Total pages in book: 124
Estimated words: 116471 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 582(@200wpm)___ 466(@250wpm)___ 388(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 116471 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 582(@200wpm)___ 466(@250wpm)___ 388(@300wpm)
Samuel too had reduced his alcohol consumption at home, but I wasn’t sure if he simply drank more when he was at work. He often smelled of spearmint chewing gum when he came home. I wanted to believe him, but I knew addiction was a difficult opponent, even if Samuel seemed reluctant to see his alcohol consumption as problematic.
I decided not to take the test right away. I wanted to enjoy the evening without disappointment. Samuel began to prepare the deer steaks and scallops for our main course of surf and turf, while I took care of the creamy polenta and salad that would go with it. For dessert, Samuel and I decided to enjoy the macarons that Anna had sent us from Paris as a gift.
Samuel and I had dinner on the porch in the candlelight. It was warm enough, and the serenity of the lake was marvelous. When Samuel offered me a glass of wine, I shook my head. “I feel tired from the drive. If I drink now, I’ll just fall asleep, and I don’t want that on our anniversary.”
“I don’t want that either,” Samuel said with a suggestive smile as he took a sip from his wine.
After dinner, we settled on the hammock facing the lake, and I indulged in the macarons while Samuel enjoyed a digestif. I tried not to pay attention to how much he was drinking because I didn’t want it to overshadow our trip. We linked hands and sat in silence, my head on Samuel’s shoulder, for over an hour. I loved these moments of peaceful quiet when neither of us felt the need for idle chitchat.
“How about we exchange gifts now?” Samuel asked as he pulled a small box from behind his back.
“Let me get mine,” I said.
Samuel got up. “Let me. Where is it?”
“On the kitchen island.”
He returned a couple of minutes later with the long, narrow package.
“You first,” I said.
Samuel opened his gift, and his eyes lit up with awe. I bought a custom-made hunting knife for Samuel with a mammoth tooth for the handle and Samuel’s initials carved into it. “This is beautiful. I’ll take it with me for the hunting trip with your brother, Leonas, and my dad.”
I smiled, glad he loved it.
Samuel bent forward and kissed me. “This is the best gift I ever got.”
He held the small box out to me. “Your turn.”
I took the box and unwrapped it, then opened it. My lips parted. It was a delicate gold bracelet with a ballet shoe pendant studded with small diamonds. Samuel helped me put it on. “It’s beautiful.” I leaned forward and kissed Samuel.
Our kisses quickly became heated. Samuel got down on his knees in front of me, lifted my skirt, and ate me out. I raked my fingers through his hair as his tongue and lips teased me to my first orgasm with a beautiful view of the dark lake.
I was still panting when Samuel picked me up and carried me inside. He kicked down a few cushions and blankets, then put me down on the floor in front of the big window before he got out of his clothes and covered my body with his. He held my gaze as he entered me slowly and didn’t speed up as he kissed me.
This felt like making love again. Sometimes Samuel and I were hungry and urgent, and that was when we fucked, but sometimes our touches were loaded with emotions that Samuel never put into words, and I didn’t either because he wanted to be the first.
Afterward, Samuel stayed in me, my face cradled in his palms. The look in his eyes made my throat feel tight. “It’s hard for me to put words to my feelings. Loving someone gives them power over you.”
I ran my hands through his hair. I supposed with his experience of betrayal from when his twin ran away with Remo Falcone, love really seemed like a risk.
“Do you think your feelings will become stronger if you admit to them?” I asked softly.
“No,” Samuel murmured. “I don’t think they can.”
I bit my lip. I wanted to say it, wanted to show Samuel that sometimes it took a leap of faith. Samuel touched my lips. “Me first.”
I waited, and he lowered his head and brushed his lips over my ear. “I love you, Emma.”
I swallowed thickly before I whispered, “I love you, Samuel.”
Samuel buried his face in my neck, and for a while, neither of us said anything. My body had felt tired before, but now I doubted I could fall asleep anytime soon.
After a while, I needed to pee, so I wiggled. “I need to go to the bathroom.”
Samuel pushed up with a groan and plopped back on his back. I cocked my eyebrow. With a grin, he pushed to his feet and got my wheelchair from the porch.