Anton is the full package.
Then, I hear a floorboard creak behind me.
Anton’s bass tone is quiet. “Couldn’t resist the muffins?”
I look over my shoulder and pretend to be startled. “Guilty.”
He’s leaning against the door frame in a t-shirt, and those damn sweatpants, barefoot. His hair’s a little tousled. His mouth is soft. I make myself look at his face instead of his forearms.
“Didn’t think you’d be up.” I slowly unwrap the muffin case.
“Okay…”
He gives me a doubtful smirk because he knows I knew he was up.
I lean back against the counter, trying to look casual, but I think he sees right through it because there’s curiosity in his every feature, and he really has no need to wonder about a pregnant lady snacking.
“I was thinking about today,” I say, taking the casing off the muffin and pulling a chocolate chip off the top. “It must have meant a lot to you to be in the room—to stick up to Faith Johnson.”
He makes his way toward me in masculine strides, leans against the breakfast bar next to me, and crosses his arms, making his biceps bulge even more.
Heat fills his eyes. “It did. But as with most hard things in life, it was worth it.”
My stomach twists in that fluttery way, and I try not to let it show. I take another chocolate chip off the top and pop it in my mouth. With him all tall and broad in those damn gray sweatpants, I’m not hungry for this muffin anymore.
I tilt my head. “Believe it or not, I think we both won her over today.”
His eyebrows furrow.
“You…because you proved fatherhood is important to you by being in the room. And me…” The thought hits deep and is weirdly proud. “Because I think she finally believes I’m the woman she’s been training me to become.”
Anton gazes at me with an intensity that steals my breath, then steps closer and smooths my hair behind my ear. The admiration in his touch is one thing. The hunger in his blue eyes—the same as the other night—is another.
I came down here ready to make a confession.
But standing this close to him, with his attention steady and unguarded, I realize I’m not revealing anything he doesn’t already know. There’s no hesitation in him. No waiting to be convinced.
He knows what he wants.
I do, too.
I laugh bashfully. “Though when I said goodnight, she did call you a fortunate accident.”
“Oh, yeah?”
God, I love how easily casual comes to him. So damn confident.
And around him, I am, too.
“I told her you weren’t an accident.”
At that, an amused smile tugs at the corner of his mouth. “You admitted to throwing yourself at me?” He jokes, but his voice isn’t light; it’s lethal.
I quirk an eyebrow. “Not those exact words but…kind of.”
“That’s bold.”
“That’s me…”Most of the time.
