“Yeah,” I said, heart fluttering as he rubbed our noses together, warming mine up. “Yeah, I do.”
“Good,” Kit murmured, tilting his head to press a soft kiss to my lips, so sweet it made me feel like my heart was going to burst.
I’d never get tired of kissing him. Not if we lived to a hundred and three.
“So, I propose a compromise,” Kit said as he broke off. “Cab home, I get to bundle you up on the sofa and put some ice on that ankle while I nip out and pick you up a donutanddinner, which you can eat in any order you see fit.”
“Sounds good so far.” I beamed, pain temporarily forgotten.
“Let me finish,” Kit chided, tapping the end of my nose. “You get as many kisses as you like in the interest of healing faster. We watch something with lots of explosions and car chases and things on the telly while I rub your feet for you. Then I carry you to bed,” Kit paused to lean in, the tip of his nose brushing the shell of my ear. “And make love to you. And we fall asleep in each other’s arms.”
If anyone else had ever saidmake love to you, I would’ve burst into laughter or died of embarrassment.
Kit saying it made my dick sit up and pay attention, which was a testament to how much I liked him.
“Would that be an acceptable substitute for what you were imagining?”
I swallowed. “Yeah, umm. Yeah. I think. That’d be, umm…”
Kit’s whole face lit up. “I like that I can make you flustered,” he said. “No one ever makes you flustered.”
“You’re a special case,” I said. “I love you.AndI think you’re hot.”
“I’m currently quite cold, actually,” Kit teased. “Do we have a deal?”
“Throw in a lazy morning fooling around in bed tomorrow and it’s a deal,” I said, willing to push my luck while I was injured, mild as it might be.
“Probably would’ve thrown that in without being asked.” Kit smiled at me. “Good. Stay there, I’ll come around the other side to collect you.”
Kit darted in and kissed me one last time before skating off toward the exit. I watched him unlace his skates and hand them back, getting our shoes in return and then heading over, dumping the bag we’d brought with us on his side of the barrier.
“Easy,” he said, putting one hand on my back. “This might all go terribly wrong, but I think…”
And then suddenly he was hauling me over the barrier and carrying me like a princess with a missing glass slipper.
My stomach swooped as Kit walked me over to a nearby table and set me down on the edge of it.
“Did you justpick me upand carry me away?” I asked, stunned by what’d just happened.
“Well, I wouldn’t try it over any great distance,” Kit said. “But you’re not that heavy.”
I blinked at him, mouth half open as I stared at my skinny, nerdy boyfriend who’d just picked me up and carried me. And okay, it was like five steps, but still.
Kinda hot.
“Kinda hot that you can pick me up,” I said after a moment.
Kit smiled a shy little smile, grabbing our bag and pulling out his red sneakers.
“I think you ought to wear these, so we don’t put any extra pressure on your ankle.”
I’d thought he was insane for wearingcanvas sneakersin New York in January, but I was really glad now.
He put them on my dangling feet with all the care in the world, like I really was a delicate princess, and then pulled my new boots on. He’d dragged me to get them after all, and used his best puppy eyes to make me accept them.
“I love you,” I said, looking down at him kneeling on the ground,again, for me.
That was the thing. Kit had all the money in the world, sure, butthiswas what made me feel spoiled. His time. His attention. Him kneeling on the ground in front of me like I was worthy of it.
