“I would have fallen all of half a meter onto a soft surface.” I cupped his face. “Nothing happened, love.”
“Somethinghappened, Isla. Something I couldn’t control.”
“We figured it out, Arric. Together,” I pointed out. “Like we always do. It’s you and me, forever, love. We’re a team, so you have nothing to freak out about.”
He slid his hand to my neck and stroked my pulse. “If anything ever happened to you…”
“Nothing’s going to happen to me, Arric.”
He dropped his forehead to mine. “I love you so much it scares me sometimes.”
“Same,” I admitted. “But I trust you to protect me, and you bet your arse, I’m going to protect you right back.”
Arric grinned. “I’m figuring that out.”
“Good.” I patted his chest. “Now… do you trust me to protect you while attending a family dinner?”
“When?”
“Tonight.” I bit my lip and tried not to frown. “Six o’clock.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Oh, I see how it is.”
“How what is?”
“The sexy lingerie. You were buttering me up to deliver the dildo of dinner.”
I snorted. “Dildo of dinner?”
“Right up my ass,” he ground out, turning and walking into the bathroom.
“Wait.” I followed him. “Are you serious?”
“No.” He sighed. “Sorry, baby. Just had a shit day.” He pulled me close again and kissed me. “Who’s gonna be at dinner?”
“Just us,” I said.
“Us, meaning…?” he asked, his body locked.
“Just the seven of us.”
He relaxed. “I can handle that.”
“I’m aware.” I squeezed his chin. “What’s really going on?”
“You don’t already know?” he challenged.
“Of course I do, but I still want you to tell me how you feel about it.”
“I honestly don’t know if I can put into words the feelings,” he said. “I can’t seem to grasp what I’m being told until long after I’m out of the presence of this so-called oracle.”
“That’s not a bad thing, love,” I assured. “You have the right to take as much time as you need to understand what’s happening to you. Ultimately, you are the one who has to live with that information, right? I’m here to listen. I hope you know that.”
He leaned down and kissed me. “I do know that, baby. I couldn’t do any of this without you.”
I grinned. “Oh, I’m aware.”
“Love you.”
