Tell Me You Love Me by Kayla Perrin

job somewhere else.” Gone with you. “At least I would have understood what was going on. I wouldn’t have gone crazy worrying.”
    “Wouldn’t you? If you knew that Dino had connections to organized crime around half the country, you’re going to tell me you wouldn’t worry about me, no matter where I was?’’
    Tyanna opened her mouth to speak, but promptly shut it. He’d caught her with that one.
    “Exactly.”
    Tyanna shot to her feet. “Don’t give me that. Like you made the right decision. And so easily.” She could hardly believe her ears. At least at this point, she hoped he would have understood the gravity of the decision he had made, how hard it had been for her. Show some regret over that. “Do you have any idea what I went through, Sheldon? Wondering what the hell had happened to you? Wondering if you were dead or alive? Maybe I didn’t know about Dino, but with the way you just disappeared…I worried about you anyway. I was terrified that you were dead. I watched the news for stories of any unidentified bodies turning up, car accidents. I was afraid to call your mother initially, because I dreaded hearing bad news. I know it doesn’t make sense, because I wanted to know, but then I wondered if I could really handle knowing something awful had happened to you.
    “I waited a good few days before calling your mother. I was relieved to learn that you were okay, but she didn’t know why you’d left or where you were, and once again, I thought that maybe you had an accident wherever you’d beendriving to. Sure, the doubts had started in my mind, but I pushed them aside, even while my family kept telling me they were sure you’d dumped me but didn’t have the courage to say so. But I couldn’t—”
    Tyanna stopped abruptly when she felt the sting of tears. Even now, the memory of that time hurt. She had never known she could care for a man the way she had cared for Sheldon, and his disappearing had almost been her undoing. But she’d be damned if she’d let her emotions get the better of her.
    “Then when I got that lame letter from you in the mail—all I heard was ‘I told you so’ from my relatives. Do you know how that made me feel? I looked like a fool. I called your mother to find out what was really going on, and that’s when she told me—reluctantly—that you had apparently moved away to be with another woman.’’
    “Fine,” Sheldon said. “Maybe I didn’t do the right thing.’’
    “Maybe?”
    “I was afraid, Tyanna. I had no clue what the right thing was.’’
    “You cared about yourself.”
    Sheldon was on his feet in a flash. Before Tyanna knew what was happening, he had gripped her upper arms and drawn her toward him.
    For a full five seconds, neither of them spoke. Their hot breaths mingled, and Sheldon wasaware of the rise and fall of Tyanna’s chest. He looked into her eyes, at the surprise in their depth, and he damn near forgot what the hell he’d been talking about.
    “I cared about you, Tyanna,” he managed on a ragged breath. “Yes, I was afraid for myself. But if anything had happened to you, something because I’d been too stupid to keep my emotions in check…”
    “Seems like that’s all you ever did.’’
    Ouch. The words hurt more than he’d expected. Despite the fact that they were true.
    Tyanna continued to stare up at him, her eyes challenging him to deny what she’d just said. He remembered the fire, the passion of their relationship. And soon his thoughts were venturing beyond the parameters of their current conversation. His gaze lowered, settling on those full lips of hers. They were moist and slightly parted, almost like she was silently begging him to kiss her.
    So, God help him, he did. A deep moan rumbled in his chest as his mouth covered hers, anticipation and desire spilling forth in a mind-numbing combination. Sweet Jesus, it had been so long.
    At first she was stiff, but her body soon relaxed in his arms. Her lips opened