Wayne was strong, she’d always known that, but when he stood up with her body still clinging to him tightly, as if she weighed nothing? Her brain made the final connection. He really was strong, and smart, and safe. He would take care of her, protect her, always. How she had not seen this before was a mystery and she felt a bit stupid. They acted like an old mated couple on a daily basis with their bickering and flirting, but this newfound love was so interesting and…new! She’d always loved him, but putting words to the emotion and connecting the dots just made the feeling bloom even stronger in her heart.
Clinging to him tightly, she dropped her head to his shoulder and nuzzled his neck. Nose pressed firmly to his thick fur, she inhaled deeply, taking his scent far into her lungs. The smell was comforting and made her feel insanely safe, like nothing in the world could hurt her anymore. As long as she was with this man, they were safe within each other. Tightening her arms around his shoulders, she pulled closer and nipped at his throat gently before snuffling and licking at the spots she’d bitten. A little show of dominance and then submission all wrapped together.
Hearing those words slip from the Labrador man’s mouth had her entire body freezing like a block of ice. Sure she’d heard them before, and said them countless times…but never in this context. Everything that had happened in the last hour or so had changed the meaning of those words forever. Never again would they mean love in a friendly sense…but the unbreakable love, the kind that made her heart pound and her body shake. Sighing softly, she slid her tongue out along the side of his face in a big sloppy kiss, I love you, too, Wayne McCoy.
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