And that’s when time stops around me.

I blink hard. Once. Twice. Maybe a hundred times. Then, still not believing the image in front of me, I rub my eyes with the backs of my hands before focusing yet again on a man who looks exactly like Madden. I have to be hallucinating.

He’s staring straight ahead, looking at me the way only Madden Decker can look at me. Like he has tunnel vision past all of the bad shit and can only see the best parts of me. He knows about the light buried in my soul.

“Blake.” He inhales deeply as he says my name, like it’s the most important breath of his life. “It’s really you.”

I’m not sure why, but I look down at my body to ensure it really is me. I’ve got on fleece gray sweats, a solid red t-shirt, and matching fuzzy socks—all clothes Raze had brought in for me—but it’s definitely me underneath the layers of clothing. Then, I lift my focus back up to take him all in, looking even more gorgeous than I remember, dressed in black from head to toe.

“It is,” I whisper, still not sure this isn’t a dream. “But is it really you?”

Nodding, he hastily removes the baseball hat from his head and flashes me a smile so big, so full of love, that I swear my heart melts to liquid. “I had to grow my hair out this week, ‘cause I had to pretend I was Easton to get out of the house.”

Keeping the tears at bay is an impossible task. I don’t understand what is going on right now, and this entire thing is so incredibly fucked up. I’ve almost convinced myself the man I dream about every night is actually standing in the middle of the cabin.

“H-how did you find me? How did you get here? Are you taking me home? Where’s Raze? Oh, my God, did you kill him? Madden, we’ve gotta get out of here. They’ll come looking for us.” Once I ask the first question, I can’t stop the rambling. My brain is in freak-the-fuck-out mode, and I don’t know whether to laugh, scream, cry, or pass out.

Thankfully, Madden recognizes me teetering on the edge of lucidity, and in the blink of an eye, I’m crushed against his chest. Surrounded by him. Engulfed in him. Clinging to him. And then, and only then, I know it truly is him. My Madden came for me.

“Shh. Slow and steady, sweet girl.” He rests his cheek against the top of my head while rocking me against him. “I didn’t kill anyone to get here. Raze knows; he brought me in so I could see you.”

Tilting my neck back so our eyes meet, I crinkle my forehead, utterly dumbfounded. “Raze brought you here? Why? Did he tell you why they have me? Do you know Emer—”

His mouth slams down on mine in a commanding kiss, cutting me off before I can continue. My lips part for him instinctively, and our tongues stroke and caress each other’s, wild and untamed, making up for the days we’ve missed.

And as I share his breath, as I savor his taste, all of my worries and concerns melt away. Vincent. Ish. Emerson. The Russians. All of it, gone. The only thing that matters is this man. This kiss. This moment in time.

“Talk later,” he mumbles against my mouth. “Us first. Been too long.”

I don’t dare argue. I want to us forever with him.

Threading his fingers through my hair, our tongues tangle in a dance of desperation as my heart pounds out a bass line of devastating pleas. His hips push me backward until I feel my back hit the wood-panel wall then his firm thigh nudges my legs open so that he’s pressed up against my pulsing center. I whimper into his mouth, powerless to deny myself the urge to rock against him as I feel his thick shaft begin to harden. I think I may be dreaming again, and if so, I don’t ever want to wake up.

As our mouths break apart for air, he falls to his knees in front of me and pulls off my socks, tossing them out of the way, then hooks his thumbs in the waistband of my sweats, peeking up at me through his thick lashes with the silent request. Nodding, I draw my bottom lip between my teeth and roll it anxiously as I watch him slide the pants down my thighs and calves.

Straightening his legs, he extends to his full height as he grabs the bottom hem of my shirt and hauls it over my head, allowing his fingertips to drag across my stomach and breasts in the process. Left in only my plain white cotton bra and matching panties, he takes a step back and allows his intense stare to roam up and down the length of my body.

“You’re so fucking beautiful, Blake. I was scared I’d never see you again,” he confesses as he quickly closes the distance between us and scoops me up in his arms. “Is there somewhere more private we can go?”

I latch onto his neck and nod my head in the direction of the only bedroom. “I can’t believe you’re really here,” I whisper, rubbing my nose against his stubbly cheek.

Madden carries me the few steps it takes to reach the bed then, as he leans down to lay us on top of the comforter, he catches my lips with his in a tender kiss. “Believe it, sweet girl. I’ll follow you to the ends of the earth if I have to. Nothing can keep me away from you.”

“But what about—”

This time, two fingers cover my mouth to cut my question short. Smirking, he shakes his head while situating himself between my legs. “I said ‘talk later.’ There are other things I want to do with my mouth first.” He drops his lips to my throat and swirls his tongue over the delicate skin covering my pulse. “Please don’t ask me to stop.”

Intuitively, I lift my arms above my head to the headboard and relax the muscles in my neck, allowing my head to fall back onto the pillow. He now has complete control to do with me what he pleases. My trust in him is unwavering. My love for him, unbreakable.

As his lips begin to trail downward, across my collarbones, and then to my chest, I blurt out, “Wait!”

Popping his chin up to look at me, I lift my head and meet his curious gaze. He’s confused on why I stopped him, nervous I’m going to say something bad.

“I just wanted to tell you that I love you, too. I know you thought I was asleep when you’d whisper it to me at night, but I wasn’t. I was just scared to say it back.” Releasing the bedframe with one hand, I reach up and cup his face, stroking my thumb over his beautifully swollen lips. Swollen from our kisses. “But now, I don’t want to be scared anymore. I want to be brave. Brave for you. Because I love you. And no matter what happens, I always want you to know that.”

There aren’t words to properly describe the expression that settles on Madden’s face at my confession, but a peaceful serenity soothes out the worried lines on his forehead as his eyes twinkle with exhilaration.

“That right there—what you just said—is worth every single ounce of pain and agony I’ve endured in the last two weeks and more.” His mouth finds mine yet again, this time in a soft, gentle kiss filled with nothing but adoration and love. “So fucking much more.”

SHE IS THE MOST BREATHTAKING sight I’ve ever seen. Laid out beneath me atop the sorry excuse for a mattress with her blonde hair fanned out on the pillow, she peers up at me with unadulterated love and longing in her crystal blue eyes. I grab her wrist that’s near my face and drag her hand to my mouth, kissing her palm before guiding her arm back over her head, where the other one remains.

Lowering my mouth to her ear, I trail my nose around the outer shell, stopping to suck on the lobe when I reach the bottom. “Will you let me show you how much I love you now, sweet girl?” I rasp.

“Yes,” she answers with a small seductive smile before correcting herself. “Yes, sir.”

My cock goes wild at the sound of those words leaving her mouth, and within seconds, my clothes, along with her bra and panties, are in a messy pile on the floor. I reposition myself in between her spread thighs, my body hovering inches over hers.