His Dark Promise (Siren Publishing Classic) by K. R. Haynes Page B

fingers across the top of the diamond-encrusted watch. His farewell gift to her he had told her when he gave it to her. “It’s not an early Christmas gift, Holly. It’s a remember us, gift.”
    Even now, Holly could feel the swell of emotion rising in her throat just from remembering those sweet words he had whispered into her ear last night. Travis Kane might not be the most romantic man in the world. He was more into dominating and commanding a woman than sweeping her off her feet with romantic gestures. However, last night he had swept her right off her feet, and then rocked her world when he took her to bed and made love to her. Now, Holly was left dealing with the ramifications of all of it. She found herself contemplating this morning whether Travis was even aware he had taken her twice without protection. She had no regrets over it, none whatsoever. Nonetheless, she couldn’t say the same for him.
    What if he did regret his impatient actions and felt remorse for it, even? That was something she hoped, in the light of day, he never felt. Holly didn’t want Travis to feel guilty or sorry for taking her in such a wild and untamed way. What she loved about him most was that dangerous side of his as it brought out her own living-on-the-edge kind of side.
    He was going to break her heart for sure.
    Holly could already feel the fractures forming the more time she spent with him. How in the world was she ever going to get over him? He had practically destroyed her for any other male on the planet and now thousands of miles and time was going to separate them. Just like the inscribing on the watch stated, “Oceans may separate us, distance may come between us,” and how true those words were and would be. There was no cure for a broken heart, just time, and she would have plenty of that up her sleeve in London.
    A small whimper fell from her lips when she realised she would have to see good-bye to him soon. She wasn’t ready to let him go yet. She wasn’t ready to utter the words, “Good-bye, Travis Kane” to him and didn’t think she ever would be.
    What in the hell was she going to do without him there to make her laugh when she was down, or see that smile of his that made her knees weak every time he gifted it to her ? Or when she was lonely and needed to be held and loved who was going to be there for her, when she was thousands of miles away from the man who could provide all that to her and more, so much more. Holly knew she couldn’t back out of the contract she signed for the year-long transfer, but hell, she sure wished she could. She wished she could stay here lying in his arms forever.
    Feeling Travis stir awake beneath her, Holly gently rolled over so she was on her side facing him. His chest rose as he took a deep breath in then let it back out. She watched as he lifted a hand to his eyes to rub the sleep away from them. It was such a mundane thing to watch, yet she wanted to commit everything he did to memory. For some dumb reason she wanted to remember his little creature habits and all his morning rituals. Then she would know that he had been real to her and not some a figment of her imagination her mind had come up with.
    He was as real as you could get. She smiled briefly when her eyes drifted down the length of his naked torso to where the bedsheet lay tented across his lap. “You like what you see, sweet darlin’?” His gravelly voice drifted over her as he spoke.
    Glancing back up at him, Holly smiled slightly even though on the inside her heart hurt and her chest ached. “Are you offering, Mr. Kane?” she whispered to him while ducking her head to take his lips with her own. She caressed her lips over his slowly at first to build up the pleasure and the feel of his moving sensually with hers. He nipped lightly at the corner of her mouth and she returned the favor by doing the same to him. She then cupped his face in both her hands while Travis placed a heavy hand at the back of her head,