"They said welcome to the family."
A sound escapes her, something between a laugh and a sob. She buries her face in my chest, her arms wrapping around my waist.
Behind us, Mama Rosa starts crying. Tessa cheers from the doorway. Even Preacher cracks a smile.
For the first time in seven years, I feel like I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be.
Later that night, after the bar empties out and the last patron stumbles into the darkness, I find her waiting in my office.
She's perched in her usual worn leather chair by the window, but the book that's normally in her hands is nowhere to be seen. Instead, she's watching the door with an intensity that tells me she's been counting every single minute until I walked through it, maybe even tracking the sounds of my boots on the stairs.
"Hey."
"Hey yourself." I close the door behind me with a soft click. Lock it with deliberate slowness. Her eyes track every movement of my fingers on the bolt, her breathing shifting almost imperceptibly. "You okay?"
"Better than okay." She stands, crosses the scarred wooden floor to me with purpose in her stride. Slides her arms around my neck, her touch warm and certain. "Is this real? All of this? The vote, the acceptance, everything that just happened?"
"As real as it gets, little bird."
"And you're sure? About me? About us? About bringing me into this world?" The vulnerability in her voice nearly breaks me.
I cup her face in my hands, feeling the softness of her skin against my calloused palms. Tilt her chin up with my thumbs until she's looking me directly in the eye, until there's no space for doubt between us.
"I've never been more sure of anything in my life."
She kisses me then. Soft at first, tentative, testing. Then deeper, with growing confidence. I let her take the lead, let her set the pace, let her hands wander and explore, let her show me exactly what she wants.
What she wants is more.
But not tonight. Tonight, I hold her. Tonight, I kiss her until we're both breathless. Tonight, I walk her to her room and leave her at the door with a promise of tomorrow.
There will be time for everything else. Time to learn her body the way I've learned her mind. Time to show her exactly how much I want her.
But first, I need to make sure she's safe. First, I need to deal with Garrett Ashworth.
And then, when the threat is gone and she's truly free, I'm going to spend the rest of my life proving that she made the right choice.
She chose me. The least I can do is be worthy of that choice.
5
SPARROW
Everything has changed, and nothing has changed.
I still bring him coffee every morning. Still sit in the corner of his office with one of Preacher's books. Still catch him watching me when he thinks I'm not looking.
But now he touches me. Constantly. Casually. A hand on my hip as he passes me in the hallway. Fingers brushing the back of my neck when he leans over my shoulder to check my work. His palm warm against my lower back when we walk through the bar together.
Every touch sends electricity crackling through my veins. Every brush of his fingers makes me want more.
He kisses me too. Deep, devastating kisses that leave me dizzy and breathless. He backs me against walls and desks and doorframes, his hands tangled in my hair, his mouth hot and demanding on mine. He kisses me like he's been starving for it, like I'm the only thing that can satisfy the hunger.
But he never pushes further. Never lets his hands wander past safe territory. Never takes what I'm increasingly desperate to give.
I'm starting to combust.
"He's waiting for you, you know."
