The Biker Alpha Who Became My Second Chance Mate Chapter 74

Athena's POV

I slowly opened the door, and Tristan practically fell into my apartment. His weight crashed against me, and I had to brace myself against the doorframe to keep us both from tumbling to the floor.

The smell hit me immediately - whiskey, strong and sharp, mixed with something else I couldn't identify. He reeked of alcohol, his usually perfect appearance completely disheveled.

His dark hair was messy, his shirt wrinkled and partially untucked, and there was a lost look in his eyes that made my heart clench with worry.

I managed to help him stay upright long enough to lock the door behind us, my hands shaking slightly as I turned the deadbolt. When I turned back to him, he was swaying on his feet like a tree in strong wind.

"Tristan, what are you doing?" I whispered, moving quickly to support him before he collapsed.

Getting him to my bedroom felt like trying to move a mountain. Tristan was pure muscle, all six feet and however many inches of him, and drunk Tristan was apparently incapable of coordinating his movements to help me. Every step was a struggle as I half-dragged, half-guided him down the short hallway.

"Why are you here this late, and why are you this drunk?" I asked, my voice strained from the effort of keeping him upright.

He was making it even harder by constantly turning his head toward my neck, his breath hot against my skin, that stupid smile never leaving his face. It was like he thought this was all some kind of game.

"Because I miss you, Ath." he mumbled, the words slurring together slightly.

My steps faltered, and I nearly dropped him right there in my hallway. The sane, sober Tristan would never say something like that. This had to be the alcohol talking, making him say things he didn't mean, things that would mortify him in the morning.

"You're drunk, Tristan," I said firmly, trying to ignore the way my heart had started racing. "I think you're confused about where you wanted to go."

He stopped moving completely, his body going dead weight in my arms.

"What's wrong? Why aren't you walking?" My voice came out strained and panicked. If he collapsed now, I'd never be able to get him back up.

We'd both end up in a heap on my hallway floor, and I wasn't sure I'd be able to untangle myself from him if that happened.

I couldn't leave him on my couch - he was too tall, and his neck would be killing him in the morning. My second bedroom wasn't set up yet, still full of boxes and random furniture that hadn't found homes. The only option was my bed, and I'd just have to sleep on the couch myself.

When we finally reached my bedroom, I let him fall onto the mattress with more force than I'd intended. But before I could step back and catch my breath, his hands shot out and grabbed my waist, pulling me down on top of him.

"Got you," he said with that triumphant grin, like he'd just won some huge prize.

Lying there on top of him, I could see his face clearly for the first time since he'd arrived. The harsh lines of stress and exhaustion were smoothed away by alcohol and whatever had driven him to my door.

He looked younger, more carefree, nothing like the controlled and calculating man I saw during work hours.

I found myself wishing he could always be like this - playful, unguarded, allowing himself to laugh and live a little instead of carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders.

"You never change," I said softly, reaching out to poke his chest with my finger.

Instead of laughing or batting my hand away, he caught my finger and brought it to his mouth. The sensation of his lips, his tongue, the gentle suction, sent electricity shooting straight through my core.

My breathing stopped completely as he held my finger there, his eyes locked on mine, before slowly releasing it.

"God, I miss you so much," he whispered, his voice rough with emotion. "I felt like my whole world was crumbling."

Heat flooded my cheeks, and my heart started hammering against my ribs so hard I was sure he could feel it where our bodies were pressed together.

"What are you saying?" I managed to ask, though I was terrified of the answer.

I knew he was drunk. I knew that alcohol made people say things they didn't mean, made them see people who weren't really there.

The thought that he might be looking at me but seeing someone else made my chest tight with a pain I didn't want to name.

I tried to sit up, to put some distance between us before I did something stupid like believe him, but his arms tightened around me.

"How come I can't stop thinking about you?" he asked, his voice full of wonder and confusion. "What did you do to me?"

His hands moved to frame my face, thumbs brushing across my cheekbones with devastating gentleness.

I had to get up. I had to move away from him before I let myself fall back into this pattern, before I started believing that maybe this time would be different.

"Tristan..." I started to say, but his hands were already moving, trailing from my face down to my collarbone, across my shoulder.

This wasn't the first time he'd touched me, but somehow every touch felt new, like he was discovering me all over again. My skin came alive under his fingers, every nerve ending singing with awareness.

"Shh," he whispered, and then his lips were on mine.

Every shred of self-control I'd built up over the past few days evaporated in that instant. I kissed him back with everything I had, pouring days of longing and confusion and desperate hope into this kiss.

We kissed like we were drowning and the other person was air. It felt like forever and not nearly long enough at the same time.

This version of Tristan was different - gentler, more reverent. Like he was afraid I might disappear if he moved too fast or held on too tight.

His hands explored my body like he was memorizing every curve, every sensitive spot, every place that made me gasp against his mouth. When he finally lifted me off his chest and laid me gently on the bed, I felt like I was floating.

"I miss you so much," he kept saying between kisses, and God help me, I believed him.

I let myself believe that he missed me, that he was ready to fight for something real between us, that this wasn't just alcohol and loneliness talking.

Somewhere in the haze of kissing and touching, our clothes disappeared. I couldn't have said who undressed whom or when it happened. All I knew was the feeling of skin against skin, the weight of him above me, the way he looked at me like I was something precious.

When he kissed my forehead and slowly entered me, it felt like the world paused and I was flying at the same time.

The way I felt when I rode Claire. I loved it. Tristan would be the end of me, I know it but I can't stop it.

"I missed you too," I whispered against his neck, meaning every word.

He moved slowly, carefully, like we had all the time in the world. This wasn't the desperate coupling from before - this felt like making love, like something sacred and important.

"I love you," he breathed against my ear.

The words hit me like lightning. I felt tears spring to my eyes, my heart stopping and racing at the same time.

"What did you say?" I needed to hear it again, needed to be absolutely certain.

"I love you. Never stopped."

I kissed him immediately, tasting salt from my own tears, our bodies moving together in perfect rhythm as he moved in and out of me with my legs wrapped around his torso.

This was everything I'd dreamed of hearing, everything I'd hoped for during those long years of watching him from the sidelines.

"I love you too, Tristan," I managed between gasps. "I've always loved you."

"Promise you won't leave me again," he said urgently, his movements becoming more desperate.

"I promise," I said through my tears. "I'll never leave you."

I was so close, my entire body building toward that sweet release, when he said something that made my blood turn to ice.

"I never thought I'd see you again."

Everything inside me went still. What was he talking about? See me again? I hadn't gone anywhere. I'd been right here the whole time, we saw today at the office.

"What do you mea..?" I started to ask.

But then he said the words that shattered my heart into a million pieces.

"I missed you, Jess."

The world stopped spinning. The air left my lungs in a rush, and I felt like I was falling through empty space.