One Look: A grumpy, single dad small town romance(62)

He’d learned to protect himself.

I shifted to rest my chin on my hands as I looked up at him. His face was calm, but his eyes stayed pinned to the ceiling.

“Hey.”

He looked down at me, and a soft smile lifted his lips. “Hey.”

I scooted up to kiss him, to pour into him every ounce of affection and appreciation I felt for him. For us.

I was falling for Wyatt Sullivan.

Hard.

While I didn’t know what it meant and couldn’t quite find the words, I could show him with my kiss. It started soft and slow but turned sensuous and deep. A hard, raspy moan moved from his throat into me.

My heart ached at how sweet and perfect that man was. Strong, honest, short tempered, and kind. The man who had believed for so long that his performance on the field equaled his worth. The man who had been told time and time again that his best was just short of being enough.

You are more than enough.

I squeezed my eyes tight as I continued to kiss him and scream the thought in my mind over and over—You are more than enough.

Finally, I broke the kiss and swallowed hard. My hand swept the stray hair from his forehead. “I’m here. I’m here with you.”

It was all I could do to not blurt out the feelings that were growing wildly out of control. Like a vine you knew might be trouble but had suddenly overtaken everything and nothing was the same.

Wyatt’s gravelly voice echoed through the dark room. “I am the luckiest man in the world.”

I preened at his praise and attention.

My inner critic was blissfully quiet, and I enjoyed the stillness his comforting words brought me.

I settled into the nook of his arm, and we spent lazy hours exploring each other without having to rush or hide or be quiet. Our hands roamed. We found each other in the darkness, coming together to make love and cherish each other with unspoken words.





Sometime in the early morning I awoke, tangled in Wyatt’s arms and legs. My eyes burned from lack of sleep, and my body was swollen and sore, but I couldn’t keep the smile off my face. Wyatt barely moved as I shifted to lift some of the weight off his heavy arm.

I smiled at him. Out cold.

I used the protection of the dim room to stare at his perfect face—his straight nose, the dip in his upper lip. I gently smoothed a finger over the spot where a line usually creased between his eyebrows.

Thoughts of my unsent callback slate flickered through my mind.

How could I leave now?

I laughed at myself. Aubergine would be proud that I was acting as if by assuming I’d get the gig, it would force me to leave Outtatowner to film in LA. Thankfully, I didn’t have to worry about that, since I hadn’t mustered up the courage to even send in the video clip yet. My insides went to war over whether I was being foolish for not even seeing if the casting director would be interested in me. The day player role was perfect—everything I’d been working for and trying to land since I’d left my first year of college and driven 457 solo miles to Los Angeles with nothing but a few thousand dollars and a hopeful naivete.

But just thinking about it left me . . . uneasy.

On one hand, the chances of me getting the role were slim, and even then I could always turn it down. On the other, Wyatt and I had been operating under the assumption that I was staying in Outtatowner only for the summer. We hadn’t talked long term. At all.

Bubbles of worry fizzed in my belly.

I couldn’t think clearly while I was surrounded by Wyatt’s scent and wrapped in the most expensive bedsheets my ass had ever touched. I lifted his arm and quietly padded to the en suite bathroom.

After I finished, I washed my hands and patted my face with the cold water.

“Sneaking out?” Wyatt’s voice was heavy with sleep. He leaned against the doorjamb, and I stepped forward to wrap my arms around his middle.

“’Course not.” Well, not now that I was totally busted.

“Good.” He dropped a kiss to my head, and I crawled back into the bed that still held his warmth.

After a minute, he crawled back into bed, too, lying behind me and tucking my back against his front.

His breath was heavy in the darkness. “It’s quiet when she’s gone.”

I smiled to myself. For such a grump, he was awfully tenderhearted. “She’s lucky to have you.”

Wyatt squeezed me a little tighter. “I just worry. Bethany doesn’t see her a lot, and when she does, I start to worry that Penny will get scared sleeping there or not have her night-light or forget that she’s the best kid in the world.”

My thoughts turned to Wyatt’s ex. “She’s . . . nice. Pleasant even.”

“It’s taken Beth a long time to get used to the idea of being a mom. It’s a work in progress, but I know that when Penny’s there, she’s cared for. Took a long time for me to come to peace with that.”

“I have to admit I was a little worried.” I shrugged and tried to hide my nerves. “Even if I am just the nanny.”

“You know damn well you’re not just the nanny.” His nose nuzzled into my neck. “Keep saying that and you’re going to piss me off.”

My insides turned to mush, and I scolded myself for letting myself fall a little harder.

Get a grip, Lark.

“Right.” I stifled a giggle as his naked body pressed into mine. “Personal assistant.”