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But nothing good was ever easy Only a coould take the path of least resistance and shut Eden out before he ever let her in He wasn’t a coward, had never been a coward, and he daht in that he didn’t trust her yet Or perhaps he didn’t trust what she said she wanted But she trusted hiive her his trust in return

"I don’t want you to go," Swanny said in a soft voice He hated how vulnerable he sounded even to his own ears

"Then what do you want?" she asked, just as softly

He leveled his gaze at her, determined to be as sincere as she had been And as honest He sucked in a deep breath and put it out there The sa she’d done for him Made himself vulnerable, as vulnerable as she’dit all on the line Her pride Her courage Her heart Because damn it, he’d sworn to her that she was safe with him That he’d protect her at all costs And now he realized that his protection had to extend further because he had to protect her heart and soul as well as protect her from any physical threat

With his next words he’d be co her safe Even froht open her up to

"You," he said bluntly "I want you"

CHAPTER 14

EDEN sucked in her breath, almost dizzy with relief But the practical side of her insisted that sheunder pressure She’d coht have seen no other recourse than to wave a white flag of surrender

And that wasn’t what she wanted Yes, she wanted Swanny Was attracted to him in a way she’d never been attracted to another man But she wanted him to want her in that same ithout pressure

"And why do you wantherself for possible disappointment "Because I don’t want someone who feels pressured I know I’ve put you on the spot and have beenbrazenfor lack of a better word I want you, yes I’ve certainly ht reasons I hope I’rowl and then suddenly she found herself hauled from the couch and into his lap She landed with a soft thud and he tilted her chin upward just before his mouth crashed down over hers

He vibrated ant--need It was i at his jeans against her thigh

He slid his tongue into herher to taste hih as she relaxed into his hold, his arhtly to his body

Such abody

The kiss went on and on, their breathsbetween kisses as they sucked air into their starved lungs Sheher If she’d in any way iined her attraction to Swanny, it was now confir painfully aware of the overwhelh her veins

Never had a man made her feel the anny did Never had she had the desire to go all the way So had always held her back Now she knehy Because she’d been waiting for Swanny For a man to make her feel that she was safe, that he would take care of her coed his mouth away from hers His eyes were half-lidded and heavy with desire

"Now you tell me if it feels to you like I don’t want you Or that you’re so my attraction, because honey, it doesn’t work that way I can’t fakeyou The only thing I’ with is my belief that a woman in your class could possibly wantin his beautiful eyes She lifted her hand to caress his scarred cheek, running her fingers lightly along the ridges He didn’t flinch or try to turn away, a huge victory because itto tell him without words that she wasn’t bothered by his appearance She kneould take time, but she wanted him to knoithout question that she wasn’t put off by his scars Not in the least

"To turn your words back on you, I can’t fake a reaction this strong If you want an explanation I sis just are, and for le over the fact that we’ve known each other such a short time I mean, it never seemed possible to me to have an instant connection with another person like I do with you But it’s there It was there fro about you that justdrew me in You’ll find this hard to believe based on the way I’ve come on to you, but this isn’t nor my own share of bewilderment over my boldness because it’s not who I am, or rather who I was," she said ruefully

He nuzzled into her hand, pressing a kiss to her pal with you I like that a lot You don’t play gahtness to be bold or brazen at all I like knohere I stand And let’s face it If you’d waited for me to make a move, you’d probably have waited forever because I would have never ile moment that you’d want so for the stars or wishing for the uess I needed a kick in the ass and you provided that nicely"