We lie there in silence, his arm resting heavy on my hip. Outside, I can hear the distant rumble of snowplows scraping through the streets, but inside we’re warm and safe and together.
“How often do you stay here?” I ask. “At Maverick and Gina’s, I mean.”
“Most of the time, actually.”
I tilt my head back to look at him. “Really?”
“Yeah.” He begins stroking my hip. “My place is... it’s big. Empty. Feels even more so lately.” His voice goes quieter. “I used to get Bella for a month at a time. Those visits made it feel like a home, you know? Her toys everywhere, cartoons playing, her little voice chattering about everything and nothing.”
My chest tightens at the pain in his voice.
“But since I can’t do the month-long visits anymore, the house just sits empty.” His arm tightens around me.
“Enrick,” I whisper, my heart breaking for him.
“So I find myself here more often than not. At least Mav’s house has life in it. Noise. Gina’s always got something going on, the kids are around.” He pulls me closer, his chin resting on top of my head. “Better than rattling around in that empty house, counting down the days until I can see my daughter again.”
“You don’t like being alone,” I say softly, understanding clicking into place.
“I don’t mind being alone,” he corrects. “I mind being lonely. There’s a difference.” He cups my face. “And I’ve been fucking lonely.”
“You don’t have to be anymore,” I whisper. “Bella and I could visit you on the weekends. We could stay at your place.”
“I’ll make the trips to Atlanta. Every weekend. I don’t mind the flights.”
“I work from home,” I tell him. “It’s really just Bella’s school keeping us in Atlanta. We probably should have registered her for school here in Winter Bay instead of Atlanta anyway,” I say, the thought occurring to me even as I speak it. “I could have found a house here; we could have—”
“Des, stop.” His voice is gentle but firm. “You’ve been more than generous. More than I deserve. You shared her time with me equally even though you could have made it so much harder. You never badmouthed me to her, never poisoned her against me even when you had every right to.”
“Enrick—”
I will not let you uproot everything just because I feel lonely and miss having her close. I should be the one making the effort here, not you.
“How am I ever going to get comfortable in my future home if I don’t visit?”
His mouth opens, closes, opens again. No sound comes out. His eyes search mine in the darkness.
“Your...” He can’t seem to finish the sentence. His grip tightens on my hip. “You’re talking about my house? As your future home?”
“Well, yeah.” I try to keep my voice light even though my heart is pounding. “Unless you had other plans?”
“No. No other plans.” His voice is hoarse. “Just didn’t think you’d—fuck, Desiree.” He kisses me hard, and when he pulls back, his eyes are suspiciously bright. “You keep surprising me.”
I nestle against him, my cheek resting over his heartbeat, feeling more content than I have in years. “Enrick?”
“Hmm?”
“I think I’m falling in love with you.” The words come easily to me even as my stomach flips waiting for him to say something.
“I love you too.” Emotion roughens his voice. “And this time, I’m never letting you go.”
The words wrap around my heart, chasing away years of unhappiness. When I shift against him and feel him hardening against my thigh, desire reignites.
“Definitely less than ten minutes.” I tilt my head up to brush my lips against his jaw.
His laugh rumbles through his chest, low and warm. “I have a reputation to salvage.”
I push at his chest, and he lets me roll him onto his back with an ease that shows he knows exactly what I want. Rough palms settle on my hips as I swing my leg over to straddle him, settling my weight onto his thighs. The shift in position puts me in control, and from the heat in his eyes, he likes it.
