“Your hesitation says otherwise.”
“I’m invoking my right to remain silent.”
“That’s not a thing in relationships.”
“It should be.”
He laughed, and I felt it everywhere.
He pulled me closer, tucking me against his chest.
On the laptop, the movie had reached its climax, the big romantic gesture, the declaration of love.
But I didn’t turn to watch.
I just closed my eyes and listened to Owen’s heartbeat, steady and strong beneath my ear, and thought about how this, thequiet, the warmth, the simple act of being together, was better than any movie moment could ever be.
“Hey,” Owen said softly.
“Hmm?”
“I think this might be my favorite part, too.”
I smiled against his chest. “The quiet parts?”
“The you parts.” His hand came up to stroke my hair. “All of them.”
We stayed like that until the movie ended. Neither of us moved to turn it off. Neither of us needed anything more than this.
Or so I thought.
“Hey.” Owen’s voice rumbled through his chest. “I almost forgot to ask you something.”
I tilted my head up to look at him. “If it’s about the last slice of pizza in the fridge, I already ate it.”
“You... wait, seriously?”
“It was calling to me. I had no choice.”
He shook his head, but his lips were twitching. “That’s not what I was going to ask, but we’re definitely circling back to the pizza theft later.”
“It’s not theft if we live together. It’s communal property.”
“That’s not how pizza works.” He shifted, propping himself up on one elbow so he could look down at me properly. “I have a game Friday night.”
“I know. You’ve been stressing about it all week.”
He took a breath, and I watched his Adam’s apple bob as he swallowed. Owen Taylor, nervous. It was such a rare sight that I found myself holding my breath, waiting.
“Will you come?” he asked. “To the game?”
The question landed somewhere between my ribs and stayed there. He wanted me there. At his game. In public, where anyone could see.
My heart was doing something embarrassing in my chest. But I kept my expression neutral, lifting one shoulder in what I hoped was a casual shrug.
“I guess I could clear my schedule.”
“You guess?”
