“El,” I speak as boldly as I can, “I have all the time in the world for you. There’s nowhere else I’d rather be.” I move in close, wrapping my arms all the way around her into a tight embrace, and slowly lower my face down to her, ready for another kiss.
Thud.
Thud.
Ugh. I moan in my head.
I don’t even have to look to know who’s there, but both our gazes pull to the front window. Someone is watching us—or should I say—watching El. Lucky has jumped out of my truck again, and his nose is pressed against the glass, eyes locked on El. “Not again,” I whine.
I swipe my hand through my hair and look back at El. “I think someone else is happy you’re staying too.”
Her eyes pump so much power over me, I am frozen when she says, “So we agree? We’re going to see what happens. One day at a time . . .”
So that’s how this goes…slowly, but promises of heaven just by being near her.
“I’ll give you any day you want, but I think we need to do it a little differently.”
She swallows before she replies with a now shaky breath, “What do you mean?”
I take a grandiose step forward, leaving no space between us and no room for doubting. “I think we should take this one sweet kiss at a time.”
My hand finds her hip. She rises to the tip of her toes, clenches my shirt in a way that steals my breath, and she tugs on it, pulling me down. We find each other with perfect timing, and I close my eyes, melting into her softness. There isn’t any way for this situationship to get better than this. I’m going to spend each day proving to her she made the best decision to stay here by showering her with all the kisses and affection she could ever want.
My lips pull tight as they tease a smile, but I don’t break our lip-lock.
Thud
Thud.
El breaks out into a giggle, and pulls back, “Let Lucky in. I’m sure I can find him a pup cup.”
I give her a pointed stare, as I’m not sure she has any idea what she’s started here with Lucky. This could surely turn into a habit. “Are you sure you really want to do that?”
“Yeah.” She nods a slow confirmation, adding a wink. “We have something to celebrate.”
“Okay, coffees for everyone, but don’t you dare give him caffeine.” I stride back to the door, bracing it open for Lucky. He doesn’t wait for the invite as he barrels through the door and goes right to El.
eighteen
Arielle
Just two weeks later
“Hold your oar out in front of you like this.” Stallone straightens his arms, shoulder width apart, and continues calling back his instructions from his place in front of the kayak. “Turn it gently like you’re pedaling a bike with your hands.” I lift my oar, mimicking his moves, ungracefully smacking the side of the kayak with my oar. “Smaller movements,” he coaches as his oar grazes over the smooth river water, and we glide forward.
Correcting my pattern, I try to steady my oar, but I’m all over the place. “This is a lot harder than it looks.” A chuckle leaks out of my mouth right as I tap the kayak again.
“You’ll get the hang of it.”
I sit back on my legs, tipping my head back to see the top of the nearby mountain. Everything is still snowcapped, and I wouldn’t have believed they would be even more beautiful from this view on the water. It’s what my father used to call January thaw. A nice random day in the coldest month of the year, where it’s actually nice enough to go outside without a coat. Stallone picked me up from work with only one thing on his mind. Well, maybe two. He didn’t forget to kiss me hello.
“So, this morning on the way to work”—Stallone’s voice takes an even tone, and I lean forward, hanging on to his every word— “Ryson asked me what happened to me.”
“What do you mean what happened? What’s wrong?”
“Nothing’s wrong.” He continues to propel the kayak smoothly along the water with ease and precision. “That’s what he was hinting at. He said I changed, and I told him about you.”
“You did . . .” And just like that my heart crawls up in my throat with all the nerves. Stallone and I have been spending all our time together—just the two of us. One thing we haven’t done is complicate things by including extra people. Sure, Christian knows about us, but it’s not like I tell him personal things. I could. I trust Christian more than anyone, but it’s more about protecting my heart. I’m still so confused as to what we are. “What did you say?”
