Page 160 of Sins of Innocence

Her expression morphs into one of concern. "Is everything okay? The girls—"

"Are safe," I interrupt before she can start spiraling. "Everything is fine."

I just miss the hell out of touching my wife the way I want to.

Her eyes warm. "Will you be working here today?"

Shaking my head, I step inside the office.

Instantly her scent wraps around me. Vanilla and something floral I can't name, but would recognize anywhere now, mixes with the aroma of the coffee she's clearly been living on all morning.

Áine.

Home.

Something I haven't had in so long I stopped noticing the lack.

My rack in the Bunker's dormitory was a safe place to sleep, but not a home. My mob brothers are family, but not like Áine and the girls. And Maureen. And even McLaren, damn it.

Áine crosses the distance between us and curls her small hand around my bicep. "You’re sure everything's okay? You've got a weird look on your face."

"I like the way you smell," I blurt out.

She steps closer, her soft breasts pressing against my torso. "I like the way you smell too."

"Yeah?"

"Yes."

"What do I smell like?" I cup her bare nape.

She leans forward, closes her eyes and inhales deeply. "Safety. Pleasure. Mmm. Strength. My husband." Her forehead presses against my pecs. "Home."

I was expecting gun oil. Maybe body wash. But she's not thinking about physical scents. She's focused on what I am to her.

Safety.

Pleasure.

Strength.

Her husband.

Home.

Fucking home.

She had a home before we got married, but now I am home to her.

I'd thump my chest to dislodge the lump there if it didn't mean moving her away from me. "I will always be those things for you."

"What do I smell like to you?" she asks.

"Home. Tenderness. Peace." I don't mention the vanilla, the flowers or the coffee. None of those matter because even if she stopped using that perfume and never drank another cup of what she calls the elixir of life, she would still smell like the things that matter. "Mine."

She tilts her head back, her pretty eyes with their unique irises staring up at me. "That's pretty deep. For what we are."

"What we are is home to each other." She said it and I won't let her take it back.