16
EDEN
I wakeup before sunrise and my mind is spinning, but my first thoughts are of Junie. I squint at the image on the baby monitor on the bedside table.
Juniper is sound asleep, her little foot poking out from under a light blanket.
I roll over, and that’s when it hits me. I’m alone in bed. I roll over and touch the cool sheets. Vito slept over last night, but he’s not next to me.
My heart speeds up a bit at the thought that maybe he’s not sleeping because he’s not comfortable here.
Maybe he’s having second thoughts about moving in. I take a deep breath and kick back the covers. I’m awake now, so I may as well face whatever this is. I am wearing my favorite paper-thin sleep tee with the wide, loose neck and soft pajama pants. I tiptoe down the stairs and find Vito in the kitchen, sitting in the eat-in nook with a sheet of paper and his phone in front of him.
“Babe.” He brightens as soon as he sees me. “You’re up early.”
I pad over to the table and tuck into the cozy bench seat on the opposite side of where he’s sitting. “I could say the same to you.” A little bit of tension leaves my belly at the happy look on his face. “Are you okay?”
“Better than okay,” he says. He gets up excitedly and scoots next to me on the bench. “Do you want coffee? I made some.”
He grabs his empty mug and heads to the coffeepot, but then he shakes his head. “Shit. I drank the whole pot. I’ll make more.”
I get up from my seat and take the empty pot from him. “I’ll do it. You tell me what’s got you so excited that you’re awake.”
As I scoop up the grounds and fill the pot, Vito grabs the sheet of paper off the kitchen table. He sets the paper down on the counter and explains the notes he’s made. “I’ve lived with my parents for the last five years and I’m a little ashamed to admit it now, but I’ve never paid my parents a penny in rent. I buy groceries every now and then, but…” He rubs the sexy scruff on his chin. “I’ve been a deadbeat son, but that means I’ve banked a ton of money.” He points to a figure on the piece of paper. “I’ve been putting my money away and honestly never thought much about what I’d do with it. My truck’s paid off. I’ve got no debt.”
He meets my eyes, his bright and full of excitement. “We can use my savings to pay for your college. You don’t have to worry about running out of the money in your trust. You can save all that for Juniper.”
I shake my head and click the coffeemaker on. “Vito, I would never, ever let you pay my way through college.”
He holds up a finger and smirks, his lips a full, sexy smile. “I thought you’d say that. So, I crunched some other numbers.” He flips the paper over. “If we use my cash to make some upgrades to the house—new bathrooms upstairs, for example, we can throw some work at my buddies who do contract work on the side, so you know there’ll be guys in the house you can trust. Then, when the work is done, you can get your house reappraised and maybe take out a loan against the equity.”
I watch him in amazement. I’ve heard of things like this, but I have no idea how any of this stuff works. This is exactly why I want to learn. “Vito, but then your money is tied up in this house. What if something happens? I’ll want to pay you back for the money you put into the house.”
Vito drops his sheet of paper on the floor, then bends to pick it up. When he stands, his face looks strained. “Something happens? Eden, what’s going to happen?”
I step closer to him and wrap my arms around his waist. “I don’t want anything to happen, but I don’t know about things like this. I don’t ever want you to feel like I screwed you out of your money.” I bite my lip, thinking about the vile, horrible things Nathan’s wife said at the mediation.
Vito sets his phone and paper on the counter and grips my hips in both hands. “I’m not like Juniper’s father. And I’m going to take all the time I need to show you I’m a very, very different man.”
“You already have,” I say, lowering my head to rest against his shoulder. “You’ve been up thinking about how to spend your money on me.”
“On us,” he corrects. He tugs my hips closer, and I can feel the firm lines of his body against mine. “When I wake up in the morning at my parents’, I’m in their house. But when I woke up this morning, I was so excited I couldn’t sleep. All I could picture was the playset we can put in the back for Juniper. The new bathrooms we can install.”
“The dog run for my new puppy…” I say, a pleading note in my voice. “Because one screaming little animal in this house is not enough.”
“Hey.” Vito pretends to be hurt. “I’m not a little animal. I’m full-sized.”
I tuck my forehead against the stubble growing along his neck. “Some things about you are definitely full-sized.” I lower my hand to cup his butt cheek through his PJs. “And this too.” I slide a hand between us to stroke his growing erection.
He groans, deep and low in his throat. “Baby,” he hisses. “You’re getting me excited in a whole different kind of way.”
“Is that a bad thing?” I ask, pressing my fingertips lightly along the front of the drawstring and lower. His cock responds to my closeness. I press my full breasts against his bare chest and reach back around to grab his ass.
“Fuck,” he sighs. “This is reason enough to go back to bed. You with me?”
“First one upstairs has to get the condom,” I tell him.
“Has to?” He turns and faces me, then he playfully shoves me away from him, turning and dashing through the house, headed for the stairs.
