Never Far Away (The Never #2)(46)
“You know I mean everything I ever say to you, right?” He asked, pulling his face back from hers, making sure she could see his eyes.
“What do you mean?”
“When we’re together, like this, when I’m making love to you. I mean every single thing. I’m not just saying things to say them. I want you to marry me and I want you to have my children. I don’t want you to be confused by the fact that I say these things to you while I’m inside of you.” Ella smiled at him, warmed by his unnecessary confession.
“Porter, you never say anything you don’t mean and neither do I. I understand why you say what you do when we’re connected like this, it’s when we feel closest to each other. I always feel the same about you, but when you’re inside me and I can’t deny our connection, the words come spilling out of me too. I love you endlessly. I want to be with you. Not for a little while, and not until the newness of us wears off. I want to be with you until I cease to exist, because there is no me without you.”
Chapter Eleven
Porter
“Babe, dinner’s here,” Porter called up the stairs to Ella. He placed the takeout bags on the island in the kitchen and started getting plates ready for them to eat. Ella came around the corner into the kitchen, bringing a smile to his face. She was wearing his tee shirt again and it looked damn fine on her. “Nice shirt.”
“Thanks,” she said as she flashed him a sexy grin. He watched her as she hopped up onto the island and sat, legs dangling over the edge. “I’ve got good news.”
“Hit me with it,” he said as he prepared a plate for her.
“Megan accepted my job offer and will be the new general manager of Poppy Portland.”
“I never had any doubt,” he said, glancing up at her. She was beaming. The Ella he’d met earlier that year had been hesitant and insecure with herself. The woman in his kitchen this evening was confident, excited, and in charge. He was proud of her, and happy that she had decided to make the next big step in her career and life. Even more satisfying to him was that they were making the steps together. “I think Megan is going to be a great manager. You’re lucky to have her.”
“Agreed,” she replied with a nod. “When I was driving here this afternoon, I called a few real estate brokers and I made an appointment for Friday to go look at some store space in Salem.”
“You did this while you were driving?” He asked, instantly concerned and a little annoyed that she would put herself in harm’s way.
“Porter, it’s called Bluetooth. Very safe, promise.” He exhaled loudly.
“I’m sorry,” he said sincerely. “You have no idea how crazy it makes me when I think of you being unprotected. I can’t be with you all the time and I’m afraid that one of these times we’re apart, something terrible will happen again.”
Ella hopped down from the island and came to him, wrapping her arms around his middle. He heard her take a deep breath.
“I think we’re both affected by what happened to us a little more than we have admitted.”
Porter rested his cheek on top of Ella’s head, breathing in the sweet scent of her shampoo. She smelled so good and she felt so good in his arms.
“I was so focused for so long on just surviving without you, I never took any time to evaluate how I was faring emotionally. I was wrecked – that’s all I knew.”
“I know, Babe. We’re both just trying to figure this out as we go along. But I think we should both see someone. Maybe we should call that psychiatrist Dr. Andrews suggested.”
“Make the appointment. I will be there,” he said, placing a kiss on her forehead.
“I will.” She moved away from him, taking her spot on the island again, the moment of tension passed. “I was thinking,” she said between bites. “Maybe on Friday, if you can manage it, you could come with me to look at store space and then afterwards we could go look at some houses.” She looked at him tentatively, like she wasn’t sure of his response and was bracing for a negative reaction.
“Sounds good,” he said easily. She raised her eyebrows up in surprise.
“Well, that was easy.”
“What were you expecting, Ella?”
“I don’t know,” she shrugged. “You’ve missed a lot of work recently and I don’t want to ask too much from you. I don’t want to be a hindrance to you. But I want you to be a part of the new store and obviously our house. I feel like I’m walking a fine line here. I’m trying to be really respectful of you and how much time you’ve invested in us over the last couple of months.”
“Don’t worry about work, Babe. My company does fine if I’m not there every day, much like yours. They are capable of handling everything and I am excited to do these things with you.” He came to stand right in front of her, his hips rested between her knees, pressing up against the counter. “I was even thinking of looking into getting a little contracting business in Salem. Maybe that way I wouldn’t have to be in Lincoln City all the time and I could stay in Salem some days.” Her eyes went wide and her mouth popped open.
“Really?” She exclaimed. “That is a great idea. To think that we could both be working and living in the same city…I don’t know, Porter. It seems a little too perfect, doesn’t it?”