“Harlowe…”
“Archie…”
“Kissing only.”
“We’ll see.”
“I’m serious.”
“As am I, and if you treat me like I’m made of fragile glass, this will never work between us.”
“I intend to treat you as if you’re the most precious thing in my life, which you are.” He caressed her face and buried his fingers in her soft, silky hair. “Two days ago, you were still having trouble moving around. Everything you want will be waiting for you to be fully recovered from your injuries.”
Her bottom lip pressed forward in a pout for the ages.
Smiling, he nibbled on it, which was a mistake because she pounced on the opportunity to lure him into another tongue-twisting kiss that had him forgetting everything he’d just said in a matter of seconds.
“You’re very pleased with yourself, aren’t you?” he asked when he finally recovered his wits and came up for air.
“I am indeed.”
“I love seeing you like this.”
“Like what?”
“Happy, smiling, disobedient.”
She laughed. “That last one might be a problem for a law-and-order guy like you.”
“That’ll never be a problem for me. I like you just the way you are.”
“How will you react when I truly make you mad?”
“I can’t imagine ever being truly mad with you.”
Her brows knit in frustration. Even that was adorable on her. “Be so for real right now, will you please?”
“If, and that’s a very big if, you ever make me truly mad, you can expect maybe a little silence and moodiness.”
“Hmm, how long should I expect that to last?”
“A day or two, maybe. But that was in the past. With you, I probably won’t be able to sustain it for that long.”
She ran her fingers through his hair, triggering goose bumps on his arms and back. “Maybe instead of going silent on me, you could talk to me about whatever is bugging you.”
“I could do that, but like I said, I’ll be surprised if that happens.”
“You’re being for real, remember? You haven’t seen me bitchy or cranky yet.”
“I can’t wait to experience all the moods you wish to have. I’m here for it all.”
“It wasn’t like that for me in the past.”
“That was then. This is now. If I ever do anything that scares you, I want you to tell me the second it happens so I can make sure I never do it again.”
“You could never scare me.”
“We’re being so for real, right?”
