She looked up at him. “You nearly dropped me.”
“I contest that. Besides, I caught you easily enough.” Before she could say anything else, he kissed her, dancing his lips with hers until he felt her relax into him.
“Should we turn on the Christmas tree lights?” he asked.
She stepped back. “I’ll turn them on, you get the living room lights.”
With a flick of the switch, Blaise plunged the room into darkness for a second before it flooded with colorful flickering lights from the tree. He smiled. “They work.”
“A job well done.” She slipped her arms around him, and he hugged her back.
This was turning out to be one of the best nights together. They stood, embraced, while the lights danced to a mesmerizing rhythm.
Dusty yawned.
Blaise squeezed her tight. He’d forgotten how tired she was and the long hours she’d been working.
“Bedtime,” he said softly in her ear. She nodded. He realized this would be the point when he normally would drive back to Wilkton, but he didn’t want to leave her tonight.
“Can I stay the night?” The question had been burning on his lips since dinner. Sure, he’d stayed over periodically over the last year, her mom making herself scarce and subtly giving them the space they needed to get to know each other, both in and out of the bedroom. But recently, Dusty had been too busy and then too tired, and he felt that the harvest, while important for the survival of the farm, was getting between them. Even though they’d had been intimate earlier, Blaise wanted to stay the night and share a bed with the woman he loved.
“I don’t think it’s a good idea. I need to be up early,” replied Dusty.
“Bloody hell, Dusty. Sometimes I think you really don’t want to be in any sort of relationship with me.”
“That’s not true.”
“What’s wrong with me staying the night?”
“Nothing.”
“You’re ashamed of me?”
“No.” Her answer lacked conviction. “Blaise, sorry, I’m just not used to this.”
“Do you think you could be? It’s been nearly a year, and sometimes I don’t feel any closer to you.”
“I can be.”
“You sure.”
She nodded. “It’s just that mom’s here.” She lowered her voice.
“Your mom doesn’t care. And it’s not like anything’s going to happen between us tonight other than sleeping.”
She paused.
“Dusty, I’ll respect whatever you decide, but think about where you’d like our relationship to go. I don’t want to keep going back to my place at night, not after spending a wonderful evening with you.”
“Okay.”
He paused. “You mean it?”
“I do.”
Blaise didn’t want to push the conversation, but since he’d made a step forward, he was willing to take another chance. “I still have the unanswered question from earlier.”
“What?”
