Total pages in book: 107
Estimated words: 97525 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 488(@200wpm)___ 390(@250wpm)___ 325(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 97525 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 488(@200wpm)___ 390(@250wpm)___ 325(@300wpm)
Each step closer is like a page turning in our lives.
Step. The night of Brant's return from the doctor's, Lee having finally left our lives. His hands on me the moment we stepped inside, a tumble of us onto the couch, his hands frantic and needy as they yanked my clothes off until I was bare beneath him. He fucked me as he never had, as Lee used to, as if he was marking me and making me his. He gripped my hair when he thrust into me. Moaned my name when he turned me over and took me from behind. He made me come with his cock, then his fingers, then his mouth, before pounding a rhythm into me that I would never forget. Afterward, he took me to the floor in the center of the great room, a fire on before us, our chests heaving with satisfied breaths as he rolled me over and took me a second time, slower. More like the Brant I loved. He whispered his love as he mended every fuck he had just broken me with. Then we slept, our limbs intertwined, and when the sun rose through the windows, he was still there. My Brant. And only my Brant.
Step. His firm and unwavering abandonment of Jillian and her removal from the Board of Directors. His adjustment of his own role in the company, now an executive in addition to running all development. The door to his office is now open to employees, two assistants keeping his schedule on track in a way that Jillian never could. He's formed collaborative teams, no longer just a one-man production factory. I love seeing him working with others, the awe in the developer's eyes when they understand the true extent of his intelligence. We were all worried about the possible loss of ability, but his therapy, while affecting other pieces of his personality, hasn't hampered that in any way.
Step. Lee is still there, pieces of him sprinkled through Brant's personality, sparkling like glitter when it hits the sun. I see it in the smile Brant now flashes, a wide grin that squeezes my heart every time it appears. I see it in the laugh that occasionally bursts out, in the cocky wink that I got last week when he stepped from the shower and caught my eyes on his naked body. Sometimes, when he watches me, I swear he is Lee, smiling at me, his eyes staring like he knows a secret I don't, like that secret is the key to my soul and I am all his to do with as he wants. I thought I would be losing Lee, but instead, I've only gained more sides of Brant.
Step. I see a dart of white fabric and the slip of Hannah's hand into Brant's, her face upturned to his as she smiled. Brant's been joining me every Tuesday at the HYA compound. He's grown to love Hannah as much as I do. Tonight, after the ceremony, once her belly is fully of cake and her toes are white with Hawaiian sand, we'll ask her if she would like to be a permanent and official member of our family. Brant's already had the attorney prepare the paperwork. All it needs is her blessing and he'll have them process the adoption. I smile at the two of them, his grin gentle as he pulls his gaze from her and meets mine. There, in the windows to his soul, I see our future. More babies, two or three from our union, maybe more from HYA. Summers in this house, winters back home, giving Windere the family it deserves.
Step. I stop before him and look into his face. I can feel my future in his intense stare, in the connection that is now iron strong. We are a team, having jumped hurdles that will make the rest of our life a cakewalk. I have lied for this man, stole for him, cheated on him with him, and sold my soul to his with our first kiss.
I love this man. I repeat, after the pastor, the simple words that interlock our lives, and feel his hand squeeze mine. Leaning forward, I close my eyes and kiss my husband.
Chapter 89 - Brant
I don’t know how I got lucky enough to end up with this woman. For my soul to find her, steal her, convince her of love being enough to keep her through the rollercoaster of hell that has been our relationship. She is more than my broken self will ever deserve, but I can never let her go, she owns, whether she knows it or not, all parts of myself, every inch of my body and soul. Her unconditional love brought me to life. Pulled me from a dry, lonely existence before saving me, quite literally, from myself.