I throw my arms around his neck. “God, you’re fucking amazing.”
“Wait until you see the house I rented.That’sfucking amazing. I was waiting to tell you and everyone else until the house was confirmed. Just got an email five minutes ago.”
“Christopher…” I hardly know what to say, but then I remember one thing. “What about—”
“Jonah? Kevin from work is going to take him, if that’s okay with you. He has a puppy, and I think he’s hoping Jonah will tire him out.”
“You think of everything, don’t you? Now, I have even more to be grateful for this Thanksgiving.” I lift my body and straddle him on the couch.
“And I,” he starts, “also have so, so much to be grateful for.” He looks at me with mischief and flirtation as he runs the back of his hand over the front of my shirt.
“Do you now?” I ask. “Whatever could you be talking about?”
“I’d be happy to give you a walk-through,” he offers. His mouth is hot when he kisses my neck so softly and so teasingly that I already want to scream. “I’m grateful for you and for the way you inhale sharply when my tongue hits your skin.”
“I do that?”
“You do.” His mouth begins to trail over to my shoulders, and his hands go under the front of my shirt. “And how you still shiver when I first touch your breasts, as though you’re still not used to me, even after all this time.” His touch goes over my bra.
He’s right. I do shiver.
“I’m grateful for this gorgeous body,” he continues, “for the way you taste and move and sound when we fuck.”
I lift my shirt over my head and toss it to the floor. “What else?”
“I’m grateful that there are so many ways to make you come and that you always seem to want me as much as I want you. I don’t know how I got so damn fortunate.” Chris smiles at me. “Most importantly, I’m grateful for the way you let me love you and the way you love me. I’m grateful that I’ll never get enough of you.”
I smile back at him. “We have similar lists.”
“Yeah?”
“We do.”
When I kiss him, I think of what I thought the first time we kissed.He tastes like eternity and healing and completion.
Because of this, I cannot imagine ever kissing anyone else.
It’s been a long time since I’ve been on an airplane or in a big city with crowds and noise and traffic.
I am more than slightly uncomfortable when Chris and I land at the San Diego Airport. It’s taken us hours and hours to get here from Maine, and we’re both exhausted. Unfortunately, I don’t seem to be so exhausted that I’m free from feeling overwhelmed. Bangor International Airport wasn’t a big deal, and then we had to run to catch our flight to Chicago, so I didn’t have time to freak, but now that we’re here, I’m getting wobbly.
“You okay?” Chris asks while we wait at baggage claim.
“Yeah. Just tired.” I try to look relaxed and not focused on the hundreds of people gathered around the baggage carousel.
He takes my hand. “We’re out in the real world, I know.”
Chris gets it. I nod and step in closer to him.
Months in the safety of our Maine house have left me embarrassingly out of practice for life outside the cocoon. It’s ridiculous. Apparently, I’ve developed some kind of agoraphobia, but there was a reason that we retreated to coastal Maine. We like the serenity.
I tell Chris that I have to use the restroom and dart off before he can worry about me too much. The ladies’ room is inconveniently located by the massive security line, and I feel sick by the time I hide out in a stall. Of course, the restroom stinks like chemical cleaners, and there are lines and women crowded around mirrors and babies pooping and…
I lean against the stall door and try not to touch anything with my hands. Jesus, I’m sweating, and the phone shakes when I make a call.
“Is this the sexy escort I ordered?” Sabin asks immediately. “I don’t want to hear any bitching about the tree-house situation, okay? It’s very trendy right now. And you’d better be bringing the mermaid outfit I requested, or this whole thing is off. Also, I’ll be paying you from my jar of pennies.”
Sabin’s voice cuts through my panic, and I let out a laugh of relief. “A mermaid outfit? Really?”
