Chapter 12

My arms stretch around his waist as we weave through the countryside. The motorcycle hums and vibrates against the inside of my thighs. I close my eyes remembering the feeling of Beckett's horsepower between my legs and how he uses it. I hope he takes me somewhere and bends me over his bike.

When we had sex, his gaze remained locked on mine with a mixture of intensity and tenderness. Together, we soared to peaks I've never known.

Beckett slows down and pulls off to the side. He swings his leg off the bike, removing my helmet, and he fingers my hair before taking his own helmet off and securing them in the side compartment.

"I need to stretch my legs."

"Do you want mine stretched around you?" I tease.

He laces our hands without a reply, but with a tight-lipped smile, causing anxiety to crawl up my spine. Is he reverting to not talking or one-word answers?

The early morning sun blankets the landscape with various shades of green. Leisurely, we walk up a trail and come to a large rock formation. He stops and squeezes my hand.

"There's an old wives tale that a Civil War general took a dagger to the heart, right here." He pauses.

Okay?

"He loved his wife so much, and they threatened to kill her. The legend goes that he negotiated his life for hers."

Beckett scans my face with his hands and eyes. Unsure where this is going, I say, "Never heard this one. What if he took the dagger, and they killed her anyway… or worse?"

"What I'm trying to say is… I'll take a dagger for you." The callouses on his fingerpads skim my jaw. "You've pierced through my rock-hard heart, and each day, you sink into me farther."

He drops his hand, taking my hands in his. I start to fill the silent pause, but he stops me by pressing his mouth to mine.

"None of this is coming out right." Our foreheads meet. "I love you, Tessa. I've never said those words. Never tossed them out like candy. Never thought the three big words would come from my mouth."

The blood pumping through my veins, pounds hard and fast. I push up on my toes. "You love me?"

He pulls one hand from my grasp. "So much."

"I love you. Beck, I've said the words before, but they didn't carry the weight they should. When Jazarius and I broke up, I knew it wasn't the end of the world. I knew there was someone out there perfect for me, and I found him—you."

He closes his eyes and expels a heavy breath. And I lightly kiss his peachy lips. Something cold glides over my lips, separating us.

"Will you marry me?"

My lips quiver as I open my eyes, taking in the significance of his question. I wasn't expecting a true marriage proposal, I just thought we would get married for Daddy. I fold my lips together, and tears spill out from my lids. I ask, "Is this a real proposal?"

He nods. "I'll always be grateful to your father for bringing you into my life, but this proposal has nothing to do with him. You're no longer part of the business arrangement. If you agree to marry me, you'll be my wife because I love you. I know you may have wanted some fancy proposal with photographers, but I wanted this moment to be ours. No one else to judge. So that when I fuck up, you'll remember the love in my eyes and my voice, not if there was a balloon arch."

Beckett traces the ring over my lips again. Immersed in Beckett's words, I hadn't noticed the ring. It's stunning and simple, close to a carat solitaire with a filigreed band.

"Say yes because you love me and want to spend your life with me."

Bursting into tears, I jump in his arms, almost toppling us to the ground in my excitement. "Yes. Yes. You're amazing, and the ring is perfect."

My heart nearly beats out of my chest as he twirls me around with my legs locked around his back and my face buried into the pocket of his shoulder. His big strong, body carries me back to the motorcycle.

"How do you want to celebrate? Brunch at Chloe's? Celebration at the country club?" he asks.

I move my lips to the shell of his ear. "How about we christen the bike?"

He growls. "Fuck, you don't have a single flaw." Desperate, he snatches the helmets from the cargo area. "I know a private spot up a mile or so."

He pulls into a gravel driveway, parking under a weeping willow tree. Beckett and I jerk our helmets off, breathing like we've been running from a lion in the desert. His hands are everywhere and smiles when he pulls up my t-shirt dress to find my black, shiny lollies. He spins me around, pressing my palms on the seat. "Your ass is God's gift."

His hands roam over the slick material, slipping between my upper thighs. "So wet."

"For you."

Hooking his thumbs in the black material, he pushes them down until I sling them off. Beckett picks them up and puts them in the cargo area. "You're so thoughtful," I say with an ear-splitting smile.

"You'll need them for the ride home." Warm breath tickles my ear as two fingers slip and slide through my wet folds. "I want to fuck you from behind, but that's not very romantic."

"I've been dreaming of you bending me over this bike."

In an instant, he sheds his jeans, his leather cut, but leaves on his long-sleeve t-shirt. "Take it off," I demand. "I want to feel every inch of your skin."

Slowly, he takes it off, wrapping my hair around his fist as he runs his erection through my folds, hitting my aching clit every time. "Beck, please don't make me wait. It's all I've wanted since the day we met."

A flip must switch in his mind. He pushes into me, stuffing me so full, I scream into the air, and birds flock from the tree. "Yes, harder."

"Harder, you want harder?" He smacks my ass. "So beautiful."

"Harder."

He smacks it again as he thrusts into me fast and rough. "Does my girl like it rough?"

I pant, squeaking out half words as he sets a blistering pace. Grabbing his thigh with one hand, he laughs.

"My good girl is speechless for the first time." He laughs, plunging deeper and swirling his hips. "Rough and deep. Noted."

My legs squeeze. Every muscle tightens with delight as I get the love I need from Beckett. He doesn't handle me like glass—he gives me what I need. And that's my last thought before a prism of light streaks before my eyes, and my core collapses onto the bike.

Strong arms lift my ass higher in the air, then he presses his palms on my back, pushing me deeper into the leather. When I regain my wits, I throw my hair over my shoulder, so he has a blank canvas. "Paint me."

Torture. It feels so good teasing me slow, but it makes me so hungry for him. Beckett pushes on my back, deliciously hitting the nerves so deep within me. I never knew this spot was there. It's slow and sensual, and I can't take much more.

"Fuck, baby. You're a vision with your juices dripping from my dick. Fucking beautiful."

This time, I grab the back of his thighs, holding him in place as my body spasms into ecstasy. "Please, Beck," I pant. I want to know if I drive him as crazy as he does me.

Bending over my body, his chest weighing on my back, he whispers, "I'll never deserve you, but I love you so damn much."

He rises and gently pulls my hair back before forcefully entering me. Plunging deep and hard into my center, my name falls from his lips. "Tessa. Tessa. Tess…" A warm sensation consumes me as he explodes, and hot ropes of his climax paint my backside. I reach around and urge him to lie against me. The hard planes of his chest slide in his own arousal, and intimacy fills every need I ever had.

The after-sex delirium hits us hard. Our bodies are limp and lifeless except Beckett is semi-hard. He peels himself from my back, and I turn over to my face him. I run my hands over his chest and lick my fingers. He holds my ring finger as I put it in my mouth.

"It's funny; now that I've said I love you, I want to say it over and over."

"Say it."

"I love you."

"I love you, Beckett Landry."