“Ice, I love you. Dawn may make me bat-shit crazy, but you love her, so I’m going to do what I can to make sure she’s taken care of, too. Family, you know?”
“Yeah, I do know. Your club is family and I was asking you to turn your back on them once.”
“Ellie,” he rumbles, ruffling his hair in frustration.
“I won’t lie, Liam, it hurt the most that first year because it felt like you turned your back on me instead.”
“You left me, Ice. You made your choices.”
“And you didn’t come after me. I sound like a bitch saying that, I know. I shouldn’t have expected it. I didn’t think I was playing a game by trying to make you run through hoops, but maybe I was. Maybe I wanted you to prove I mattered more than them,” I tell him, wringing my hands, as I bare my heart to him.
“We both made mistakes, Ellie. I regret not coming after you, I do. But, things went south. It’s not an excuse, but Vicki went into hiding, and I couldn’t find her. She ambushed Diesel one day and tried to kidnap Ryan. She left Diesel for dead. Then, when things settled down, it just felt like so much time had passed. You hadn’t called, and didn’t answer when I called. I figured you were just done.”
“We should probably talk about Vicki and the past and all the bullshit…”
“Fuck no. That’s done. Diesel has Rory and he’s happy. Ryan is loved and safe, things are good. The past needs to stay in the fucking past. You and I are going to concentrate on the future. I should have tried to find you when you didn’t take my calls. That’s on me. You shouldn’t have left and tried to work this shit out, instead of bailing. That’s on you. We both have fault, Ice. Now, we put this behind us and move forward, together.”
“Liam… you didn’t call me.”
“I did, babe. I even spoke to your mom a couple of times.”
“That’s impossible. Liam. She would have told me. She knew how upset I was, what I was going through. She would have told me if you called.”
“I can’t explain that, Ellie. But you know I wouldn’t lie to you.”
“I need to call her…”
“Not right now. Right now, you need to come over here and take off your clothes.”
“This is important, Liam,” I mumble, even as my body trembles at the thought of undressing for him.
“This is more important. I told you the past is done. Now, come here.”
My entire body trembles as his gray eyes seem to heat and turn molten as we look at each other. We’ve been doing this dance ever since Dawn interrupted us a week ago. Right now is decision time. There’s no going back.
“Liam, I need to talk to you—”
“You need to get over here and offer yourself to me. The time for talking is over, Ice,” he counters.
I swallow down my fear and walk over to him. He doesn’t reach out to touch me, he doesn’t do anything. He just waits. With trembling fingers, I slowly begin undoing my shirt.
“Lean down and give me your lips, Ice,” he orders, his voice graveled and rough.
I stop undressing to do as he asks, holding onto his shoulders as I kiss him. The instant our lips touch, I forget everything else. He’s right. Liam and I need to go forward. I can’t change the past…no matter how much I wish I could.Ellie“Strip,” he orders as we break apart from our kiss.
The words seem to vibrate through me, causing my entire body to tremble.
I’m trembling like a lone leaf on a tree limb. This is important. I know it is. This is the beginning. There’s so much we need to talk about—so much we need to work out. Making love with Liam might be the wrong move, but I can’t make myself stop.
I take my clothes off in hurried, if not stilted, movements. I curse myself as I realize what I’m doing. I should be trying to be sexy, alluring. I should be flaunting what he’s missed by not contacting me.
“Are you nervous, Ice?” he asks, watching me.
“Yes,” I whisper, but that’s not completely truthful. I am nervous, but I’m also violently turned on. I’m so wet that I can feel the moisture on the inside of my thighs. My nipples are painfully hard and just the cool air of the room makes me want to moan. It’s been so long and Liam is the only one who has ever made me feel like this—like I’m the most desirable woman in the world.
He throws the cover off of his body revealing that he’s completely naked. I bite my lip to stifle the moan that tries to escape. I watch as he moves his hand down and strokes his cock very slowly. I could watch him do that all day long. There’s something so primal about the way his strong, inked hand moves over his huge cock, the head slick and wet and getting wetter with each stroke. The longer I watch, the more it feels like electricity moves through my body.