There wasn’t a trace of teasing in his voice, so I tipped my head back to stare up at him. “Why not?”
He shrugged against me. “I didn’t think you were meant to be mine.”
I grinned, pressing a kiss to the underside of his jaw, his short beard tickling my lips. “Well, the joke’s on you, because now you’re stuck with me.”
“I think it’s the other way around.” He ducked his head, burying his face in the crook of my neck before pressing a kiss there. Against my skin, he asked, “Are you really sure about this?”
“Are you?”
He huffed out a laugh. “Sunshine, I’ve been yours since the day you spilled coffee down the front of my shirt.”
I furrowed my brow, trying to remember when I’d done that. I hadn’t spilled coffee in— I gasped. “Wait…that was, like, a year and a half ago.”
He just hummed against my skin, the vibration sending a delicious shiver down my spine.
“Seriously? A year and a half?”
“Seriously. A year and a half.”
My stomach flipped, the thought of this man wanting me for that long, of him witnessing every bad hair day and lapse in judgment and bout of PMS and loving me quietly the whole time, sending a burst of warmth through me. “I thought you could barely tolerate me.”
“I’ve been in love with you for a long time. Your brother can be an ass, but he’s not wrong about you being oblivious.”
I snorted. “Yeah, I’m starting to realize that.”
“I’m telling you right now, if any other man comes around and tries to feed you, take care of your dog for you, or makes you text him when you get home after ensuring your safety, he and I are going to have a very long, very painful chat.”
I laughed and shifted, turning around to face him and straddle his lap. Draping my arms over his shoulders, I shook my head. “Don’t worry, I think your grumbly face will scare anyone else away.” I bit my lip, all teasing gone from my tone. “And I love you, too.”
His eyes heated as he slipped his hands under the hem of my T-shirt, resting them on my bare back, his touch something I wasn’t sure I’d ever get used to. Wasn’t sure I ever wanted to. Voice low, he said, “Say it again.”
I smiled at the subtle bark of a command in his voice. “I love you.”
He pressed a kiss to my jaw. “Again.”
I exhaled a sigh, tipping my head to the side to allow him more room. “I love you, Beck.”
He groaned, cupping my face and kissing me with pent-up desire like we hadn’t fucked like bunnies when we’d gotten home last night and like he hadn’t already made me come just this morning.
After long moments, he finally pulled back, sliding his hands down to my back once again. “You didn’t answer me. Are you sure about this?”
I could read this sincerity in his eyes, the uncertainty still there, and I wanted nothing more than to erase it completely. To reassure him there was nowhere else I wanted to be—no one else I wanted to share my life with than him. I shifted against him, sliding closer as I pressed my lips to his. “I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life than I am of you.”
He groaned against my mouth, clenching his fingers at my back. “Sunshine… You can’t say shit like that, grind your pussy down on me, and not expect to get fucked.”
Okay, so he wasn’t the only one with some pent-up desire…
“What if that’s exactly what I’m expecting?” I asked right before I kissed him, slowly rocking against where he was already thick and ready for me.
His grip on me tightened, and I gasped when he shifted me harder against him, the thin material of my panties doing nothing to disguise the stiff bulge of his cock. “Is that why you wore this sexy little skirt? Finally wanted me to Chapter Twelve you?”
I breathed out a laugh even as my body heated at the thought of him taking me out here in the open where anyone could see. True, we were far away from any cottages and on the other side of the resort property from the main inn. But still, the path meandered this way, and the guests were known to roam, especially at sunset.
“With all the teasing, I’m beginning to think you aren’t going to put your money where your mouth is,” I said.
“I’ll put my mouth anywhere you want it.”
I bit my lip and shifted in his lap. My nipples tingling, pussy throbbing over the memory of that morning when he’d bent me over the kitchen counter, gripped my ass, and spread me open so he could lick me from behind. He’d been relentless, bringing me to a shockingly quick orgasm before he’d had to leave, hard as stone, to open the diner.
