Chapter 43

Alexi slides an arm around my waist to pull me closer and gently rests his forehead against mine. No hesitation with being tender, and it draws me in more. My arms are sliding around those shoulders, and I curl my legs into a neat little ball on top of him. His body locks me close as though he might never release me; that safety I always yearn for envelops me with his touch, and everything in me calms to a less traumatic hum.

The perfect specimen of a man. Warm and comfortable on a solid lap, pressed in the muscular arms of a firm body. He was built to be a protector.

“I expected you to run for the hills already.” He utters softly, a new tone for him and possibly the most alluring in his whole arsenal, and I shrug. Feeling so much suddenly, tingling inside and out, and I could stay like this forever. He somehow makes me feel right when everything around me is falling apart. Our conversation has quelled some of my ‘ready to run’ impulses because I think I want to console