He was so pathetic.

It was almost too much to bear and his eyes flooded with tears. “That day was awesome. Leary was so beautiful,” he whispered.

“She was.”

“I went out and got drunk that night. Didn’t even go back to the hospital, stayed at a buddy’s house. Ava was so mad at me, for good reason.”

Coming up beside him, Lucy reached out, straightening the frame. “Well, she would be proud of who you are today.”

His lips curved slightly as he took in the picture, his heart aching.

“I hope you don’t mind, though, that I hung it. I found the picture in the shed, had it enlarged, and then framed it. I thought it was nice and a good memorial for them. And then, I added us,” she said with a laugh. He looked down at the picture of Angie, Lucy, and him getting ice cream two weeks before. He choked on a sob as he nodded. It was a great picture, all of them making silly faces, and God, he loved them.

“It’s perfect,” he somehow forced out. “I went to AA when we were in LA, and I talked about you, Angie, Ava, and Leary. How I felt guilty.”

His voice broke, and Lucy’s hand came to rest on his. “Why would you feel guilty?”

Glancing over at her, his eyes were hazy with tears as he whispered, “Because I never thought I could let go of my first love, that I could actually meet someone, and then that I could love that someone. Until I met you and Angie.”

“Oh, Benji,” she said, her eyes clouding as he turned, taking her face in his hands. “You can’t feel guilty for that. You have to do what makes you happy.”

He nodded. “And that’s you. Lucy, I love you so much it’s dangerous,” he said roughly, his thumbs moving along her cheeks. “It’s dangerous because it consumes me and it happened so damn fast. I swear I fell for you the moment you looked at me with that furrowed brow and snapped at me. You made me suffer for a week until, finally, I got you. And then you thought I was going to let you go? Please, you were mine. From that moment on. I swear on everything, my heart, my soul, my body… I’m yours until the day I take my last breath. I love you. I love you so fucking much.”

When a tear rolled down her face, his heart swelled in his chest as she held his gaze. “I think I’ve always loved you, but I fought it. I’m sorry I’m a pain in the ass, but I love you too, Benji. More than you love me.”

“That’s debatable,” he muttered against her lips, his lips curving. “But it’s something we can debate for the rest of our lives.”

“Agreed.”

Pulling out of his arms, she lifted her shirt, pulling it over her head. While he loved her naked body, he was confused. “What are you doing?”

“You have to ask? I’m getting naked. I want you, Benji Paxton, and I want you right now.”

“I thought we were talking about our feelings.”

She made a face. “I thought we were done! How many feelings you got?”

He laughed. “A lot.”

She grinned. “Well, I’ve got them too, but we don’t have to talk. Let’s do.”

Grinning, he pulled at his shirt, and they undressed quickly. Taking her naked, sexy body in his arms, he lifted her off her feet as their mouths met in a heated tangle. His heart was soaring, his soul was happy, and God, he would never love anyone like he did her. Carrying her to the bed, he laid her down, covering her body with his as he drew the hot, sexy kisses out of her. Tearing his mouth from hers, he kissed down her neck as her hands moved up his back, gooseflesh appearing under her touch. As he fell between her legs, she arched against him, lusciously wet. His mind went wild. He wanted this to last, the feel of her, her kisses… He wanted to be inside the woman he loved.

He pushed her leg up and her fingers came to his chest as her brows rose. “What in the world happened here?”

Benji scoffed at the bruise on his chest. It was fading and hardly noticeable, but it still stung a bit. “Blocking your brother’s shot.”

“Which one?”

“Jude.”

She winked exaggeratedly. “I’ll beat him up for you.”

“Good looking out,” he muttered against her lips before directing himself into her body, their whimpers mingling as his eyes squeezed shut. “Fucking hell. Never, ever will this be something that I can get used to.”

Arching against him, she moaned against his lips. “Benji.”

“I love you, Lucy.”

“I love you more.”

Her toes curled against the bed and his heart jackhammered in his chest. He was pretty sure he would never get used to hearing those words from her sweet mouth. Moving out and then slowly back in, he caressed her lips with his, something more happening than just making love.

They were becoming one.

And it was too much for a lost soul like Benji to have ever asked for.

It was almost like a dream.

But as he reached his point of no return when Lucy squeezed him, his eyes met hers and he knew this wasn’t a dream.

It was his forever.

When Rick’s car pulled up, Benji had to take a cleansing breath.

He wanted to get out of the car, pummel the dude’s face, and throw his body in a ditch somewhere, but that wouldn’t help their situation.

Their.

Lucy and Angie and him.

They were his everything, and he could still hear them telling him they loved him. Over and over again, and he swore it was like his own version of alcohol. Their love. It was addictive, and hearing Lucy whisper it against his lips, he knew he would never find another high like that in his life. Never.