“I’m going to help with all of that, okay? This isn’t just your job. It’sourjob.”
Gratitude sinks into my bones. “Thank you.” Even though he’s taken so much weight off my shoulders, I feel myself droop. After the stress of last night and this morning, I’m suddenly so tired I could collapse.
He smooths a hand over my unruly hair, half twisted up into a bun, assessing me. “Did you get any sleep at all?”
I chuckle wryly. “Do I look like shit?”
“You could never look like shit.” He kisses my forehead. “But you do look tired. It’s still early, why don’t you come get some sleep?”
I nibble my lip, glancing down at the dress I threw on in a rush. “I don’t have anything…”
“You can borrow a shirt. Come on.” He takes my hand and guides me into the bedroom. Then he goes to the dresser, pulling out a black T-shirt. “Here,” he says, grinning when he hands it over.
I hold it up to see a picture of baby Yoda—or Grogu, as he’s actually called—and smile sleepily. “Aw, I loveThe Mandalorian.”
“Of course you do, baby. You think I didn’t know that?”
I stare at him, blinking. He just called me “baby.” Like I’m…his. It makes my insides all hot and messy with so many emotions I’m too tired to process.
But one thing is clear: I fucking love it.
Luke cringes. “Sorry,” he says, his cheeks coloring. “That was… I don’t know why I called you that.”
I shake my head, pushing up onto my toes to kiss him. “I don’t mind it. I think I quite like it, actually.”
His fingers curl into my waist. “I think I like calling you that. I’ve never called anyone that.”
I’m too sleepy to really think about what this means—Luke calling me baby when I’m leaving and everything feels so complicated. And I don’twantto think about what it means. I just want to sink into the beauty of this moment with him. All these tiny moments we have together before the wedding happens, and I have to leave, and everything goes away.
I pull off my dress and Luke spins around so he can’t see. It makes me laugh. “You’ve seen me naked, what are you doing?”
“I don’t trust myself not to touch you,” he says, raking a hand over his scalp. “I want to let you sleep.”
I giggle as I remove my bra and tug the shirt over myself. I undo the bun on my head and set my glasses on his nightstand, then climb into bed. “Will you touch me later?”
“Uh, yeah,” he says, turning back to the bed and slipping under the covers beside me. “I won’t be able to stop myself after snuggling with you.”
He brings his arms around my back and draws me in close, so my nose is tucked right into his chest, against his warmth. I can hear his heart beating, and in the cocoon of his arms, the stillness of his room, a feeling of utter tranquility settles over me.
Wow. I haven’t felt this calm for…
Actually, I’m not sure I’ve ever felt this calm.
Luke presses his lips to my head, stroking his fingers over my back in slow circles, and I decide that in this moment, nothing else matters. Right now, all that matters is the way he’s holding me. The way it feels like the best thing in the world.
27
There’s bright light spilling into Luke’s bedroom when I wake later that morning. I stretch and yawn, feeling a hundred times better. Not just from getting some rest, but from being snuggled in Luke’s bed. I roll over to see he’s gone, but I can smell coffee and something cooking through the partially-opened door, and I peel the covers off eagerly.
When I pad out into the kitchen, Luke is facing away from me, doing something at the stove. My eyes meander over his shoulders and down his muscular back. Man, I must have been in a right state when I arrived here this morning, because I didn’t even appreciate how good his ass looks in those gray sweatpants. Or his crotch, I notice, as he turns to catch me staring.
Whoops.
“Hey,” he says, the corners of his eyes crinkling. He’s got his glasses on and it makes me want to kiss him senseless. He switches off the stove and sets the pan aside, then pours me some coffee. “Here.”
“Thanks.” I take the cup with a smile and hold it under my nose, savoring the malty scent.
His gaze drifts down my body. “Damn, you look hot in my shirt.”
