Page 118 of When Sky Breaks
Eventually, the euphoria morphs. Instead of slowing down at yellow lights, he’s gunning through them before they turn red. Barely tapping at stop signs, he’s lucky no cops are around to pull us over.
A grin slides effortlessly across my face. He’s releasing everything he held back because all he had was guilt. He’s finally free and he can’t contain it.
We crunch over the gravel on his driveway and bounce once he throws the truck into park. My own emotions rise to the surface. I watch as he springs out. I bite my lip and smile at him as he tears open my door.
With no explicit warning, I’m released from my belt, pulled from my seat, and dragged to his chest just as his lips crash into mine. All his pent-up emotions get funneled from his kiss to me.
He’s everywhere.
Fingers spear into my hair, tugging my head so he can drag hot lips down my neck and back up. Heat from his skin seeps through his T-shirt under his open jacket as he crowds me against the truck. The scent of his soap, the glint in his gray eyes, and the softness of his hair on my cheeks overwhelms me.
Yet I match him, energy to energy.
“I didn’t do it,” he whispers in between kisses.
“I know,” I murmur, clinging to his jacket to steady my weakening knees.
“I didn’t kill your brother.”
Fierce, passionate kisses send waves of arousal all over my body. I’m sensitive and wound up, my mind absorbing his reactions to the truth. “I know,” I repeat.
His forehead connects with mine. Hot breaths skate across my face, and his palms slide from my hair to cup my cheeks.
I open my eyes to his. There’s a shadow in those silvery depths and a tremble in his hands. “What’s wrong?”
He swallows and shutters his eyes closed, a pained expression marring his beautiful face. “How long have you known?”
My spirit wants to crumble from the look of utter despair clouding his features. I shake my head, my fingers tightening on his jacket, forcing him to look at me. “Not long. I opened the files after dinner, then went and immediately told Trek.” I study him further, the war on his face tearing me apart. “Did you think I only forgave you because I found out you’re innocent?”
He turns his head away, his jaw flexing as his eyes close once again.
I grab his shoulders and tug until he faces me, my heart exploding in my chest. “No, August. I didn’t need any report to forgive you. Even if I never, ever read that file, I’d still be here with you, loving you. I’m so happy I found it because you needed it more than me.”
He tracks the truth in my eyes and sags his body, curling into my embrace. His breath ghosts against my neck, ragged and full of relief. “What about the file on your mom?”
Even still, he’s thinking of me instead of what he just learned.
“I don’t want to talk about her. There was nothing important in it. Right now, I want to be here for you.”
Cold air bites into my cheeks, but it’s dulled by August’s heat. He dips and lifts me by the back of my thighs, and I wrap my legs around his waist as he carries me up the steps of his porch.
“I love you,” he pants out as he blindly inserts his key into the front door. It finally opens and I hear the clink of keys on the floor as he tosses them to wrap a hand around the nape of my neck, holding me there as he kisses me.
“I know, baby.” The smile in my voice is unmistakable.
My back hits a wall near the kitchen, rattling a picture frame. I gaze at August, who’s staring like I’m some apparition that might disappear at any moment.
“I didn’t think this feeling would ever go away. The guilt was there no matter what anyone said. You forgave me, and yet I still couldn’t shake it. I would’ve spent my entire life proving to you I’m worth it, but I’m not sure I ever would’ve believed it.”
I grip his head tightly between my palms. “Believe me. You’re worth it.”
He nods, his jaw tight with a need that’s slowly unraveling. The shock has worn off, and now the man underneath the guilt is coming to the surface.
And he’s set his sights on me.
A second later, I’m ripped from the wall and propped up in the middle of his kitchen island. I watch as he stands back and his chest heaves, his eyes on fire.
He’s not going to hold back anymore.