The house is quiet. I could turn on the TV, but I’m tired after a long day, so I just lie on the couch for a minute, closing my eyes to relax.
The next thing I know, Angie’s hand is on my arm and her voice is calling my name.
“EJ?”
I roll over and stare up at her.
“Hi,” I smile and sit up. She sits next to me, setting her purse on the coffee table and tucking her legs up on the couch.
“They wiped you out, huh?” she asks.
“In the best of ways.” My voice is slightly groggy.
I stretch my arms overhead. “I didn’t mean to fall asleep. I was just closing my eyes for a minute.”
“It’s okay. The boys are sound asleep in their room.” Her smile is soft—content. “Did they give you any trouble?”
“They went down without a fight. If they had tested the limits, I’d have handled it or called you. Playing with them was actually the best time I've had in a long time—the whole night was. How was girls’ night?”
“Weird, fun, delightful …”
“Are you glad you went?”
“I am.”
She reaches over, lifting my hand off my knee and placing her palm in mine. “This was really sweet of you.”
“Watching the boys?”
“Yes. It was not expected.”
“Maybe you should start getting used to things like this,” I suggest.
“Maybe I will.”
“I’d like that a lot, Angie.”
“You know, caring for the boys isn’t always fun when it's a daily responsibility.”
I lean a little closer to her, lifting her hand to my lips and placing a soft kiss on her palm.
“You're not going to scare me off. You know I run into burning buildings for a living, right?”
She smiles. “I don't want to scare you off, EJ.”
I run my thumb along the back of her hand. “Good. Because I don’t plan on going anywhere.”
I cup her jaw. Her eyes soften and she breathes out the word, “Good.”
I move slowly, my eyes roving over Angie’s face, taking in the silkiness of her skin, the crinkling next to her eyes when she smiles back at me. The air between us is sweet with a hint of her perfume. Angie’s breath fans across my face. My heart beats in a steady thrum, calm like the feeling of coming home after a long trip, but eager like we’re on the precipice of a new beginning.
The rest of the world fades away. Angie is everything—warmth, kindness, beauty, longing—mine.
I bend toward her. Even though we’ve kissed almost every day since she first said yes to me, this kiss feels like our first. We’ve crossed an invisible line. She’s allowing me into her life now—here, in her home—and into our shared future.
When our lips meet, warmth spreads through me. Angie lifts her hands, running them through my hair. Tingles travel across my skin. I hum into our kiss, wrapping my arms around her and holding her close. She melts into me, giving up any resistance, showing me she’s as all in as I am.
I run my hand in gentle strokes down her arm. Angie pulls back, looking up into my eyes.
