“Yeah. I’m beat, babe. You ready to go to sleep?” he asked as he ran his fingers through his already unruly hair.
I nodded. “I just need to go get cleaned up.”
“Make it quick,” he said as he rolled onto his stomach. Well, that certainly hadn’t changed, still bossy as ever.
I went to the bathroom and cleaned myself up, noting the brightness in my eyes and the blush to my cheeks. I looked happier and healthier than I had in months.
His sleepy gaze tracked my progress as I crossed the room and crawled back into bed. We still had a lot to sort out, but we both wanted to be together and we had a fresh start, which was more than a lot of people had. His arm came around my waist, pulling me closer. He used to do that all the time, and I smiled wide at the familiar gesture.
“Missed you, babe,” he said with his lips against my neck.
“Missed you, too,” I replied, snuggling deeper into his warm body. Moments later, I was fast asleep.
Loud knocking woke me from my sleep the next morning. “What the fuck?” I heard Sal rumble next to me as he rose from bed and threw his shorts on. “Stay here,” he ordered as he left the room.
Since when did I do what I was told? I granted him a few minutes before I threw on one of his T-shirts and my shorts, and ventured out to the kitchen.
Wes, Hank, and Mack were all in the kitchen loudly making coffee. Sal’s eyes swept down my body and his eyes heated at seeing me in his T.
“Hi fellas,” I chirped cheerfully.
I got three chin lifts and a “hey” out of Wes.
“Still don’t do what you’re told,” Sal noted, though I could tell he wasn’t really annoyed.
I grinned. “Some things never change,” I reminded him.
He rolled his eyes upward before looking back at me. Our gazes locked, and in his heated expression, I knew he was conveying the same thing I was, that some things stayed the same, but they could also change…for the better.
“I’ve got to ride out with them,” he grumbled, and I almost laughed out loud at how disappointed he clearly was.
“Okay, no problem,” I said.
“So are you two…?” Mack’s eyes swung between us as he searched for how to finish his question.
“Yep,” Sal nodded without hesitation.
“Well, thank God for that, you’ve been one moody son of a bitch,” Hank muttered. “You two are good together. Glad to see you got your shit straightened out” he added.
I smiled. It had always been so easy to like Hank. Then I turned my attention back to Sal. “Will you be back before I go to work tonight?”
His jaw clenched, which I didn’t take as a good sign. “Bedroom,” he clipped.
He shut the door behind us as I turned to glare at him with my arms crossed over my chest. “Please tell me you aren’t going to stop me from going to work.”
He leaned casually against his door, assessing my angry stance. To my surprise, his demeanor noticeably softened as he met my glare with warm eyes.
“Sal,” I prepared to argue, watching him wearily as he moved in close. “I can’t just drop off the face of the Earth,” I muttered as his lips found my neck. “What are you doing?” I asked, trying to sound peeved.
He chuckled as his whiskers grazed against my neck and sent shivers down my spine. “If I have to explain it, then I’m doing it wrong.”
“But we were about to argue,” I stuttered.
“True.” He chuckled again. “But then I realized I can put my hands and mouth on you again. And I can’t seem to help myself.”
“Oh,” I breathed.
“We’ll figure out your work situation,” he assured me. “But I just got you back, and the thought of you being unsafe drives me fucking crazy,” his deep voice rumbled in my ear as he kissed my neck. “You’re gonna have to work with me.”
