After a day of sunshine, shopping and ferry rides over the water, it was a relief to get back to their room. The sun was just going down, summer days still quite long this far north. Charlie fell on top of the bed, vowing not to move ever again. When Jake said he was going to take a shower, she mumbled something incoherent in response and rolled over. His laughter was warm and Charlie hugged it to herself as she slipped down into the dark.

Such a beautiful couple of days. Bright and glittering, just like she had remembered, just like she had painted. All that light on the water. Joy.

He had been right. How long had it been since she’d experienced something so real? All because of Jake. She’d had momentary flashes of the old fear this past week, but less and less every day.

Charlie knew that was dangerous, but she couldn’t seem to stop herself. Either she was becoming very brave, or very stupid.

But she fell asleep with a smile on her face.

---

A while later, the shower cutting off roused her. Her eyes fluttered before dropping shut again, seeking that blessed peace. So safe, so sweet. It’d been years since she’d felt so content. She wanted to wallow in it.

“Come on, love. Don’t you want dinner?” Jake was stroking her hair, his voice gentle but insistent.

She curled into his touch. Mmmm, she was hungry. Though maybe not the way he meant. Time enough for that later, though. Her lips curved even before her eyes opened.

Yawning, she sat up at last. “I need to shower first. It was hot out there today.” Rubbing her face with both hands, trying to wake up, Charlie stumbled to the bathroom to Jake’s smothered laughter. Standing in the doorway, she turned around, opening her mouth to say something smart. And saw him.

Really saw him.

There was no taking for granted the magnificence that was Jake, but standing there, buttoning his shirt, the deep gold of his skin made deeper by the shadows, his dark hair mussed as he watched her, it hit her harder than ever. This magnificent man wanted her, craved her. That wasn’t the kind of thing you wasted. For once in her life, Charlie felt not only bold, but free.

Completely free.

She straightened, suddenly not sleepy in the least. “Come here,” she demanded.

Jake raised an eyebrow before complying with a smirk. Though he didn’t so much walk, as stalk. Slow and powerful, making her throat dry. Charlie’s stomach didn’t just flutter, it did backward somersaults and handsprings as he moved closer. God, he was gorgeous. His hair was still damp, his light gray shirt not fully buttoned or tucked properly into his black pants. She slid a finger in his waistband, tugging him forward. The giddy feel of the day had receded a little, but she was still feeling bold. Powerful. A Charlie almost, but not quite, without fear.

It was a good feeling.

Just as he was about to bend his head, thinking she wanted a kiss, Charlie went to her knees.

And Jake froze.

“What are you doing?” The question sounded thick, heavy as if he were having trouble forming words.

“Isn’t it obvious?” She tilted her head and smiled sweetly as she ran her hands up his thighs. “I promised you a thank-you days ago, remember?”

Jake shuddered as her fingers trailed over the growing bulge in his pants. Her silver-tongued devil seemed to have lost all ability to string words together. It made her feel wanton and brave. Of course, a disclaimer was probably in order.

“Don’t expect much,” she warned. “I’m not very experienced at this.”

“It isn’t going to matter,” he said, his voice strangled.

She grinned up at him as she slid his zipper down one slow inch at a time. “Why, Jake, are you shaking?”

He was. And they both knew it.

“I’ve wanted to see my cock in your mouth for so long. Fuck, Charlie. I won’t—I can’t—” His hand slapped the doorframe above her head as she freed him. He was thick and oh so hot against her fingers. Without hesitation, she kissed his tip, then slowly drew him in, an inch at a time.

Tension pinged through his muscles like a plucked wire, from hand to arm, rippling down the deep V of his abs, tightening the hard thighs under her hands.

It was heady stuff, having him at her mercy like this. Physically, Jake had always held the upper hand in their relationship, at least from her viewpoint. But now she was beginning to realize he might see it differently. The idea was incredibly empowering.

She swirled her tongue around him once before sucking him as deep as she could. Then he pushed even deeper and her eyes started to water. Charlie moaned as he filled her throat, heat pulsing between her thighs.

She felt Jake’s knees go weak as the vibrations washed down his length. His lips parted, a harsh breath sucked in through his teeth. His hips rocked again, though he was obviously trying to control himself. His other hand began to coil her hair into a tight rope.

“You sure you’re ready for this?” His eyes were dark, dangerous, the storm just before lightning strikes. “All of me?”

She nodded.

He slid deeper, so deep her eyes went wide. Back and forth he fucked her mouth, sliding over her tongue. She pressed her thighs together, shocked at how turned on she was. How wet. Her hands tightened on his hips when she felt his tip hit the back of her throat.

“God, I’m going to come.” His fingers loosened in her hair and he started to pull away, but she dug her nails in, holding him in place. He looked down at her, his eyes dark and hooded, his voice husky. “Last chance, darl.”

In answer, she moaned again. With one more thrust, Jake came. Hard. Exploding over her tongue, hot and thick.

His hips rolled under her hands as he breathed her name over and over. When he stopped shaking long enough to pull her to her feet and drag them both to the bed, Charlie was too dazed and needy to protest. And when Jake got his hand between her legs seconds later and felt how wet she was, the look on his face was almost enough to send her over.

She couldn’t look away, even when his fingers slid inside her, even when her body hovered on the edge of the abyss along with her heart. She held on to that storm-blue gaze with everything she had and gave him it all.

---

They ended up ordering room service and sleeping in. A pattern that persisted over the next week. He relished every minute of every day.

But it went too fast. All too soon, it was their last night. As they took one last moonlit walk on the beach, Jake felt restless, not himself.

Charlie, though, seemed strangely at peace.

“Thank you for bringing me here,” she said, watching the water. “I can remember Em so much more clearly now.”

“I’m sorry it hurt you at first.”

“I’m not.” Her fingers tightened around his. “It was good for me. Like cleaning out an old wound. I’d forgotten how happy she was here. How happy we all were.” She sighed and snuggled back against his chest. The quiet settled around them, soft and perfectly comfortable. Then Charlie broke it again. “I’d forgotten love could be like that, you know?”

He looked down at her face in the moonlight. “What do you mean?”

She shrugged, worrying at her lip, obviously gathering her thoughts before replying. “It’s just, I mean, I know it’s crazy, okay? But after all that I’ve been through, I set love up as this big, scary thing in my head. Almost like a monster.” She shivered. “Something to hide from. To fear. Because when you love people, you get hurt.” Her voice went soft, so soft he could barely hear her over the waves of the lake. “I wouldn’t let myself remember that maybe it’s worth it. That no matter how much losing people hurts, or how much it tears you up inside, the joy they gave you is still there.” She lifted her head, her eyes shining through the darkness. “It’s always there.”

He swallowed hard, tucking her head under his chin and pulled her tighter into his chest. She got it. And maybe that’s why for the first time in his life, Jake knew it was time.

As the sun bled into the water and night came down, he told about his mum.

All of it.

She cried. Silent tears, holding his hand without a sound. Then she coaxed him into telling her more. Those things before that horrible day. The happy, sweet things he’d hidden away. And when he was done, she turned in his arms and kissed him. He couldn’t see her face in the darkness, but he could taste the tears on her lips.

In that one hard kiss, Jake knew why he’d felt so restless all night, why he’d told her about his past. Life was too short. Charlie was his future.

Fuck going slow.

When they pulled apart, he took her shoulders in his hands, willing them not to shake. “I’m not really a big risk-taker—”

Charlie snorted.

His own lips twitched before he lifted a hand. “Hear me out, darl. You’re not the only one who’s avoided relationships because of what’s in their past. We may have handled things differently, but we’ve both done our level best to keep people at a distance. I’m done with that. At least when it comes to you.”

The moon dipped out from behind a cloud, revealing Charlie, her lips parted, eyes still wet, but now wide and startled. Jake swallowed past the fear that had tightened his gut and reached up to cup her face in his hand. “Because you’re the one chance I don’t just want to take, I have to.”

She shook her head, looking panicked. Despite his nerves, he had to resist the urge to roll his eyes. That was his girl. With a smile, he leaned closer, his thumb trailing over the petal-soft curve of her cheek.

“I love you, Charlie.”

She stared up at him, lips trembling in the moonlight. It was a long time before they steadied. “What if you change your mind?”

“I won’t.” There was more he could say, but those two words pretty much covered it. He wasn’t going anywhere.

She nodded once, eyes falling to the sand. He couldn’t read her expression and that terrified him. Her throat worked. “Jake, you already left me once . . .”

He couldn’t argue with that. He had left her. His stomach dropped. Then she put her hand over his lips. Looked into his eyes.

“If this is real, if you mean it, then you have to swear never to do that again,” she whispered. The fragile hope in those blue eyes twisted at his insides. “Don’t ever leave me, Jake.”

“Never gonna happen, baby.” His fingers slid into her hair as he tilted her head back, brushing his lips over hers, sealing the promise with a kiss he meant with every fiber of his being.

She blinked when he pulled away. Charlie looked dazed, then unexpectedly determined. “I could pretend,” she whispered, as if to herself, “but what’s the point?” He frowned, just as her next words nearly knocked him on his ass. “I love you, too. It scares the hell out of me, but I do.”

For a moment, all he could do was stare, at her, the water, the sky, trying to memorize this moment.

Jake had figured out a while ago he’d been wrong about Charlie not liking to be touched. She was an incredibly physical woman, as their lovemaking had proved over and over. Her avoidance of touch was simply because she’d taught herself to not seek comfort in others.

Because then it would hurt less when she lost them again. It had also taught him that Charlie was starving.

Not just for touch or sex, which he’d shamelessly exploited to get them this far. But for love. For trust.

He’d expected to wait weeks—possibly months for her to return those words. As long as it took. He’d been ready to be patient, but he hadn’t been ready for this.

His eyes burned and his throat was tight as he looked into those big blue eyes and felt his whole world shift. “I’m never going to let you go now,” he breathed. “You know that, right?’

“Yes,” she pressed her cheek into his hand. “I’m betting on it.”

Something in her tone had him wanting to assure her all over again. “I won’t let you down, Charlie.” He held her gaze. “I swear it.”

“I’m going to hold you to that.” She smiled, but it was wobbly at the edges. Trying to believe, but still a bit afraid to. But that was okay.

He had to be strong, that was his job now. She’d already come so far and they could get the rest of the way together. Step by step.

Because for Charlie, he could do anything.