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Kitt slept like an angel. She was curled on her side, her hair fanning out. Her lips curled in a smile as she dreamt. It was good to see. She’d been through so much it made me happy to see her so peaceful.

I wanted it to last. I wanted to carve out a piece of the world with her. If she’d let me love her the way I wanted ... the way she deserved.

I smoothed her hair back. She stirred. She slept with the window open; a gentle breeze made gooseflesh stand out on her bare shoulder. I pulled the sheet a little higher. My Kitt. So beautiful. So pure. So strong. I hated that she had to be so tough. I wanted to strike down every demon that ever haunted her. Paco and the Rebels had just been the latest. There had been so many more. I knew she’d been luckier than a lot of other girls who grew up the way she did. But Kitt knew cruelty. If God gave me a chance, I’d see that it never touched her again.

Except I was fooling myself. It was all a lie. Less than an hour from a bloodshed vote and here I was, thinking about fantasies and fairy-tale endings with the woman I loved. She didn’t deserve it. She deserved to be with someone who promised her good things as long as she lived. With the club in turmoil, I couldn’t. If I were stronger or better, I would have already let her go.

“Mmm.” Kitt’s eyelids fluttered. She shifted to her back, throwing one arm over her head. The sheet slipped down. She was naked.

God. She held my heart. I sat at the edge of the bed, nearly shaking from how fiercely I was falling for her.

“Hey,” she said, her voice groggy with sleep. She reached for me, pulling me by the hand. I kicked off my boots and lay beside her.

“I waited for you,” she said.

“I’m sorry,” I said. “We had a lot to talk about.” I couldn’t tell her more. The vote we took was sacred. Sly wouldn’t even be telling Scarlett, though I figured she could guess. Kitt was new to this. Hell, today I felt like I was too.

“I’m cold,” she said. “Warm me up.”

I peeled off my shirt and slid out of my jeans. Just being this close to her made me rock hard already. I just wasn’t sure if she was up to it.

“You have any idea how beautiful you are?” I said. I just wanted to look at her forever.

She yawned. The sun was just starting to peek through the clouds. “It’s amazing here,” she said, leaning up on her elbows. Scarlett had given us the use of the little guest house she built behind the main house. It was a one-room cabin with a small kitchen and bathroom. Huge maple trees shielded it from view. Scarlett called it the hideaway. She probably hadn’t figured she’d need it so soon.

“How are you feeling?” I asked.

Kitt sat up. “I’m good. I shouldn’t be. But I am. I feel ... I don’t know ... more grounded than I have for a while. I know that’s nuts considering everything. But ... Scarlett was really great to me yesterday. I didn’t expect that. It’s just …”

“What, baby?”

Her lashes fluttered. She was holding back tears. I kissed her hand. “They didn’t care ... I mean ... they did care. They weren’t mad at me. They’re ... are they happy? About me?”

God. It broke me to see her so unsure. She never had a family. She never had anyone she felt she could truly count on. For as long as I had the chance, I wanted to make sure she never felt alone again.

“Surprised,” I said. “But yeah. I think they’re happy. You’re a hell of a shock, though.”

“She could have hated me,” Kitt said. “Scarlett’s a few months from having a baby. What she thought was Sly’s first kid. And here I come in, busting it all open.”

“You didn’t do anything wrong, baby. Sly feels ... he’ll talk to you ... but he feels awful about how you had to grow up. He said if he’d known ... he would have taken care of you. I believe him. I don’t know how to explain what your mom told those adoption people about him. But it wasn’t true. If she was afraid of anyone, it wasn’t him.”

“She lied,” Kitt said. “That’s what you think?”

“That’s what I know,” I said. “And I’m not holding it against her. Whoever Darcy Palmer was ... she had a tough life. I think she probably did what she thought she had to to survive. I can’t judge her for any of it. But I know Sly Cullinan. You can trust that he’s a good man.”

She put her hand on my chest. My heart beat strong and steady. “I trust that you’re one too,” she said. “I need ... I want …”

Then her words left her. Mine did too. Need poured through me. Kitt took my hand and guided it between her legs. She was slick and hot, so ready for me. I wanted to stay here and fuck her forever. We were running out of time. For now, I’d claim her if she’d have me.

“Please,” she whispered, as if reading my mind.

I moved, stretching my body alongside her. Kitt threw her leg over mine, opening herself to me. I stroked myself; I was ready for her too.

She gasped. Her lips parted. She shifted to her back so I hovered over her. Kitt lifted her hips in invitation. I spread her thighs wide and slid inside of her.

Oh God. The feel of her. Liquid heat. Her walls clenched around me. Sometime soon, I hoped I’d have the chance to take my time with her. Heaven would be a single night. I’d take her over and over. I’d make her weak. I’d make her beg. And I knew my Kitt would crave it all just as much as I did.

She grabbed my ass with both hands, driving me in even deeper. I felt her rise. She was so close. Smiling down on her, I went rigid, letting her take her pleasure in her own time. Her thrusts were wild. Out here in the hideaway, there was no one to hear her lustful cries. She screamed my name as she came.

Oh yeah. I made her mine. When Kitt crested down, I pushed her knees up, spreading her even wider. She opened just like a flower. She kissed me, dug her nails in my back, and trailed them down my spine as I came.

“I love you,” she whispered, curving her legs around me.

“God,” I responded. “I love you too.”