Always His (Crazed Devotion #1) by C.A. Harms Read Free Book Online

never my intention. I just wanted you to know I regret letting you go more than anything.”
    He placed one arm on either side of me, caging me in as he pressed his front firmly against my back. “The only thing I’ll ever regret about becoming a Marine is that I lost you in the process. I thought it would be easier for us to stay together, but you know yourself that things felt off when we talked.” I leaned back against him even though my mind was screaming to move away. “I wanted you to come with me, but I understood why you couldn’t. I didn’t want to put you through all the heartache, so I just let go.”
    “And I felt the heartache anyway. Right alongside the anger,” I whispered.
    “It wasn’t easy for me either, Nicole.” He pressed his lips against the back of my head and didn’t pull away. “Letting go of you was one of the hardest things I ever did. I just want a chance to show you I’m sorry. A chance to prove I’ve never stopped loving you.”
    I turned in his arms and looked up at him. “I don’t know if I can let you back in. I want to, Ryker, I do, but I just don’t know if I can.” I placed my hand against the center of his chest, feeling his heart beat against my palm. “And I have Tori to think about. If you decided you couldn’t stay and broke her heart by leaving, I would never forgive myself.”
    “I’m not going anywhere. I’m here for good, even if you can’t forgive me. But it sure would make things a whole lot better if you decided to let me back in.” He smiled as he dipped his head and placed a soft kiss against my lips. “I can wait, no matter how long it takes. Just being in the same room as you without you wanting to run in the opposite direction is good enough for now.”
    His mouth hovered over mine, as if he was debating whether he should kiss me again. I spent many nights dreaming of kissing those lips again, so I took the initiative and closed the distance between us.
    Ryker cupped my jaw as he willingly accepted my gentle kiss. My body melted into his as I concentrated on the feeling of his lips against mine.
    “Oh shit, sorry.” I pulled back just in time to catch Liz backing out of the kitchen—with a sheepish grin on her face. I was convinced my best friend was the devil in disguise.
    Ryker leaned in farther and pressed his body against mine as he buried his face in my hair. His chest vibrated against me as he laughed. “That should give her something to talk about.”
    “Yeah,” I said with a smile. “Believe me, I’ll never hear the end of it.”

T he moment Nicole kissed me, I felt like the weight that had been pressing on my chest was lifted. I knew it would take time to heal from all the bad things that had happened between us, and I refused to allow myself to get my hopes up, but hell, it had to mean something.
    We made our way back to the living room, and I said my good-byes, because I could tell from the looks Elle and Liz were giving me that they were dying for details. And I knew Nicole needed time to process everything I said.
    Two days later, I was trying to come up with any excuse to see her. I still had a week before I started working at an engineering company in Huntsville. Due to my degree I was able to land a pretty decent position with the help of my uncle. With the drive between Huntsville and my parents’ place being so long, I had no choice but to stay in Arab my cousin’s place during the week. Which only meant I’d be seeing Nicole during the week, and that wasn’t gonna be easy.
    “Where are you at?” I looked up from the TV as my father took a seat in the recliner next to me.
    “Sorry, just trying to work some things out in my head about my job and an apartment. Trying to decide what the best route is.” I tapped the remote on my leg as I focused back on the screen.
    “Son, there’s no need to find an apartment right now. You can stay here as long as you need to.” My ole man had it all figured out. I smiled,