I couldn’t ignore his tone, so my eyes immediately locked with his. “It’s true.”
"Joshua, sweetheart." This time, he wasn’t confused or pissed. Just hurt. "You didn't wreck anything."
I rolled my eyes but didn’t say anything else. I didn’t trust my voice to hold if I tried.
He sighed and dragged his palm to my jaw, holding me just inches away from him. "I turned down a project that would've been interesting a year ago, but it’s not what I want right now. I would have been on a plane three days a week for the next two months, and that’s not what I want." He dragged his thumb over my lower lip until it popped free of his touch. "I wanna be here with you."
Oh.
"I've been doing this work for a long time and have traveled all over the world. I've eaten room service alone in a lot of cities and then come home to an empty house every time." His gazeshifted between my eyes. "And now that you’re here… Well, this has been the best week I've had in longer than I can remember."
My throat was tight again. "Really?"
"Really." He cocked his head and looked at me like it wasn't even a question. "And last night…" He exhaled slowly and looked up at the ceiling. "Last night was something I didn't know I was missing until it happened."
Thank fuck. "Yeah?"
He looked at me again and smiled. "Yeah."
I pushed my face against his shoulder and wrapped both arms around his neck, clinging to him like a lifeline. Because he was.
And maybe I was his too.
After a few more minutes, he kissed my forehead and then my tear-stained cheeks. “I have a lasagna in the oven. Are you hungry?”
I nodded, and my stomach growled to echo my response. “Starving.”
Matthew took a deep breath and then pressed his lips to mine, gently at first and then relaxing into a heated kiss. When his tongue teased at the seam of my lips, I opened wide and let him in.
I wanted all of him inside me, but this was good for now. And when my stomach rumbled again, he finally pulled back with a chuckle. “Okay, sweetheart. Let’s get you fed, and then you can tell me all about your first day.”
We kept things light during dinner, but as soon as my belly was full, the extent of my physically and emotionally taxing day hit me. I was practically dozing off at the table.
Matthew cleared our dishes and then held out his hand to help me up from the table. “Looks like an early night for you, huh?”
“Yeah.” I yawned and leaned sideways to stretch. “I’m gonna be sore tomorrow, but a good sore.”
“Good.” He placed his arm over my shoulders and held me to his side as he walked me to my room. “Sal said you did great today.”
I stopped walking and looked up at him. “He did?”
Matthew looked almost guilty as he shrugged. “I was curious and asked him how things were going.”
“Oh.” I wasn’t sure how I felt about that. “Yeah, it was good. I really enjoyed it, but it’s hard work.”
He chuckled and kissed the side of my head. “Hard work is good for you. But let Sal know if it’s too much. He won’t push you further than you’re comfortable with.”
“Yeah, I know.” We went to my room, and I walked inside, but Matthew stopped at the doorway.
“Do you need anything before you go to bed?”
Milk would have been nice, but I was too tired to work for it. “No, thanks. I’ll be out as soon as I brush my teeth.”
“Okay, then.” Matthew lingered for a moment before taking two steps in and reaching for me. “Good night, sweetheart. I’ll see you in the morning.” He kissed me with an open mouth but quickly pulled away.
My mouth hung open as I nodded. “Good night.”
12
