Becca let Ethan carry her out of Operations and up the corridor to her quarters. She pressed one hand to the wall of his chest, feeling the reassuring thud of his strong heart under the muscle and bone. She’d gone from fearing for her life to feeling completely safe in a heartbeat. He was still part of her. The knowledge rocked her, bruising her insides with its intensity. Despite time and distance, part of him remained anchored deep within her heart. She should’ve known.

He stopped at her door and hit the door lock.

“I can walk.”

“I know. But, no.” He stepped inside and the door closed behind him. “Besides, I like holding you,” he continued in a gruff voice that did not invite discussion. He carried her over to the small bathroom connected to her bedroom and placed her on her feet as if she were made of glass. Water squelched up through her toes inside her boots and a deep shiver racked her shaking arms.

He cupped her elbow. “Let’s get you out of these wet things.”

Becca ran her tongue along her teeth, shook her head. “I need a drink of water.”

She shuffled into the tiny bathroom and downed a glass of water. Her teeth were furry, her mouth sticky. With chilled fingers, she gripped the cold porcelain of the sink and stared into the mirror. How could she look the same when so much had happened? When so much had changed?

While she brushed her teeth, Nik came to the door with dry clothes for Ethan. Minutes later, with a minty mouth, Becca felt marginally more like herself. She stepped out of the tiny bathroom. Ethan faced her, already changed into a clean set of Triton work pants and shirt. The top buttons were undone, affording Becca a tantalizing glimpse of shaped pectoral muscles.

He stared at her. “Let’s get these wet things off you,” he said in a gruff voice.

He tugged the spare blanket from the foot of her bed and wrapped it around her shoulders. “Wait there.” He disappeared into her bathroom for a few seconds then reappeared with several large bath towels, which he slung over the nearby chair.

“Clothes in here?”

“Yes.”

Ethan rummaged in her dresser and piled clean dry clothes on the bed. Satisfied, he turned to face her and lifted the edge of her shirt with careful fingers. His fingers brushed her chilled skin, triggering an involuntary gasp.

His ocean-blue eyes were intense. “I thought I’d lost you.”

She nodded, a hot tremble burning up her throat. She reached up and cupped the clean lines of his jaw. “Me too. But I think I’m back again.”

She couldn’t help herself. She reached behind his neck, pulled him close, and kissed him. He reacted instantly, snaking his arms around her lower back, the force of his embrace tipping her backward as she clung to him. He bit her lower lip, predatory, then his tongue found hers, hungry and needy. Where his shirt was unfastened she spread her palm wide across his chest, absorbing his heat. A moan escaped her throat and she arched into him as the brutal force of his kiss decimated her remaining defenses. For the first time in years, Becca stopped thinking and just let herself feel.

Finally, she broke the kiss, breathless, her lips swollen and tingling. There were things she needed to say, that she wanted him to know before this went any further. She needed to say them now.

There might not be another chance. Fear of losing him, of dying with things unsaid, untethered all the words she’d suppressed for so long.

She sucked in a breath, turbulent emotions making it difficult to breathe. “I was wrong.” A long sigh escaped her. “Seeing you again, it’s made me question everything, all the choices I’ve made.” Her chin trembled. “I can’t change the past, but as you said, maybe there’s a chance for a different future. If we make it out of here I want there to be a chance at a future between us.”

He traced the line of her eyebrow with one finger, sweeping strands from her forehead. “We were both young.” His face saddened then he took her hand and kissed her knuckles. “I’m a romantic at heart. I do think things happen for a reason. Being here with you. It defies the odds but it’s here. Let’s not waste this opportunity.” A smile touched the corners of his mouth. “The past is gone. I want to focus on the future.”

“We’re not the same people anymore, Ethan,” she said in a hushed voice. “What if it’s too late?”

“We have to try, to find out.” He kissed her again, leaving her in no doubt how much he wanted her. “And I’d like to try.” His kissed one eyelid then the other, his lips butterfly soft against her skin.

She nodded. “I want to.” She focused on one of his shirt buttons, hot emotions making her throat ache. “I want another chance at this. At us.”

He kissed her palm. “We’ll always carry what happened. It’s part of us. It’s here.” He pressed her fingers into the hot skin above the metronome of his heart.

Becca closed her eyes, not daring to believe what he was saying. “How can you still want me after…everything?”

“Because you’re mine. With all your faults. And I’m yours. That’s why fate, or whatever the hell it was, sent me here to get you.”

“Nothing’s that simple, Ethan.”

“Yes. It is.” Fierce love blazed in his eyes, surprising her, and deep down, his words resonated within her. He tugged her closer and the hardness of his cock pressed against the curve of her belly.

“I want you,” he whispered. His mouth lowered to her ear and he nipped the soft flesh of her earlobe. Becca gasped as naked desire skated down her spine and imploded at the juncture of her thighs, weakening her knees.

The crushing heaviness in her chest lifted and something light rushed in, filling the space. Forgiveness. For them both.

She hugged him close as he tracked along the line of her jaw with nips and feather-light kisses that undid the last of her resistance. She shivered, a delirious combination of cold and desire. She was never letting him go again.

Ethan withdrew, the absence of his touch cooling her skin. His brow creased. “Damn, what the hell am I doing? You’re standing here in soaking wet clothes and all I can think about is…” His eyes darkened as he removed the blanket and tugged her shirt over her head. He grabbed one of the thick bath towels and wrapped it around her shoulders. Soft dry cotton warmed her skin as he bent and unbuckled her cargo pants. A lick of desire ran through her body as his warm breath hit her skin, unleashing a hunger that she’d locked down for years. He looked up at her, his gaze intent. Completely focused on her.

Becca gripped his shoulders as he took one knee and tugged her pants down, pulling the wet fabric off one leg, then the other. One by one, he peeled her socks from her frozen feet and then, a wicked smile tripping the corners of his mouth, snagged off her underwear.

He straightened, his hands running up her flank, only the towel separating them.

His voice was a throaty rumble. “Ready?”