Jonesy’s eyes darken as he turns to me, his eyes roaming appreciatively.
A thrill shoots through my stomach. I know I’m in for a wild time the second Anthony leaves.
“We’ll play it to our advantage,” Jonesy smirks.
He stands, heading to the kitchen after grabbing our empty beer bottles.
“Two seconds,” I say to Anthony as I follow Jonesy into the kitchen and spot him hunched over the counter, rubbing his hands over his face.
“Hey, what’s wrong?” I rub his back. “Are you feeling okay?”
He blows out a deep breath, a pained expression on his face. He turns, reaching for both of my hands, his head dipping low. He’s struggling to find the words, and he won’t meet my eye until I take my hands and cup his face.
“Tell me,” I whisper.
“I’m worried that you’ll realize Biceps is the better man for you.”
“Jonesy—”
“Things were so bad between us for so long. I keep thinking you’re going to wake up one day and you won’t need me anymore. And then you’ll turn to a man who is more appropriate, a man who hasn’t treated you badly or broken yourheart, or irritated you for the last eight years. I want this—” He threads his fingers through my hair. “Us...I want us. I think I might die if I lose you now.”
The thrill of his admission has my heart pounding so loud I can hear it in my ears. I don’t know how I’ve stayed away from him all these years.
God, this man.
He’s making it so hard not to fall for him.
He’s the most generous person I’ve ever met, even when I’ve been my most awful to him.
“For a long time, I tried to be more than friends with Anthony. The spark wasn’t there.” I shrug. “Anthony and I are just friends, Jonesy. But with you...I want to be more than friends.”
“So you’re telling me that you, Katie Murphy—”
“That is my name,” I interrupt.
“You want to be more than friends with me, and don’t want the most handsome man I’ve ever seen with biceps the size of balloons?” He’s joking, but there’s a hint of doubt in his eyes.
I want to squash his uncertainty.
“Yeah . . . is that crazy?” I laugh.
“We might need to get you checked out. Who’s your doctor? I’ll call them.” He presses the back of his hand against my forehead, checking my temperature.
I punch him in the chest, and he grins, his shoulders relaxing. “I know it’s only been a fewweeks, but it feels so right. Like we’re both finally ready for it.”
“But they’re moving me.” He grimaces, pushing my hair back behind my ear. The man just can’t stop touching me. I thought I’d find this level of affection annoying, or too much, but I crave his hands on me.
“I know.”
“You’d want to go long distance?” He attempts to keep his face neutral, but there’s hope in his eyes, and I can’t resist teasing him a little more.
I swallow, shaking my head.
“Okay, I get it.” His head dips. “I’ll just have to soak up as much Katie time as I can get.”
The fact that he responds this way has my heart inflating to the size of Anthony’s biceps. When did this man get so lovely? Taking what he can and not pushing me for more. He’s kind and generous, and I’ve been missing out on it all this time. His response resolves what I was already warring with in my head.
I suck in a deep breath, my hands cradling his face. “Or I could come with you.”
