Then he tugged my hands to his mouth and kissed them.

The gesture, so simple and sweet, made my heart clench.

“Glenn?”

The feel of his lips brushing against my skin sent a shiver through my body, and everything in me went weak. I couldn't trust myself when he was this close. Pulling away from him, I retreated into a chair as fast as I could.

“We are not doing this,” I said, forcing the words to come out as clearly as possible. My voice had gone all husky and rough, so it wasn’t really all that clear. “We are not doing this,” I said it again, just as much to convince myself. “You don't trust me. You don't believe me. You think I'm either crazy or lying.”

Glenn reached up and cupped my face. “I don't know what I think, but I don't think you're crazy. Even though everything up here…” He touched his temple briefly. “Says that’s the most logical answer. But here…” Now he touched his heart. “It’s saying something else. In here, all I know is that I’ve never stopped loving you. I’ve never stopped needing you.”

My heart ached.

The need to trust in what he was saying—what he might be saying—was so real, so raw, it hurt.

As if he understood, a sad smile touched his lips. “It would be a lot easier if I could just believe you were lying to me, that this was just…if you were crazy. But I’ve dealt with crazy, Maya. You’re not it. As to lies…yeah, a big part of me wants to just believe that, too. But I just…I can’t.”

What was he saying?

A lurching bump in my chest signified what I thought he was saying, but I wasn’t about to buy anything my heart said just now.

“It would be easier if I could just forget all of this. Even if I could just convince myself you were lying and if I could just be angry…stay angry.” He stroked his thumb over my lower lip, eyes seeking mine. “And I won’t lie and say I haven’t been fighting anger, but the biggest part of it comes from this gut-deep worry that you might disappear again.”

“I can’t even promise you that I won’t.” Pressing my lips together to keep from crying, I caught his hands and tugged them down. “I didn’t have any control of it the first time, Glenn.”

“Did you want to leave?”

“No!” Flabbergasted, I stared at him. “I—”

He stopped the words with a kiss. “Okay. Okay.”

“What are you saying?” My voice shook as I squeezed the words out. “I need to understand what you’re saying.”

“I…” He blew out a breath, his hands dropping down to grip my arms. “I want to believe you, Maya. Even as crazy as it sounds. I want to believe this…you. All of it.”

“I can’t pull proof out of my back pocket,” I said. “You’re just going to have to trust me.”

“I’m trying.” He leaned in and pressed his lips to my forehead. I shivered at the touch. As he skimmed his mouth down lower, I told myself to pull back again. Now, before it was too late.

But it had been too late the moment I let him come inside. Sooner, really.

I’d never been any good at resisting him.

He stopped just as his mouth brushed mine. “One thing is certain, Maya. I’ve never stopped loving you. The thought of not being with you is enough to drive me crazy. I can’t do it, Maya. I just can’t.”

He caught my lower lip between his and tugged, then released slowly, soothing the flesh gently before stroking his tongue across my lip, then teasing his way into my mouth.

I opened, helpless.

It hurt, doing this.

It hurt in a way that was almost physical.

A huge part of me knew the risk was just too much, and it would have been better to put him away. But the hurt was going to be there no matter what. Who was I fooling, thinking that pushing him away would change anything?

The kiss deepened and I wrapped my arms around his neck, struggling to get closer. A moment later he stood up, one arm banded around me.

He turned in then, sitting with me draped over his lap. The straight, slim fit of my skirt made it a chore to push the material up, so he just let it go and worked my blouse free of the waistband, pushing it out of the way and seeking out my breasts. My flesh was so sensitive, just the brush of his hand against my nipple had me gasping.

When he went to tug at the zipper on my skirt, though, I stiffened.

“We shouldn’t be doing this,” I whispered against his mouth.

“Here?” he murmured. “Or not at all?”

Be smart, I thought. Be smart…

But was I smart?

Of course not. This was Glenn.

“We definitely can’t do it here.”

A moment later, he was walking across the floor, cradling me in his arms.

We’d reached the top of the stairs before my head really had a chance to stop spinning. “Where?” Glenn murmured against my hair.

I pointed in the direction, a wedge of light spilling out of the room Harrison had mentioned.

It was another princess sort of room, but I had no time to sigh at the wonder of it or admire the beauty. Glenn put me down on the floor near the bed and caught my face in his hands, his mouth crushing down on mine.

The kiss obliterated all rational thought and left me panting, moaning against his lips.

“Tell me you want this,” he demanded when he raised his mouth from mine.

I panted for breath, staring at him through a fog of love and need.

“Maya…tell me. And if you want me to stop, say it now.”

“I want this,” I said in a rush.

And if we fell apart again, then I was just damned.

“You look so scared,” Glenn whispered as he brushed his lips across mine.

“I am.” My voice hitched, broke.

He kissed me softly, slowly. “Please don’t be. I can't lie and say that I understand everything you're saying. But I know that I love you. And when you tell me you love me, I believe you. That's enough for me. Is it enough for you?”

Drawing in a ragged breath, I leaned against his chest. His heart thudded away in a mad rhythm against my cheek and his skin was scorching hot against me. But perhaps that was because I felt so cold.

“Yes. It’s enough,” I said.

For now, it was. In the morning, I’d have to see how things worked out.

Maybe I was making yet one more mistake in a long string of them, but I needed this now, and that was all that mattered.

Turning my face to his, I rose onto my toes and kissed him. His mouth met mine as I opened for him, and a moan rose into the air. I didn't know if it came from him…or me.

Slowly, we stripped each other’s clothes away, letting them fall where they may until we were surrounded. When at last I was down to my panties and he wore nothing but his jeans, he caught me up in his arms and lay me down on the bed.

The denim scraped against my inner thighs, making me shiver as he came down to lay in the cradle of my hips. Smoothing a hand down my side, he stroked the tips of his fingers along the curve of my belly. I was getting thicker there. I’d start to show before long.

I could tell by the way he was studying me that he had noticed. Trepidation filled me.

A moment later, he moved down and pressed his lips to my navel. A gasp rose to my lips and tears burned my eyes. I blinked them away and put my hand in his hair, letting the pale strands twine around my fingers.

“You need to be naked,” he said, his lips still pressed to my belly.

“I’m only wearing my underwear.”

“That’s still clothing.” He eased down farther and kissed me through the material.

A part of me longed for the beautiful lingerie I’d once owned, wondering what he’d think if he could see me in some of it—silks so fragile they barely looked there, satin that shimmered against my skin. But he didn’t seem to mind the simple cotton covering me as he nuzzled my clitoris.

“You’re still in your jeans,” I said, the words catching in my throat as he scraped his teeth over me.

“We’ll fix that. But I want you naked…now.” He caught the waistband of my panties and dragged them down, his lips brushing across my thigh as the material skimmed down. Once he had completed his task, he kissed a path up the opposite leg.

“Your turn,” I said, urging him onto his back so I could deal with his jeans.

He groaned when I freed his cock from his shorts, arching up when I bent to flick my tongue across the head of his cock.

His hand hovered at the side of my head, but fell away when I straightened and began to work the denim down.

Once he was naked, I sat up on my heels to stare at him. He brought one knee up and closed a hand around his penis, stroking up and down, looking at me from under heavy-lidded eyes.

“You’re too beautiful to be real,” I said, leaning over him and bracing my weight on my hands.

A faint grin quirked his lips upward. “I’m pretty sure I’m real, but why don’t you touch me, just to be sure.”

“Touch you…” I kissed the tip of his dick. “Like this?”

“That wasn’t much of a touch. Try again.”

Humming under my throat, I took the head in my mouth this time and sank lower on him.

He thrust up, moving his hips in slow, shallow circles as he met the pace I’d set with my mouth.

Muttered grunts fell from his lips, sounds mixed with my name.

It was an erotic, heady melody, and my nipples tightened while heat gathered in my belly.

He fisted a hand in my hair, brushing it out of the way so he could watch me. I could feel his eyes on me, taking in the sight of me as I licked and sucked on his thick shaft.

Just imagining how we looked was enough to make me ache and I squirmed a little, pressing my knees together in an effort to ease that ache.

It didn’t help.

Abruptly, Glenn’s hand tightened and he pulled me away from him. I protested but his mouth slanted over mine as he urged me down onto the bed under him.

“You're going to make me lose it, and we haven't even been made it five minutes,” he muttered against my lips.

Anything I might have said was drowned out as he cut me off with another kiss, reaching down and stroking me, shoving two long fingers into me. He groaned. “Man…feel you, baby. You’re already so wet for me.”

He withdrew his hand and I whimpered at the feel of his cock nudging against me. Thick and full, it pulsed, demanding entrance.

“Look at me,” Glenn said.

I forced my eyes to open, focusing on his face.

“You’re mine. Tell me you’re mine,” he said.

“I’m yours.” I had been almost from the second I’d laid eyes on him. Even if I hadn’t wanted to acknowledge it.

Glenn caught my left hand, stretched it up overhead, twining our fingers. Slowly, he pushed inside. I felt every ridged, hard inch of him. As he went to withdraw, I shuddered and moved with him, aching to keep him inside. He filled me again, deeper this time, but moving just as slow.

Each thrust took him deeper.

Each thrust, he watched me and I watched him.

Soon, though, want and everything he stirred inside me blinded me, and as he dropped his head to kiss me, I clung to him, lost to everything but a burning pleasure that threatened to tear me apart.

The orgasm hit hard, sent me shaking.

He wrapped both arms around me and rolled onto his back, driving up into me, his mouth at mine, voracious.

I cried out, but the sound was silenced by his.

He stiffened and arched, breaking the kiss to thrust his head back against the pillows. His mouth opened on a silent moan and his eyes drifted closed as his cock pulsed and jerked deep inside me.

I felt every movement, every pulse.

Satisfaction washed through me, so deep and consuming, nothing seemed real.

Even when he rolled us onto our sides and pulled a blanket over us, I couldn’t manage to find the energy to move.

I should though.

I should say something.

Do something.

“Glenn,” I murmured.

“Yeah?” He nuzzled my neck.

But I couldn’t remember what I wanted to say.

Finally, still thinking on his name, I slid into sleep.