Page 29 of Starving for Her

I don’t even have time to finish my sentence. Layla leaps onto me. I catch her as she wraps her legs around my waist so tight it’s like she wants to squeeze the life out of me. I breathe in her scent, burying my nose in her neck as I feel the soft warmth of her body against mine. My heart breathes its own sigh of relief as I hold her, reclaiming the most precious thing in my life that I was sure I’d lost.

“I wasn’t sure you’d come back,” I admit to her.

“I wasn’t sure I would either,” she replies softly. “But then I saw it…how did you get it?”

“Al’s friend from the service,” I explain. “He’s a private investigator. I backed him with as much cash as he needed to get the job done. As it turns out, the guy who ran the paternity test is Lindsay’s old friend from high school. She paid him off, but I pay better, and he spilled the beans—gave us the real results.”

Her tears spill from her eyes and down my neck as I hold her tighter and kiss her gently. She doesn’t respond immediately; we just hold each other there in the doorway, rocking back and forth like we’re slow dancing. Finally, she pulls back a bit and looks into my eyes.

“I guess that bitch really is crazy!”

We both burst out laughing and I pull her inside, into our home, hers and mine. I want to carry her upstairs, but I need a minute. My love has come back to me, and it’s time to stop fucking around and tell her. I should have told her two weeks ago, but again, I didn’t want to scare her away.

It’s time now.

She has a good enough grip on my waist that I can take my hands from hers and bring them to her face. I brush her hair back and stare deeply into her eyes, feeling whole again. We both know what’s coming; all that’s left is to say it.

“I love you, Layla,” I tell her. Her face blooms and lights up with her unbelievable beauty. Tears stream from her eyes, but I’m okay with it now; they’re tears of happiness.

“I love you, James!” she cries. She kisses me, wetting my cheeks with her tears. “I love you so much!”