"No," she said, adamantly, but MJ noticed her eye twitch. It was her tell. She was lying.

MJ had enough. "I'm going upstairs." He dodged the table and held his hand out to Merrick.

Merrick took it and pulled him in for a man-hug, back-pat, the kind Coach always gave him. "See you in the morning, kid," Merrick said.

He'd see his dad in the morning. It was surreal. " 'Night," he said, and nodded to Rachael.

Mounting the stairs, MJ couldn't help but feel bad for Nadia. Whatever her motive was for coming here, she wanted a relationship with him and Merrick, but she wouldn't get one with either of them.

MJ found out he'd had what he'd wanted all along. His real sister, if that's who Nadia actually was, felt like a stranger even though she was his twin. There was no magical connection, not even the blood-connection he'd felt with Merrick. But, Maddie was family. The bond they'd made over the years was stronger than anything he'd have with his real family.

MJ found himself racing up the steps to get to her. He'd been too hard on her. He had to fix everything between them before the storm ended and she left the island.

Twenty-Six.

Maddie lay on her bed clutching her phone to her chest. She had to call Talan. If she'd learned one single thing from this mess, she'd tell him the truth, and the truth was that she'd always love MJ.

She dialed the number. It rang once before a soft knock sounded at her door. She hung up knowing who it was. She could feel his presence on the other side like an invisible band connected them through her center and his. "Come in," she called.

The lit candle stub sitting on top of the chest of drawers did little to light the room, but she saw fatigue etched on his face, and his eyes always got gla.s.sy when he was overly tired.

Without a word, he climbed in bed behind her and wrapped an arm around her waist, snuggling up close. He buried his nose in her hair, and kissed the back of her neck. "No matter who you're with, you'll always be mine, Mads."

She set her phone on the nightstand and laced her fingers with his. She wouldn't argue. Couldn't argue. He was right.

"We'll get past this," he said. "I promise."

Maddie turned her head, leaning it against his. "That's what my dad said."

"He's never wrong." MJ rose up on his elbow and gazed into her eyes.

With anyone else she ended up blinking or looking away after a few seconds, but with MJ, she could spend an entire night looking into the depths of his eyes. She could see right through them, right inside him. It was like being plugged in to the universe and knowing the answers to every question you never thought to ask.

"When we do get past this," he whispered, "and you're mine again, I'm going to make love to you like I never have before."

Overtaken by emotion, her eyes fluttered closed. She felt his nose glide down the bridge of her own. Then his lips brushed against hers, feather-light. "There will never be a day in my life when I don't love you, Madeline Simone Simcoe."

A dam broke inside her, flooding her with relief she hadn't known for over a year. It was finally over. The secret was out.

And MJ said he loved her.

She eased onto her back and welcomed his lips again, pushing her fingers through his hair and pulling him in. Maddie lifted her head off her pillow, deepening their kiss. She had to have MJ in her life. If her dad never woke up...

She couldn't live without her father in her life, let alone both of the men she loved most in the world.

She pulled MJ down on top of her, and wrapped her legs around his hips. She wanted him, needed him to fill the emptiness deep inside.

In this bed far away from home, surrounded by shimmering candlelight and air charged with electricity and desire, she lost herself in his lips, his tongue, his hands gliding down her sides. "I love you, MJ," she said, her voice deep and l.u.s.ty. "I never stopped."

He answered with a groan, and sat up on his knees, pulling her up with him. He took a deep, shuddering breath and held her left hand between them, watching his fingers stroke her palm. "I understand why you kept the secret and ran from me. When my grandfather says he does things in my best interest, I know it's a lie, but when you do," his gaze rose from her hand to her eyes, making her gasp silently with the intense love she saw in them, "I know you mean it. I know you still thought you had to protect me."

He leaned his forehead against hers. "I know what you've gone through missing your mom all of these years. Not telling me mine was alive and breaking your own heart to save mine-Maddie, I forgive you for not telling me."

Her relief came out in a sob. Her body couldn't hold all of the love she held inside. If she didn't release it, she'd explode.

His eyes fell back to her hand. "There's one thing standing in our way. Did you mean it when you said you wanted to marry him, or were you angry about what happened to your father and taking it out on me?"

She brought her left hand to her right and eased the ring off her finger. "Of course I didn't mean it. You make me a crazy woman. Always have. It should've never gotten to this point. I should've told you about Enzo and your mom. We could've been together this whole time."

"Shh." MJ held out his hand and Maddie placed the ring in it. He stood and crossed the room to the chest of drawers, opened the top one and set the ring inside.

Maddie watched as he walked back to her, stopped beside the bed and crossed his arms over his chest. "Are you mine?" he asked.

Her heart raced in antic.i.p.ation of what was next. "I've never not been yours," she answered.

MJ crawled onto the bed and straddled her. His penetrating eyes promised he'd give her what she'd been missing for so, so long. He'd make her whole again.

"I'm taking what's mine," he said, gently nipping her bottom lip with his teeth. "Over and over and over again."

Maddie closed her eyes as he sucked her bottom lip into his mouth and pushed his hands up under her shirt over her bare skin. She'd taken her bra off when she changed into thin cotton pajama shorts and a tank top for bed, and his hands covered her b.r.e.a.s.t.s, kneading and rubbing.

"No stopping tonight," she pleaded. "I need you."

"No stopping. Never again."

He lifted her tank top over her head, then got rid of his own shirt, tossing both to the floor. She watched his fingers trail down over her b.r.e.a.s.t.s, teasing her taught nipples. The sensation set her on fire. His cherishing expression sent her reeling.

He eased down and flicked his tongue over her nipple before taking it in his mouth. His hands worked their way lower, and pushed her pajama shorts over her hips. "Are you still on the pill?" he whispered against her skin.

"Yes." She pushed his head back to her breast and guided his hand between her legs. "I can't wait another second to have you."

He rubbed her over her panties, sending flames through her center. "Take them off," she begged, grappling with his zipper. She wasn't sure if she meant her underwear or his shorts, but both needed to go.

"We have all night," he said, trailing kisses down her sternum to dip his tongue in her belly b.u.t.ton.

"No." Maddie wriggled under his warm fingers, his wet mouth. "I need this right now." She reached inside his boxer briefs and wrapped her hand around his hard, long length to prove her point.

MJ tugged her panties off and ran his hands from her shoulders down over her b.r.e.a.s.t.s, stroking her stomach and stopping on her thighs, parting them as he settled his shoulders between them. He paused for a moment. She watched him taking in the sight of the key tattoo on his chest finding it's mate again. The lock beside her hip.

"MJ," she whispered, rocking her hips against his shoulders, tearing his attention away from inked promises.

"I need to make sure you're ready," he said. "It's been a long time for me, Mads, and I won't hold back and be gentle this first time. I don't want to hurt you."

She groaned in frustration. "I know you're big and I know I'm ready to take you. Please put-"

His tongue dove inside her, stopping her words. Her hands flew to his head, her fingers weaving through his hair as he ran a finger through her folds and penetrated her with his tongue.

She felt him moving and heard his shorts fall to the floor. Then both hands were separating the lips between her legs as he suckled and teased her, sliding two fingers in and out of her.

She found his rock-hard erection with her toes and he ground his hips against her foot. His mouth latched on to her c.l.i.t and sucked hard. A blinding, white heat began to pulse inside her. "Oh, G.o.d. MJ." She pushed his head away. "Not yet. I want to come with you inside me. Please." She grasped his shoulders and pulled. "Please."

He rose over her and she gripped him, positioning him at her opening and lifting her hips off the bed, begging. He thrust into her, stretching her and sending sparks flying behind her eyelids.

MJ took her hands, thread his fingers between hers and held them over her head. "You," he said, thrusting hard. "Are." Another hard thrust had her moaning and arching her back. "Mine." Again, he pushed into her deep and hard, hitting the spot that sent her over the edge. She cried out as he rocked his hips with hers and she exploded around him, wet and pulsing with release. It had never been so all-consuming, so raw. She'd split open and couldn't stop trembling.

He stilled and kissed her. She tasted herself on his tongue. He held her head between their joined hands. "Are you okay?" he asked. "You're shaking."

She kissed the corner of his mouth, his cheek, his jaw. "It's never been like that before."

"I know," he said. "You've never let yourself be that open to me before." He nuzzled his nose with hers. "Thank you."

"Thank you," she whispered, lifting her hips, urging him to move again as she traced his bottom lip with her tongue.

He lifted her in his arms, rising to his knees and pressing her back against the headboard. He hooked his arms under her knees, spreading her as wide as he could and took her nipple in his mouth as he pounded into her.

Maddie gripped the top of the headboard, let her head fall back against the wall and held on tight. "I love how you take me," she said, feeling a tightening deep inside. "Never stop." MJ knew how to make her body respond to him like he knew how to claim her heart and soul.

A tingling, burning ache circled her opening, rushed through her with his fast, hard thrusts and had her arching and bucking against him, lost to another o.r.g.a.s.m ripping through her.

"f.u.c.k, Mads, you're so tight and wet."

His words were a distant murmur against her ear. The waves kept rushing through her, as he plunged into her over and over, seeking his own release. She whimpered and cried out each time he thrust into her. She'd never stop coming.

"Let go," she begged.

He groaned and shoved himself inside her hard. She felt him pulsing with release as he panted and leaned his head against her chest.

Lowering her down onto the bed, MJ covered her body with his and gripped her chin, gazing down into her eyes with a stern, penetrating stare. "No other man will ever be inside you again. Do you understand?"

His possessiveness was startling, but she wanted his claim on her. Needed it like air and blood. "Yes."

His fingers slid through the wetness between her legs and entered her. "This is mine."

She took a shaky breath, letting her head fall back and digging her shoulders into the mattress as his fingers stimulated her overly sensitive flesh. "Yours," she whispered.

Reaching down, she found him, hot, sticky and semi-hard again already. "Mine," she said.

His chuckle against her neck sent goose b.u.mps down her spine. "Baby, I think we proved it was made just for you."

She laughed until his thumb circled her sensitive bundle of nerves and he had her gasping and writhing again as his fingers worked inside her.

"I love watching you come," he said. "Putting that beautiful expression on your face is what I live for."

Her body quaked and spasmed. MJ kissed her neck, trailing down to her chest before easing his fingers out of her. "I hope you live a long, long time then," she said, licking her lips and catching her breath.

He settled in beside her and pulled the blanket over them. "I plan to," he said. "Just like I plan to sleep with you in my arms every night from this one on."

Maddie rolled to her side and pressed her cheek to his chest, feeling his heartbeat. "I like the sound of that."

The morning arrived with sunlight streaming through the window, birdsong and feeling MJ's warm skin against hers.

Heaven. She died and went to Heaven. This wasn't her imagination. He was here with her. He was real, and they were together again.

Twenty-Seven.

MJ stood on a half-built bandstand on the west end of the island where he'd never been. The groan of cello strings blared through the air around him. Beck sat on the edge of the roughed-in stage with an old, battered cello between his legs and examined the bow like it was the cause of the offensive noise.

"I think you forgot how to play that thing," Merrick said, sitting in a lawn chair in front of the bandstand.

"It's been a long time," Beck said, running the bow across the strings again. The instrument made a nice hum, then squawked. "I just need to warm it up a bit."

"Yeah, that'll make all the difference," MJ said, jumping down and kicking a stone.

Beck pointed his bow at him. "n.o.body asked you, Junior."

"What's with the kiss between you and Maddie?" Merrick asked, trying to suppress a grin.

Beck clucked his tongue. "That's dangerous territory there. She came here to get her ring. She's going to crush you like a bug."

"She's not marrying him. We're together like we should've been for the past year and a half."

MJ's defensiveness made Beck lift his hands in surrender. "Hey, I believe you man."

A knowing smile appeared on Merrick's lips. "Rocha men have a way of getting what they want."

Beck tapped the bow on the ground. "I still haven't figured out what Rachael sees in you, ya c.o.c.ky son of a b.i.t.c.h."

Merrick laughed. "If I could get up out of this chair without it feeling like someone was stabbing me in the knee, I'd kick your a.s.s."

Beck snorted. "You could try."

"Why don't you stop murdering that cello and pick up a hammer? This thing isn't going to build itself."