Ford suddenly appeared in front of me, gently grasping my shoulders. “Bell, you’re scaring the hell out of me right now. Tell me what’s going on in that head of yours.”

“I’m scared.” Scared that when he left in a few months, I’d be crushed. Scared what giving in to this thing between us meant.

“What’s scaring you right now?”

“I love you.” The words were out before I could think better of them. And once I started, I couldn’t seem to stop them. “I’ve been fighting it for so long.” Tears began to gather in my eyes. “I didn’t want to love you. And I feel so damn guilty, like it’s gnawing away at my insides because some part of me has always loved you, and giving in to this feels like I’m saying I’m glad Violet’s gone. That I pick you over her, and I can’t. I can’t choose because I love you both.”

A fire blazed in Ford’s eyes, a blue flame that meant the deepest of burns. He cupped my face in his hands. “You don’t have to choose. You’re allowed to love us both.”

It was the right thing to say. Perfect in its simplicity. I launched myself at Ford, legs wrapping around his waist as my lips met his in a bruising kiss. It wasn’t delicate or graceful, it was pure need.

Ford’s hands gripped my ass, digging into the flesh. I tugged on the strands of his hair, forcing his head back so I had better access to his mouth. The moment his lips met mine, I wanted to sigh, as if some part of my soul had finally returned to me. His tongue darted in, stroking my own, stoking the fire that was starting to burn low in my belly.

Ford growled as I pulled back. “Bedroom,” I panted. “We need a bed.”

Ford chuckled, his eyes flashing. “I can get you a bedroom.” Instead of setting me down, Ford simply strode down the hall with me wrapped around him like a spider monkey. I pressed my face to his neck, inhaling deeply. The woodsy cologne smelled so damn good, but it was the scent that lay underneath, the one I’d known forever, that I truly loved. I ran my tongue along the side of his neck, giving his ear a playful nip.

“Do you want me to drop your ass in the middle of the hallway?”

I released his ear as I laughed. “I think I’d prefer you to drop me on a bed.”