We finish eating in that lazy, unhurried way that feels like neither of us wants to rush the morning out of existence. I rinse the plates and set them in the sink, then hook a finger in the waistband of her borrowed shorts and tug her gently toward the living room.
“Couch,” I tell her.
“Yes, sir,” she teases, but she goes easily, already smiling.
She settles with her head in my lap, legs stretched out along the cushions, phone in hand as she starts scrolling. I kick my feet up on the coffee table and flip the game on, the low murmur of the announcers filling the room. My fingers drift into her hair without thinking, combing through the soft strands, slow and absent and steady.
She sighs quietly, nestling in closer like she’s claiming the spot.
Her phone chirps. Then again. And a-fucking-gain.
I glance down when she wiggles slightly, her mouth pressing together like she’s holding back a grin, eyes a little too shiny to be believable. That guilty little sparkle is all over her face, the kind that says she definitely knows something I don’t yet.
“What’s goin’ on, princess?” I ask, fingers still moving through her hair.
She hesitates, then sighs. “My sisters wanted to know what happened last night.”
“And?” I prompt, keeping my tone light.
She shrugs, eyes still on the screen. “And they’re being… them.”
That’s all the answer I get before I hook a hand around her side and tickle her ribs. She squeals, twisting, trying to escape, laughter bubbling out of her like she can’t help it.
“Javi, stop,” she laughs, breathless, squirming as I pull her up and into my lap instead. Her phone nearly slips from her fingers as she collapses against my chest, still laughing, cheeks flushed, hair falling loose around her face.
I catch her chin gently, still smiling when her laughter finally tapers off into soft little breaths. “God,” I murmur, unable to stop myself. “You’re beautiful like this.”
She blinks up at me, surprised, eyes warm and bright.
“Don’t get me wrong,” I add quietly, brushing my thumb across her cheek. “You’re fuckin’ sexy all the time. But wild and free like this, laughing, not all locked into that picture-perfect control you carry around…” My voice drops, honest and rough with it. “Fuck. I love you best like this. When you’re just you.”
Something soft shifts in her expression, the teasing fading into something real and tender. She settles back into my chest, phone forgotten, her fingers curling lightly into the front of my shirt.
“Yeah?” she asks quietly.
“Yeah,” I say without hesitation, my hand sliding back into her hair, holding her there like exactly where she belongs.
Her laughter is still bubbling against my chest when my phone vibrates against my thigh.
I don’t even look at it yet. Because I already know. That guilty little sparkle is back in her eyes, lips pressed together like she’s fighting a smile she absolutely should not be wearing. The same look she had earlier when her phone wouldn’t stop chirping. The same look that says she’s been talking. Probably a lot.
My gaze drops to the screen anyway when it buzzes again. There’s a text from Switch, then Blade.
I laugh under my breath and shake my head. “You told your sisters,” I say, not even bothering to make it a question.
Her mouth twitches. “Maybe.”
“Uh-huh.” I lift the phone so she can see the names lighting up the screen. “And now both your brother-in-laws are coming for me.”
Her grin breaks free, bright and unapologetic. “They worry.”
“They threaten,” I correct dryly. “Different department.”
I unlock the screen.
Switch:You alive, pretty boy?
Blade:You got a minute? Or are you still busy making questionable life choices with my sister-in-law?
