The Crush (82)

I nodded. There was a weight on her background that I didn’t understand. A father who left because he wanted something else. And the debt she felt to a dad who stayed when he didn’t have to.

“But you’re here,” I said.

She smiled. “Remember that jet you mentioned? It’s about to get a workout in the next few months. You sure you can afford dating me?”

With a laugh, I leaned forward and pressed a kiss to her waiting lips.

“Yeah. I can afford it.”

We were still smiling when I kissed her again.

Neither of us deepened it. Not yet. It was enough that she was here.

I didn’t fully realize just how important it was that she chose me too, until we sat on the stairs and talked about the big things that shifted in order for us to be there. We both made choices that led us here. Mine affected our relationship just as heavily as hers. But now that we were here, it felt like all those choices just made us that much more certain of how right we were together.

“We can do it,” I told her.

“We can.” Her eyes were soft and happy. “I know you won’t be able to travel much during the season. And that’s okay.”

“Speaking of the season.” I shifted to face her more fully. “I should probably tell you about my evening.”

Adaline’s eyes widened, her mouth falling open as I recounted the night and what Allie did.

“Holy hell,” she breathed. “I bet Ned was shitting himself.”

I grinned. “I’ve known it since I was a kid, but if anyone messes with the women in my life, they will regret it.”

“I have such a girl boner for Allie right now,” Adaline said. “I wish I could be like that.”

With a hum, I leaned forward to sweep the hair off her neck and place a gentle kiss underneath her ear. “I distinctly remember someone using a champagne bottle with terrifying accuracy.”

Her eyes gleamed bright when she smiled. “Oh, yeah. That was one of my finer moments.”

“How long can you stay?” I asked quietly.

Adaline moved to her knees, sliding them over my lap until she was settled on top of me. I smoothed my hands up the firm, soft skin of her thighs, letting my fingers drift underneath the hem of her shorts. She started unbuttoning my shirt, a small smile playing around her lips. When the first few buttons were undone, she ducked her head and sucked at the skin at the base of my neck.

“Two nights,” she whispered against the skin of my neck. “Then I have to get back to Seattle.”

My fingers flexed, pushing underneath the back of her shorts.

“I’m calling in sick tomorrow.”

“No, you’re not.” She kissed my collarbone, nipping at it with her teeth. “I have work to do in your giant beautiful house while you’re at practice.”

“Two whole nights.”

Adaline laughed. She sat up and looped her arms around my neck. Her fingers played with the ends of my hair.

“We’re going to have a lot more than that, Ward.”

I dropped my head back with a groan. “Say it again.”

She teased kisses along my jaw, on either side of my lips, and when I chased her mouth with mine, she pulled back.

“Wait,” she said.

“Hmm?” I started tugging at the hem of her T-shirt, and she wriggled one arm free, then the other. Her hair was a tangled mess when I pulled it over her head and tossed it aside. “What are we waiting for?”

Adaline gripped the sides of my face. “What kind of food do you have in that fridge?”

My hands froze at the hook on the back of her simple black bra. “Normal food?”

“Normal for me or normal for you?”

I exhaled a laugh. “I will order something for you.”

“Mmm, like what?” She wiggled on my lap.

“Cinnamon Toast Crunch,” I said against her collarbone. I slid the strap of her bra down her shoulder. “Cookies. Cupcakes.”

She moaned, her hands working on the buckle of my belt. I was laughing too hard to manage anything sexier. But the laugh died in my throat when she dug her hand into my pants.

“Adaline,” I growled. “I really didn’t mean to start here.”

She nipped at my bottom lip. “Then you shouldn’t have mentioned that you’d buy me cookies.”

I surged forward and took her mouth in a ferocious kiss, sliding my tongue into her waiting mouth. She curled her fingers into my hair, whimpering at the first real, deep kiss in weeks. She tasted so good and felt so good. Her lips were soft and firm, her tongue wet as it tangled with mine, and her hips rocked over me.

Adaline tilted her head, changing the angle of the kiss, and for a moment, I was afraid I’d take her right there.

But I wanted a bed. I wanted space. I wanted this forever.

My arms wrapped around her naked back, my hands moving restlessly over all the soft skin I could find.

I’d never get sick of her.

Never get sick of this.

And now, I didn’t have to worry about fleeting moments or missed opportunities. It was just me and her, and the rest of our lives.

It was impossible to believe that I’d gone so long in my life without feeling it because there was a warmth she spread, filling all the far corners of my life until there was nothing she didn’t touch. No place that I didn’t want her.