“O-okay.”
I swallowed, trying to get my lust reined in enough that I could think. “Talk to me, please.”
She blew out a breath, and I watched her snuggle deeper into my pillows. Fucking perfection. The only thing better would be if I were there with her, holding her.
“I want to hear all about your day,” she said. “And don’t leave out any of the details about how awesome it was to scoot around Dukovsky and score.”
I grinned. “That’s a good place to start.”
I smiled,pleased by Keelie’s deep, even breaths. Her phone remained propped up on the neighboring pillow, her features invisible thanks to the shadows of the room. Still, I touched the glass over the curve of her cheek. I wanted nothing more than to kiss her temple and have her snuggle into my chest. And to fuck her long and hard so she knew she was mine, just as I was hers.
I scrubbed my hand over my face, blinking to hold back the emotions flooding me. “You hold my heart, pretty girl.”
“Cormac? Miss you. So much,” she murmured. She flipped over, curling deeper into her pillow.
No wonder Keelie had gone into occupational therapy. She was trying to save all the kids like her from the pain and abandonment, the betrayal of trust she’d lived through. She was so much stronger than she gave herself credit for. But she was also terrified to let herself love.
I ended the call, hoping the change in light didn’t wake her. But I didn’t want her to awaken to a dead phone.
I needed to make sure she knew how much she meant to me, so I opened my web browser and found a florist that would deliver to her school.
I rose, stretched, and strode to the bathroom. Ablutions complete, I crawled into the bed. Keelie needed to be wooed. She needed to feel safe. Only then would she let herself love me like I loved her. Fully. With abandon.
I’d never planned to love another woman, yet there she was, deep in my heart.
Good thing I knew Naomi, Adam, Maxim, and the rest of the team would be more than happy to help me win Keelie over.
“It wasn’t this hard back in high school.”
“What’s that?”
Cruz stood in the doorway, weaving a little. I disliked the room-sharing policy, but rooming with Cruz wasn’t too bad. He was a grumpy bastard who rarely hooked up. He believed he frightened women. And he didn’t snore, so I didn’t complain about rooming with him.
I shook my head. “Nothing. I was just thinking that my last attempt at romancing a woman was easier.”
He shut the door and tripped his way toward his bed. “Drank too many damn beers,” he moaned. “What was the rookie thinking?”
“That he’s nineteen and loves the Canadian drinking age?”
“Stupid kid’s going to be dragging his ass tomorrow,” Cruz grumbled.
I chuckled. “So are you.”
Cruz slid under the covers, evidently too tired to change his clothes. “Women haven’t changed in fifteen years,” he muttered.
“What’s that?”
“Women. They still want to feel loved, be appreciated. They like knowing you’re thinking about them. Same things we want.”
“Huh. Good advice.”
But Cruz was asleep. I reached over and flicked off the light.
Chapter44
Keelie
“Ms. Hayes, could you please come to the office?” Lorraine, the school secretary, called through the speaker.
