Page 78 of Sweet Madness
We kiss for what seems like hours, our tongues tangle and duel, each needing to possess the other.
Shaw nips and sucks until I whimper. This kiss was better than I ever could have imagined. All those nights I’d wondered what it would be like to kiss Shaw? The dream and all my fantasies of him couldn’t compete with reality.
He was all I ever dreamed of.
I want to crawl inside him and never leave as the world beyond us vanishes.
And as he kisses me, all I can focus on is the sheer addiction of his touch and how perfectly right it feels to be in his arms. It is as if I am meant to stay here forever.
The emotions in my chest swell so intensely that it feels as if my heart might burst at any moment. How long have I yearned for this? Dreamed of it? For years. Countless stars have been wished upon for this moment, for this man—the man of my dreams. The one I have known would always hold my heart long before I fully understand my feelings for him.
I should know exactly what to say and do at this moment, but I don’t. Instead, I pull him closer and, through my kiss, share all my hopes and dreams with him.
All of them are about him.
Space Note
“Ella, did you know that Pluto has a heart-shaped sea on its surface that’s filled with poisonous ice.” – S
Chapter
Twenty-One
A GALAXY OF HIS OWN
Ella
“I daydreamed of his love.” – E
Iquietly walk through the dim kitchen, my cold, sock-covered feet on the tile. I can’t sleep; my time with Shaw earlier still swirls in my mind while butterflies make a home in my stomach and won’t let me rest. I thought a glass of milk might soothe my restless thoughts and help me find sleep.
Every word he whispered so gently and his kiss linger in my thoughts whenever I close my eyes. I can still taste it, and it still feels like a dream. Then the image of him choking the man who disrespected me flashes through my mind, reminding me of the lengths he will go to keep me safe. His eyes—I have never seen them so dark and distant—are completely elsewhere as he prevents the rude man from breathing.
After taking a long gulp of milk, I lean back against the kitchen island, my mind filled with more images of Shaw tonight. Our lovely time together at the space cowboy-themed diner is more than I ever imagined. It is the simple things that bring me joy, and him keeping in mind my love for astronomy when picking a place to spend time together shows me how much he cares.
It is all so perfect that not even the jerk who slapped my ass could ruin it.
As I finish my glass of milk, a faint noise catches my attention—a soft, pained whimper, barely audible over the distant hum of the refrigerator. Frowning, I set the empty glass down and listen intently, trying to locate the source.
A shout echoes, “No.”
My heart pounds hard, and a sinking feeling settles in my stomach as the sound grows clearer and louder from upstairs. Without thinking twice, I exit the kitchen and bolt up the stairs two at a time, my heart in my throat, looking like a madwoman.
Could it be him? There’s no one else here but us.
I’m coming, beautiful man.
The pained noise leads me to the end of the hallway, where Shaw’s bedroom door stands slightly ajar. I hesitate for a moment, unsure if I should enter his personal space. But the distress in the whimper tugs at my heartstrings, compelling me to push the door open gently.
Oh, no…
Crack.
I feel something inside my chest shatter—my heart.
What I see as soon as I step inside his room stops my heart and takes my breath away, and not in a good way.
My big, strong, and fearless bodyguard is sprawled in his black sheets, wearing nothing but a pair of gray boxers, his handsome face twisted in pain. His blond brow furrows, and his lips move as if he is trying to speak through the torment of whatever is haunting him in his sleep. He looks so broken, so unlike the strong, fearless man I have always known.