The minute we leave the elevator and step into the garage, I fall forward, my hands on my knees. I can feel my heart racing in my chest, and my head feels light as I gulp for air. I'm dizzy and feel unsteady.

What just happened? What did I do? Did I really throw away everything?

As I continue to replay the last five minutes in my head, I feel everything around me start to quiver. It feels like the world is crumbling beneath my feet. My breathes begin to increase and grow more frantic as I fall forward.

"Is she okay?" I hear Melissa's frenzied voice ask just seconds before everything quickly fades away to black and I feel myself fall into the dark abyss.

* * *

"Look, she's opening her eyes."

I wince as the light shines in my eyes. I blink quickly before leaving them open for a few seconds longer. In front of me, I see Melissa's and Roman's faces watching me.

"Where am I?" I ask.

"The parking garage," Roman answers. "You passed out for a quick minute there."

I push myself up from the cold pavement, but Roman gently pushes me back down. "Wait a couple more minutes before getting up," he orders.

"What happened?"

"You hyperventilated a bit and passed out," Melissa says as she watches me with concern-filled eyes.

"Oh," I reply, unsure of what to say.

Melissa squeezes my hand as she sits next to me. "I'm really proud of you," she says, her voice cracking as the words spill out.

Dropping my head to rest on her shoulder, I give her hand a gentle squeeze. "Thanks, Mel." I look over to Roman, still crouching beside me. "Did that really happen, or was it just a terribly bad dream?"

"It happened,” he says as he watches me, concerned.

I expel a sharp breath and squeeze my eyes closed. I don't regret it. But I'm also not an idiot. I don't know how much the fallout from this will impact my career—if I could even still have one. MacArthur wasn't called "the hitmaker and the undertaker" for no reason: he could make or break your career in mere seconds. But it was done.

When I had met with Lawrence and Gabby on my birthday, I had asked Lawrence to help me find a way out of my contract. When he had texted me this morning that it was a done deal, I felt a ten-thousand-pound weight leave my body. Even though MacArthur would likely sue, and I would probably have to pay a ransom to the bastard, it was worth it. I was free.

Free. The words buoy me, and I push myself up from the ground. Roman helps me back up to a standing position and I pull him and Melissa into a tight hug. I was never the most touchy-feely person in the world, and I’ve had more hugs in the past week than I’ve had in my entire life, but it feels good. It feels good to feel loved.

I look up at Roman. "Can you take me home?"

He nods and helps me off the ground. Melissa pulls me in for one last hug. "I'll call you later," she promises.

She watches as Roman helps me into the car before she walks back to her own. I can see how heartbroken she is. She’s one of the few people in this world who I can count on for anything- and not just because she’s on my payroll. I hate how she looks so sad. I want to reassure her that I’ll be okay, that I am already on my path toward healing. But that can wait. I’m exhausted and all I want is to go home.

When we arrive back to the house and pull back into the long driveway, I catch Shakira's face peeking through the front window. Gabby and Liam had dropped her off when they came back, after "babysitting" her for the night. Gabby was slowly winning a fight with Liam to adopt a dog. She didn't know that he was planning on surprising her with a puppy for Christmas.

And when we walk in and Shakira circles our feet, her butt shaking in excitement, this house finally feels like a home. And it’s because of Roman. Because being with Roman feels like being home.

Thankfully, all the police tape has disappeared, and when we walk inside, any trace of the break-in is long gone. I make a mental note to thank Melissa as I drop my bag on the floor and lean against the wall. Roman is watching me, his intense blue eyes assessing me.

“Take me to bed?” I ask, and he smiles at me as he kicks off the wall, walking toward me. He scoops me into his arms and I let out a squeal as he hoists me over his shoulder, carrying me up the stairs.

“You shouldn’t be lifting heavy things!” I protest. “You could tear out your stitches!”

“Screw the stitches. I’m taking my woman to bed,” he replies.

“Caveman,” I mutter as he carries me up the stairs to my bed.

Once inside my room, he lays me gently down on the plush mattress and rests over me. His eyes, still heated with passion and desire, reveal an undeniable spark of love as well. “I wish I could take away all your fears and worries.”

“With time,” I reply. “And love.” I say, echoing the same words Roman had whispered to me back on the beach, after he had told me he had never stopped loving me.

At my words, Roman presses a soft kiss to my lips. “You never cease to amaze me, Daphni.”

I prop myself up on my elbows and look over at him. “Thank you for trusting me today. I know I don’t always make it easy for you, but this is something I had to do.”

I lean down to kiss him, soft and slow at first. But when he devours my mouth with his, our kiss transforms into a frenzied kiss, full of desperation and need. And when his hands cup my cheek, I feel a hollow ache inside of me, one that I know only he can fill.

As we deepen our kiss, I tear my shirt over my head and scramble to unbutton my shorts. Roman does the same and we quickly discard our clothes, casting them to the floor. My body is desperate, craving the feel of his skin on mine. Roman’s hand skims down the length of my body until he reaches my entrance, already slick and hot with need. He dips two fingers inside and groans against my lips. Tearing his mouth away, he drops his head to my shoulder, nipping it with his teeth.

“God, you’re already so wet for me, Daphni,” he growls as his fingers continue to pump inside of me and his thumb brushes against my clit, pushing me closer toward the precipice.

“Please, Roman, I need—” before I have a chance to finish, I gasp as I feel Roman thrust inside of me, his whole length entering me in one push. Fully ensheathed inside of me, Roman growls, the humming of his groan vibrating against my ear as he bites down on my shoulder. His hands pull my arms over my head, pinning me down as he continues to fuck me, sliding so deep inside of me that I can feel him hit every curve.

He continues to thrust inside of me, his hips pressing down on me, giving my clit the perfect pressure to make me moan with every thrust. I meet his eager thrusts, rolling my own hips upward to match his pace. Digging my nails into the hard, corded muscles in his back, I lift my legs, wrapping them around him, letting him enter me even more deeply.

My body shudders with need, so close to coming. Right when I feel my body start to seek my release, Roman lifts me off the bed and turns me over. I growl in frustration and Roman laughs, pulling me up again so my back lies flush against his chest, my knees bent. His hands rove over my body and I push back against him, wanting the hot, hard shaft I feel against my ass back inside of me.

Roman nips on my ear and grabs my right arm, bringing it up behind me to wrap around his neck. His other hand moves to cup my breast while his hot breathe skims my ear. “Hold on, babe,” he whispers and I feel myself grow even wetter in anticipation.

Behind me, Roman grips his hard shaft and angles it toward me. He teases me, not giving me what I want: which is him inside me — and now. His other hand moves down toward the slick heat between my legs. His fingers press down on my clit and he pushes inside me at the same exact moment. Overwhelmed with the sensations, I shout out his name once he’s fully inside me. With a loud grunt that, coming from his lips, sounds remarkably sexy and animalistic, Roman bites down on my shoulder as he thrusts inside me, my ass smacking loudly against his thighs as he continues to mercilessly fuck me over and over again. And when his fingers deftly pinch my nipple at the same time as the fingers on his right hand roll my clit, my body shakes and I come. Hard.

I keep my hand gripping his neck, the only thing keeping me upright, as wave after wave of pleasure rolls over me. Roman’s heavy pants continue to fill the room along the familiar sound of my Lifebeat bracelet dinging as I continue to ride out my orgasm. Roman comes an instant later, growling at his own release and I feel his hard cock pulsate inside of me as he empties himself. Feeling Roman’s release inside of me almost makes me climax again. Though I’ve had an implanted IUD for years, I still insisted on using condoms with every other partner, terrified at the idea of getting pregnant and sidetracking my career.

But like everything, being with Roman is different. I want to feel him bare inside me. I don’t feel scared at the thought of maybe carrying his child one day. Oddly, the idea excites me, which is, in itself, terrifying. How did Roman Brantley come to mean so much to me? And how could I manage to not completely fuck this up?