I roll over to grab my phone, and my stomach flip-flops at the juxtaposition of text messages awaiting me.
Colt:Good morning, beautiful.
When was the last time I received a good morning text from a guy?I guess Alex…when we were about seventeen years old.
Speaking of which…In a ruthless strike of kismet, there’s another notification taunting me.
Alex:Hey, Fern and I want to take Jonas to the fall fair.
I could scream into my pillow. The last time I talked to Alex, he was throwing it in my face that Jonas had gone to his house instead of coming home. And while I’ve always prided myself on being the type of parent who never keeps my son from his father, I think I can make an exception this time.
I shove my phone under the pillow and sit up with a stretch that turns my spine into something that sounds and feels an awful lot like popping bubble wrap.
With that, the doorbell rings.
I squeeze my eyes shut tight for a second, then haul myself out of bed and slip into an old, comfy robe. Something to hide the way my nipples show right through the dusty pink cami I slept in. On my slow journey to the front door, I perk my ears when I pass Jonas’s door. Naturally he’s still sleeping, whichmeans Colt could’ve stayed for morning sex, and I would’ve been in a much better state of mind to read Alex’s text message.
I run my hand through my hair, shuffling across the floor, kicking shoes and a random puffy coat—why there’s a coat lying in the middle of the floor this time of year, I don’t know.
When I pull the front door open, my heart nearly leaps from my chest. Colt’s standing there, with sexy bedhead and the same clothes he wore last night, holding a tray of coffee cups and a large pink box.
“Hey, Mama.”
Without stopping to consider whether Jonas might catch us, I move into him, placing my palms on his firm chest.
And I kiss him. Recklessly. Lovingly.
One by one, the rifts in my heart are being carefully mended, secured with twine tied off with a square knot.
“What are you doing here?” I finally have the thought to ask.
His eyes cut from mine to the coffee and back. “Bringing breakfast…”
My voice falters. “What about Jonas?”
“My truck’s at the shop up the road. Figured you guys wouldn’t mind a visitor while I wait.”
I smile, cautiously accepting the pink box from his outstretched hand. He’s good. So fucking good. “Definitely better than having to hang around at the mechanic’s.”
He kicks his shoes off, scanning the room for Jonas before kissing my temple. “Good morning, beautiful.”
My head tips, encouraging the slow trailing of kisses down my neck. “Mmm. I like it better in person than over text.”
“Wanted you to wake up with a smile.”
“It worked.”Until I saw the text from Alex.But for a second while lying in bed, I was on top of the world.
His hand slides down to gently pat my butt, and I kiss him one last time before leading the way to the kitchen. And he’sright back on me again, cupping a hand under my chin to hold me still as he kisses my lips and nose and forehead and cheeks. Tiny pecks that give way to a scorching heat in my core.
“Jonas is going to catch us,” I whisper through a laugh.
We hold still, no talking or breathing or noise of any kind. And after a few heartbeats with no signs of life coming from his bedroom, Colt grabs my waist and hurtles me up onto the counter.
“He’s about as quiet as a herd of cattle. We’ll hear him long before he’s coming down the stairs.” He settles into the space between my knees, running his hands under the fluffy hem of my robe.
That’s when I remember I’m wearing an old ratty green robe my parents gave me for Christmas a few years ago. I think I might’ve topped how unsexy I was the morning after my birthday. Didn’t know it was possible.
I look like a bad cosplay of the live-action version of the Grinch.
