Miles was a conundrum. Sometimes he pushed her away. Other times, like now, it felt like he’d never let her go.
He kissed her neck and murmured into her hair. “I’m so sorry I bolted this morning.”
They needed this right now. The two of them, holding each other. Nothing else mattered.
“This morning was a jump I didn’t see coming.” She pulled back to gauge his reaction and chuckled. “We haven’t even seen each other’s apartments.”
Miles laughed and a spark lit his eyes. He pushed her back to the counter and settled his hips into hers. Avery massaged the knots in his shoulders.
“Let’s change that,” he said. “Come see my apartment next weekend. We’ll go to the camp fundraiser together. Sunday morning, you can fly back to Maine with Anna for Lily’s bachelorette. What do you think?”
A step forward. He was ready to let her into his life, ready for her to meet more of his friends.
“I’d like that.” She kissed him.
“It’s a date.” He leaned over and scooped an arm behind her knees, lifting her and carrying her to the stairs.
“Miles, we should be friendly hosts and go swim with your guests,” she said, putting up no fight. After the morning they’d had, she needed to feel him.
“I need to change into my swim trunks,” he said, his voice roughand ragged. “You know what your coconut sunscreen does to me, and if I don’t untie your bikini before I go out there”—he growled into her neck—“our guests are going to be acutely aware of how much I want you. And that’s rude.”
“So considerate.” She kissed his neck.
“Nah, I’m about to get wicked selfish.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
Miles
July 22 - New York, New York
Before the elevator reached the floor labeledPH, Miles stuffed his speech notes into his pocket, pulled out his keys, and glanced at his watch. Thanks to a weather delay, he’d been a day late getting home, and now had less than an hour to get ready for the gala. He let out a tired sigh. At least he’d made it back to New York in time for the fundraiser.
The doorman had let Avery into his apartment the previous night and she’d texted him a picture of herself grinning on the Boa sofa. Miles’s heart soared at the anticipation of seeing of her smile after five long days in Wyoming. Waiting the extra day to hold her again had felt longer than the entire week he’d been away.
He’d wanted to be there when she entered his apartment for the first time. He’d always imagined sharing champagne on his terrace and pointing out landmarks like he pointed out stars.There’s Central Park,the Empire State Building. That’s lower Manhattan. The planes fly up the East River and down the Hudson.
After that, a tour of the interior.This is the statement couch the interior decorator insisted I buy to match the modern style of my apartment. I spend all my time over in that navy Eames lounge chair instead. I can’t wait to make love on the couch we picked for the Red House and nap on it, holding you. Maybe we should buy a second one for here and get rid of this one.
He wasn’t sure when his “I” had become a “we,” but he couldn’t wait for the Saturdays when they’d wake up next to one another, make love, and amble to the kitchen to throw together some blueberry pancakes. New York might be big and bold compared to small, quaint Maine but no matter where you were, you needed breakfast. He wished they could start that life tomorrow, but Avery and Anna Catherine were flying out for Lily’s bachelorette in Boothbay first thing in the morning.
He walked off the elevator and headed to the door on the left. One day, Avery wouldn’t be a guest in Penthouse A. He’d overcome his anxiety and ask her to live here. But it’d be two years until any of that happened. Her MBA came first. She’d have an internship the following summer, possibly with a consulting firm, who knew where, but it wouldn’t be at the lake.
They needed to savor their little bits of time together over the next month. They might cross paths for a brief second between her return to the lake from Lily’s bachelorette and his departure for Nate’s canoe trip. After that, they’d have two weeks until her classes began. She’d be busier than ever in the fall—and he planned to finish his masters, recruit new board members, write grants, and if they raised enough money, purchase and renovate the corporate retreat.
Miles needed August to do what August did best: slow everything down. He unlocked the door and glanced at his watch again. This would be a quick hello.
As the door swung open, the sweet scent of magnolia permeated his senses in the best way possible. Within seconds of the door closing, she ran out of the guest bedroom wearing his plaid flannel bathrobe. She’d wrapped her hair in a lovely chignon and wore a wide grin on her face. He only caught a glimpse before Avery flew into his open arms. Miles imagined coming home every day and wrapping himself in this happy energy.
“I’m so excited to be here,” she said. “I slept in the guest room last night because it felt weird to sleep in your bed for the first time without you.”
If only they could stay in for the night. But he needed to shower, shave, and memorize his speech. His dream of opening a camp for grieving families depended on raising enough money for a down payment and securing financing on the corporate retreat. He and Hayes couldn’t make an offer without proving they could afford it. He’d happily add more to whatever they raised, but a large donor base gave grant-making foundations a reason to believe the project could succeed.
“Get going.” Avery smacked his backside. “The car will be here soon.”
He recited his speech from memory while he shaved. In the shower, he went over it again and forgot half of it. The time crunch sabotaged his confidence, and schmoozing people for money wasn’t his forte.
While he believed in the mission and knew his fundraising target, Miles doubted his ability to sway people to donate to a camp that hadn’t affected a single person yet. And he rarely spoke to crowds. OnBright and Early,he talked to a camera. There was no audience inside the studio, only out on the plaza. CashCache’s success had happened in a room, at a computer, after work hours and on weekends. Later, it had grown in rented conference rooms and when CashCache took off, in a real office.
