hand, but I need to let her come to me.

That’s if she wants what I want.

“Now, are you going to get off my lap, or do I have to do the dishes with you attached to me?” I laugh.

She smiles. “I’ll go and read my book. Thanks, Corey.”

My cheek burns with the kiss her lips brush me with, and in an instant, the warmth of her is gone.

She leaves me with more hope than I can bear.

Constance puts down her book when I walk into the room, a contented smile on her face.

I sit on the couch, facing her chair. “How’s the book going?”

“I’m nearly finished book two. Though it looks like the later books are so much bigger.”

I nod. “The story gets a lot darker, too. We can watch the movies if you want.”

Her eyes widen. “There are movies?”

“We haven’t even touched the surface, babe.”

She grins. “I can’t wait.”

Licking her lips, she stands and takes a step toward the couch. There’s hesitation in her face, and she clasps her hands tight together.

My cock stirs at her demure demeanour. “What’s wrong, Con?”

“I don’t want to sleep in that room anymore.”

She’s so nervous, and I give her what I hope is a reassuring smile. “If you’re going to be here long-term, I can get a new mattress for the bed.”

“You want me to be here long-term?”

I nod. “You need time to get on your feet, and there’s plenty of space.”

She licks her lips. “I still don’t want to sleep in that room anymore.”

“It’s the only spare room. I …” I pause, swallowing hard as the penny drops. “Where do you want to sleep?”

Her cheeks pink up, and she squeezes her hands together. She opens her mouth only to close it again before taking a deep breath. “Your room.”

Shit. The thought of her in my bed makes my erection even more painful. “Are you sure that’s what you want?”

“Yes.”

She shivers. If I’m reading her right, I think she wants this, but she’s fighting her upbringing. If they had arranged marriages, I doubt there was much pre-marital sex.

“You know you don’t have to do anything like this to stay here. I’ll go and get a new mattress tomorrow if it’s about the bed.”

“It’s not about the bed.” Her eyes mist over.

Shit. She thinks I’m rejecting her. “I’m gonna ask you again. Are you really sure this is what you want, Constance?”

She nods. “But you don’t. You only use my full name when you’re trying to make a point.”

“I never said I don’t want you in my room.”

Her eyes widen.

“But I want you to be one hundred per cent sure that I’m what you want.”

“I am sure.” She lets out a small sigh. “These past few weeks, I’ve learned a lot about myself. I wasn’t a big fan of letting anyone pick who I should be with, but it’s the way I was raised. Now I get to make my own decisions, and I choose you.” She lowers her gaze, and then looks up at me through those long eyelashes. “That’s if you want me.”

I swallow, hard. “Come here.”

She takes hesitant steps toward me, stopping well before she gets to the couch.

“You really want to know what I want?”

She nods. It’s hard not to notice her breasts rising and falling in that tank top.

“I want to peel those shorts off you and lick your pussy until you’re squirming beneath me.”

The way she swallows tells me that while she’s led a sheltered life, she knows exactly what I mean. Being so forward with her will either scare her off or show me what she’s made of.

She takes a step forward. “What else?”

My lips curl into a smile. This shopping trip has left her full of confidence. I’m as hard as a rock, and I haven’t even touched her yet. I’m bewitched by this woman who has lived so little and wants to explore everything. From the look in her eyes, that includes me.

“Do you want me to talk dirty to you, Constance?”

Her eyes widen, and she shrugs, breaking eye contact and looking away shyly. My cock twitches. She’ll be the end of me. “Come here. I’ll show you.”

She walks toward me confidently, but fear is clear in her eyes.

“You never need to be afraid.” I lick my lips as she reaches me. Leaning forward, I grip her arse. She spreads her legs and straddles my lap. “Is this really what you want?”

She nods, her lips parting as she catches her breath. I press against her shorts and settle back in the couch.

“You’ve shown me. Now tell me.”

“I want this.” She’s breathless. “I want you.”

“Are you sure?”

Constance slips her arms around my neck. “I’m sure.”

“You know there’s no going back after this.”

She nods, grinding her hips against me. I catch my breath. If she keeps this up, I’ll be finished before we start.

I press my hands to her waist, pushing her tank top up and over her head. Underneath, she’s wearing a white, lacy bra that I’m sure came from her shopping expedition. But right now it’s in the way, and I’m not stopping to admire it.

She beats me to the clip at the back, throwing the bra on the floor.

My reaction to her seems to have stirred her confidence.

I want her.

Her breasts are full, with pale pink nipples, and I close my mouth around one of them and suck gently. She sucks in a breath, and I grip her hips, pulling her down harder on me.

“I’m pretty full on, Constance. Are you sure you can handle me?” I tease.

“I have no idea.”

I cup her face, pulling her toward me to kiss her. Her breathing’s shallow, and I stop, my face close to hers. “I’ll give you everything, sweetness. But I want everything in return.”

She swallows, and I don’t know if she had anything planned to say because my mouth’s covering hers, my tongue sliding in between her lips.

“There’s something you should know,” she whispers when the kiss ends.

“What is it?”

“I’ve never done this before.”

Woah. I was right. “Never?”

“There were rules. I couldn’t …” Her voice tapers off, and my heart aches for her. “I was supposed to wait until I was married.”

“You’re an adult.”

“You don’t know what it’s like there. Ash controls everything.”

Fire burns in my gut. It seems like it was Ash’s need to control that led to what he tried with Hayley. When he couldn’t get what he wanted, he drugged her in an attempt to claim her as his own.

The man’s a pig.

“Well, I’m telling you now that your life belongs to you. You don’t have to have sex with me to prove anything. You’re so strong, Constance. You walked away from that life and left everything you ever knew behind, and—”

She presses her lips to mine. She moans a little as her tongue slips into my mouth. The woman’s a fast learner. And it seems she knows exactly what she wants.

She pulls back, panting. “I’m not trying to prove anything. I want to be with you.”

“Sweetness, you could have your pick of men. You haven’t even been out in the world yet.”

“I don’t want anyone else. You’re not the only man I’ve ever met, you know.” Her lips curl into a smile. “But you are the most annoying.”

I laugh, pulling her to me for another kiss. “You’re so beautiful, and you don’t even know it.” I cup her breasts and look into her eyes. “What made you brave enough to do this?”

She licks her lips. “I feel like I’ve wasted enough of my life.”

“You’re young.”

Constance raises her chin. “Maybe, but I know what I want.”

“I believe you do.”

She gasps as I suck one nipple into my mouth, then the other.

“I know what I want, too,” I whisper. “I knew the night you arrived.”

“Really? I thought you didn’t like me at first.”

I grin. “Do you think I’d let you stay here, and wear my clothes if I didn’t like you? All I want to do is protect you.”

“Are you sure that’s all you want to do?”

I’ll give her one thing. She’s not afraid to speak her mind. In that regard, we’re a lot alike.

“No. That’s not all I want to do.”

Constance presses her breasts against my chest, her face centimetres from mine.

“I want everything. You’re moving in to my room. That’s where you’ll stay from now on.”

She nods, shrieking as I stand up, her legs hooked around me. “Are you taking me to your bed?”

“No.” I grab hold of a couple of the couch cushions and throw them on the floor. “In front of the fire.”

She shivers. The room’s so warm, I know it’s not because she’s cold.

“At any time, if you want to stop, just tell me. We don’t have to rush this.”

I close my eyes as she wraps her arms around my neck and says, “This is why I want it to be you. You care.”

I shake my head. “You’re everything to me.” I take two steps toward the sheepskin rug, and lower her gently onto it.

“Corey.” Tears well in her eyes, and I brush them away with my fingers.

“Are you sure this is what you want?”

“Yes, it’s just …” She swallows. “You’re everything to me, too.”

I place a hand between her breasts, spreading my fingers. A gasp escapes her throat, but her eyes never leave mine. This woman belongs with me.

I reach for the button on her shorts, sliding them down her legs with her panties.

“You need to get undressed too.” She looks so beautiful in the flickering light of the fire, and I smile at her words.

“Of course.” I pull my shirt over my head, and she runs her gaze down my chest.

“Corey.”

I stand, pushing my trackpants and briefs to the floor. Her eyes widen as she takes me in. Fisting my cock, I look down at her. “Is this what you wanted?”

She swallows, slowly nodding. I need to be inside her, to claim her, to do every wanton thing she wants me to.

I need her to touch me.

Kneeling, and then lying beside her, I place one hand on her torso. Even though she must be expecting it, she jumps, and I smile.

“Come here.” I roll her onto her side facing me.

I kiss her, my tongue in her mouth as she strokes one bicep, her fingers dancing tentatively across my skin.

“Don’t be afraid to touch me. I’ll hardly be holding back,” I say.

Her laughter is breathless as her touches become more than mere brushes, and her hand makes its way down my abs and toward my cock. I hold my breath in anticipation, closing my eyes as her hand closes around it.

Her touch sends shockwaves through my body. I run my tongue down her neck as she explores me, tasting her sweet flesh. Small gasps echo through the quiet room as I run my hands over her body, nipping at her skin as I go.

“Corey,” she whispers.

My patience runs out. I need to taste her.

She whimpers as I pull away, spreading her legs and exposing her core.

I move down the rug, dipping my head between her legs, inhaling her scent.

Maybe this is wrong. She’s more than ten years younger than me with zero experience of the real world. But I’ve wanted her since she arrived that first night, bluster covering her fear. She never needs to be afraid with me.

I grasp her thighs as she shivers.

I don’t know what’s a bigger turn-on: that she wants me as badly as I want her, or that this is virgin territory. Literally.

The thought that Ash Harris controlled her life grates on me. Who the hell was he to decide who she was to marry, who she was to fuck? Pride swells in my chest that my girl ran rather than did as she was told.

She picked the right time to get away. The gnawing pain in my chest reminds me that if she hadn’t, if she’d gone along with Ash’s wishes or been caught by him, her fate would have been a lot worse than this.

At that thought, I throw all doubts from my head and plunge my face into her pussy. She’s all kinds of sweet, and wetter than I’d realised, but then it’s not like she’s had a man’s hands all over her body before. And I’ve touched her nearly everywhere.

I moan at her taste, her clit swelling as I tease it with my tongue. Tonight, Constance Shaw gets everything I’m able to give her. She deserves that.

“Corey.” She reaches down and grips my hair as she bucks her hips. My senses in overload, I push her harder, licking her like an ice cream, plunging my tongue as deep inside her as I can get. I want it all, and as much as I take, she’s prepared to give me more.

Her body tenses, and I suck on her clit gently as she lets out a cry. She’s all mine. She shudders under me, and I smile to myself in the hope that I’m the first one to make her come.

“Corey.” There’s so much emotion in her voice when she says my name this time. I slip a finger into her as I look into her eyes. She shivers when I stroke her clit with my thumb.

“Feel good?”

She’s breathless. “That was amazing. Can we do it again?”

“We can do that as many times as you want, sweetness. Next time I want to see your face when you come.”

Her eyes search mine.

“Right now, I need to get a condom. Should have thought about that before we ended up here.” I chuckle against her thigh.

“I’m on the injection. Ash—”

“The last person whose medical advice I trust is Ash Harris. I’ll go and grab one.”

She nods, and I sprint to the bedroom and grab the condom box from the bedside cabinet. I grin as I return. “Hope I haven’t broken the moment too much.”

She shakes her head, sucking in a deep breath.

“It’s okay, Con.” I kneel between her legs, taking a condom from the box and tearing the wrapper. She watches as I roll it down my cock, her eyes wide. “We’ll take it slow.”

She trembles as I lower myself over her, and meets my gaze. There’s fire in that look, and a little bit of fear. She’s scared, but she wants this, wants me.

“It might hurt a little at first, but I promise it’ll get better.”

She gives me a small nod, and I line myself up with her entrance. Her heat makes me gasp as I dip into her, the head of my cock finding warmth inside. She feels like heaven.

She feels like home.

I move slow, pushing my way inside. She reaches for my biceps and grips them as we meet.

“You’re really tight, sweetness. Just relax.”

“I’m trying.”

Bending, I run my tongue over one of her nipples before finding her mouth with mine. She’ll taste herself on my lips, smell herself on my beard, and she moans when I flick my tongue across hers.

Her body loses tension, and I give it one final thrust to take myself all the way in.

She’s around me. Despite me being the one who needs to take the lead, I want to melt into her and let her do what she wants. Maybe next time.

I move slowly, savouring every movement. She’s snug around me, her body coaxing mine to let go, but I won’t give it that satisfaction yet.

She lets out a contented sigh, and I look into her eyes. They’re so full of emotion, drawing me in as her body does.

“I hope I didn’t hurt you.”

She shakes her head. “I just feel really … full of you.” A smile crosses her lips, and I laugh.

“As long as you’re okay.”

She reaches for my beard, looping her fingers into it and pulling my face back to hers.

“I’m more than okay,” she whispers.

I kiss her again, moaning my release into her mouth. Relief floods through me as the pressure that began to build earlier in the evening is released, and I give myself to her, ecstasy rolling through me in waves.

Pausing, I scan her expression. Her breasts heave as she takes a deep breath.

“Thank you,” she whispers.

“For what?”

“For taking me seriously. For giving me what I wanted.”

I smile. “I wanted it, too.”

“I know, but …” Tears roll down her cheeks, and I roll to her side, swiping them away with my fingers. “I’m so glad it’s you, Corey. If I’d stayed, I’d have had sex with a stranger and given myself to a man I didn’t want.”

My insides burn at the thought. “You will never have to do anything you don’t want. I promise you that. If you let me, I’ll give you everything, but I’ll never expect you to stay if you change your mind about this, about us.”

She shakes her head. “I’ll never change my mind.”

“Never is a long time, sweetness.” I pull myself out of her arms.

“Where are you going?”

“To get rid of the condom. I’ll be back in a second.”

When I return, I watch her for the moment. She’s pulled the blanket down that lives on the back of the couch, and she’s lying on her side just watching the fire.

I’ve already given my heart to her. There’s no way I can deny it. I was never one to fall fast, but with her, there’s been no thinking about it. It just happened.

Now, I just need to keep on keeping her safe.

“What are you thinking about?” I kneel on the floor beside her, pulling her into my arms as I lie down.

“Everything. How it was so dark that night I ran, and when the rain hit, I considered turning back. It all just seemed impossible.” She smiles. “And then there was you. You were there when I needed you, and you’ve not hesitated since.”

“I’ll be there for as long as you need me.”

Her eyebrows twitch. “Well, Corey Campbell, I think that might be a very long time.”

The embers are dying in the fire, and as much as I love lying here, stroking her body, it’s time to move.

“What are you doing?” She laughs as I stand and lift her off the floor, scooping her into my arms, blanket and all.

“We’re going to bed. It’s going to get cold here.”

“It’ll be cold in the bed.”

“Just as well I have you to keep me warm.”

I walk her down the hall and into my room. Tugging back the bedclothes, I place her gently on the sheet.

“So, this is Corey Campbell’s comfortable bed,” she says, wriggling around as if she’s testing it out.

“I told you it was better than the one in the other room.” I slip in beside her, pulling her into my arms. Despite her concern, the bed is warm. I might have a fire to heat the house, but I still love my electric blanket.

“So much better.” Her eyes search mine, and she reaches up, raking her fingers through my beard. “I don’t know what to say to you because I’m unsure of how I feel. Thank you for being so wonderful.”

“Thank you for stumbling into my life.”

She smiles. “It’s so weird. I thought I’d be scared until I was miles away from that place. But you make me feel safe.”

“You are safe. I’ll make sure of it.”

She nods. “If I know anything, it’s that.”

I lean over, pressing my lips to hers. It’s a gentle kiss, and when I pull away I realise just how exhausted she looks, her eyes hooding over with tiredness.

“You don’t have to sleep on that uncomfortable bed anymore,” I murmur.

With a faint smile, she snuggles into my chest and closes her eyes.

It only takes me a few minutes to join her in sleep.