“None of them are you.” His eyes locked with mine. “I want you, Rose.”
That wasn’t what I’d expected. “What?”
“You make everything seem so easy. You’re so good with her. I don’t have to worry about anything when I know Callie is with you. Would you consider staying?”
“For how long?” I’d expected him to let me go, not ask me to stay. My brain hadn’t quite caught on to what he was saying.
“For however long you can. I know I’ll need help with her until she starts school.”
“So you’re doing this.” School was four or five years away. Up until that moment, it hadn’t been clear to me that he was going all in on being Callie’s dad. For her sake, I’d hoped he would. She needed him in ways he couldn’t even start to imagine yet.
“Yes. But I can’t do it without you.” He stared down at me. “Right now, you’re the glue holding everything together.”
A breathy, disbelieving laugh slipped out of me before I could stop it. No one had ever called me glue. Most days I felt like tape… temporary and removable. Seemed everywhere I went people were trying to figure out how to get rid of me, not how to make me stay.
“You shouldn’t say things like that.”
“Why not? It’s true.” His fingers brushed the hair away from my cheek.
Something inside me loosened. Safe wasn’t a word I trusted, but it settled over me like warmth, anyway. I wanted to nuzzle into him and listen to him tell me how much he needed me. I wanted to be wanted. The feeling was intoxicating, like downing a whole bottle of champagne.
“You want me.” I stared at the center of his chest. Maybe if I said it out loud enough times, I’d start to believe it could be true.
“Yes.” He cupped my chin and nudged my head back, encouraging me to meet his gaze.
We stared into each other’s eyes for what felt like forever. Then he leaned forward, closing the space between us until his lips brushed mine. I’d been trying to convince myself the kiss we’d shared before didn’t mean anything. That I’d remembered it wrong and there wasn’t anything to it beyond us both being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
But this kiss couldn’t have been more perfect. His lips were soft, but his hands were rough as he slid his fingers behind my neck. I melted into him, telling myself I could stop anytime. I didn’t want to. That was the part that scared me. One kiss faded into the next until I wasn’t sure who was kissing who.
He tugged me down to sit on his lap without breaking contact. I didn’t want to think about all the lines we were crossing. The only thing that mattered was how his lips felt on mine. His hand slid into my hair. With one practiced movement, my clip was gone and dark waves fell around my shoulders.
“I love your hair. You should wear it down more.” His warm breath brushed my cheek as he pulled away just enough to form words.
“I love that you love anything about me,” I mumbled back.
Then his mouth found mine again. Heat pooled in my core as his pulse beat under my hand. There was nothing to distract us. Nothing but the sound of the breeze blowing through the trees and the rapid beat of my pulse pounding through my ears.
His hands wandered, and I let them. I gasped when he wrapped a hand around my calf. Then his fingers slowly wandered higher, hiking my skirt up as they advanced to my thigh. My body wanted things my mind hadn’t even considered yet. Every beat of my heart needed more, more, more. Every beat also urged me to run, the old reflex that had kept me whole. I ignored it.
“We can stop if you want,” Cullen mumbled against my mouth. “If this is too much, or?—”
I cut him off with another kiss. Thinking wouldn’t get me anywhere. All I wanted to do was feel.
My fingers worked the buttons down the front of his shirt free. He shrugged it from his shoulders, letting it fall to the deck. The white tee he had on underneath followed. His body was a work of art. With his chest bare, I ran my palms over his pecs. His chest rose and fell hard under my touch. Warm. Solid. The kind of steady I’d never had in my life.
“Rose…” My name came out rough, his hand tightening on my hip like he wasn’t sure if he should hold on or let go.
“I don’t want you to stop.” My words were quiet, but I meant them. I’d never trusted a man enough to say that out loud. With him, the fear took a back seat.
That was all it took. His mouth covered mine again, harder this time, like he’d been holding back for way too long. The blanket slid out of my grip and landed somewhere on the deck. I didn’t care. His hands slid up my sides, slow and careful, like he was testing every boundary. My skin burned under his touch, but I didn’t pull away. I leaned into it. Wanted more of it.
He kissed me until my lungs burned, then pulled back just far enough to rest his forehead against mine. The world shrank to our shared breath and the steady thud of his heart against my chest. Simple. Terrifying. Right.
His breath was shaky. “I don’t want this to be a mistake.”
My heart slammed against my ribs. “It’s not.” The words were out before I could think better of them. And when I said them, I knew they were true.
He kissed me again, deep and certain, and the world tilted. His stubble scraped my chin. His chest pressed against mine. His hands gripped my waist, pulling me closer until I was straddling his lap.
