Burning the Midnight Oil: A Single Dad Small Town Romance

Chapter 32

“What do you say, kid?” I murmur to Suzy, glancing at her in the rearview mirror. “Should we grab some ice cream before we head back to the house?”

“Yeah!” Her response is instant, and it makes me chuckle.

I take a right onto Main Street, pulling into a parking spot in front of the ice cream shop. We’ve spent most of the evening after dinner at the mall. I had to get a new charger for my laptop; the one I have doesn’t seem to be doing its job, and then Suzy talked me into wandering around this store that appears to be made for her. It has all kinds of earrings, bracelets, rings, and hair accessories for little kids. We walked out of there having spent way too much money, but I loved getting to see her so excited about it all. Jade will probably yell at me for spoiling her later, but it’s worth it.

It”s nearly her bedtime, so I know I have to get her home soon, but surely a quick ice cream stop will be fine. The bell above the door dings as we walk inside, and the smell of freshly made waffle cones greets us.

“What kind do you want, Suzy Q?”

“Hmm…the kind with the marshmallows that Mommy likes to get!”

It takes a minute for me to register what kind she’s talking about. “Rocky Road?”

“Yeah!”

“You got it, pretty girl.”

Ordering her a scoop of that, and me, a scoop of Peanut Butter Cup, we scarf it down before we head for home. Suzy falls asleep on the drive, and instead of waking her once we get home, I opt to carry her in. The house is mostly dark upon entry, except for the light from the TV coming from the living room. Boone glances over his shoulder when I walk into the room.

“Hey, you guys are back.”

My stomach flips as his eyes rake over me. “Yeah, she fell asleep in the car,” I whisper, indicating to Suzy. “I didn’t want to wake her, but we just ate ice cream, so I figured you guys would probably want her to brush her teeth before I plopped her in bed for the night.” Glancing around, I add, “Where’s Jade?”

Boone raises off the couch and walks over to us. “She had a migraine, so she went to bed about a half hour ago.” Brushing a hand over Suzy’s hair, he observes her with such love, it makes my heart pitter-patter. I don’t know what it is about watching a man be a loving father, but it makes my knees weak to witness. “Suzy Q,” he coos. “Princess, gotta wake up.”

His eyes lift to meet mine, and my breath catches in my throat. The intensity of his gaze reminds of the way he looked at me last night when he was inside of me. The overflowing affection I see looking back at me. It makes me both want to cower away and lean into it at the same time. His gaze drops to my lips for a moment before he’s back to waking Suzy up. Finally, she stirs and opens her eyes, whining at being woken up.

“You have to brush your teeth and change into pajamas before bed, princess,” Boone tells her in a softened tone. He grabs her from my arms before his eyes find mine again. “If you want to put on a movie, I’ll run her upstairs and get her situated in bed and be right back down.”

Warmth spreads through my chest, down to my limbs as I watch them go up the stairs. Something as simple as watching a movie with him shouldn’t feel so damn monumental, but it does after all the time we’ve spent avoiding each other for so long. And especially after what we shared last night. That wasn’t just sex. It was so much more. There was an intensity and a passion that I’ve never felt before. It felt like my chest was cracked open. Like his essence wrapped around the beating organ in there that’s on full display for him, for the taking. The way we moved together as one, the way we looked at each other, the way we kissed…it was unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. It was unlike any feeling I even believed existed.

There is no going back to who I was before Boone. It’s impossible. I don’t know what to do with that, though, because it’s still wrong. I’m still betraying my sister. Still lying to her and hiding this huge, earth-shifting secret from her. What does that say about me?

Fifteen minutes later, Boone bounds down the stairs, and I have some movie turned on that I’ve never heard of but has great ratings. “Want a beer?” he asks, passing behind the couch, ruffling the hair atop my head as he goes.

A smile spreads on my lips before I can stop myself. “Sure. Thanks.”

The movie ends up being boring as hell, but I can’t even find it in myself to be annoyed by that. The entire time we’re watching it, we’re sitting close enough that our thighs are touching, but we behave ourselves and don’t cross any lines. Not while we’re in the living room. His closeness and the way his body heat warms me up makes my heart thunder behind my ribs. It’s wild how natural it feels to do everyday things with Boone. As soon as the movie ends, we both get up, stretch, toss our beer cans in the garbage, and head to my room as if this was an everyday occurrence.

How I wish it was.

With the lights off, we watch each other as we undress down to our boxers. Then we climb under my covers, and before I even have a chance to second guess what I should be doing, Boone pulls me into his chest, wrapping his big, strong arms around me, and he buries his nose in the strands on top of my head. A shiver races down my spine as I hear him inhale softly, a barely-there groan rumbling from his throat. I nuzzle my face in the crook of his neck, breathing him in also, feeling dizzy and intoxicated all at the same time.

“I love holding you,” he murmurs so quietly I almost miss it. The admission sends goosebumps all over my flesh.

“You do?”

He nods, pressing a kiss to the top of my head before reaching down, hooking his index finger under my chin, and forcing my head back until our eyes meet. “It feels right,” he croaks. Then he kisses me. Slow, unhurried, and so, so deep. Boone kisses me until my blood is boiling and my lungs cry out for air. He kisses me until we’re both aching and hard and panting, but neither of us does anything about it. Tonight isn’t about that. It’s unspoken, but I can feel it. It’s about finding comfort and solace in each other and the silence. It’s about pretending things are different and what we’re doing is okay. Tonight is about telling each other how we feel without breathing a word.

And for tonight, I let myself indulge in the delusion because, right here, in his arms, feels like where I’m supposed to be.