Chapter 32
“This closet is wasted on you,” I said. “It’s not even half full.”
Ian watched me from the bed, a smug, lingering smile on his lips from the five (five!) orgasms he gave me the night before. Honestly, I couldn’t even give him shit about it because it was so epic that my legs still felt a little jelly-ish.
But when a girl wanted to wear one of her boyfriend/lover/soulmate’s big shirts around the house post-sex, then you overlooked the jelly legs and went rifling through his closet.
“Never felt like I needed many clothes,” he answered, eyes darting briefly down to my bare legs. Not that I could blame him because if he was only walking around in his underwear, I’d stare too.
His body was insane.
When my mind started drifting to some of my favorite parts—big and muscular arms, the flat, muscled stomach, the perfect sprinkling of dark hair over his pecs, and that was just the stuff above the waist. If I went below the waist?—I felt the dopey smile begin to spread.
Whatever genetic cocktail and intelligent design went into the creation of Ian Wilder, I wanted to send giant gift baskets and massive bottles of wine as thanks because he was spectacular. And he was all mine.
“What’s that face?” he asked.
Schooling my features, I gave him a brief look. “Thinking about all sorts of delicious things,” I said lightly, “like when I get to fill every nook and cranny of this room with my clothes.”
He laughed, eyes crinkling in a deliciously attractive way.
I tugged a soft white button-down shirt from a hanger and slipped it on over my shoulders. It hung down my thighs, and I buttoned a few middle buttons. It was a blatant display, and I knew exactly what I was doing as I left the closet and pulled my sex-tangled hair over one shoulder. His eyes were on fire as he watched me walk around his room, studying things I didn’t notice earlier.
Along the far wall was a large dresser with a TV on top. I pointed at it. “How come you never use this?”
He didn’t answer at first, adjusting his position on the bed so his arms were folded behind his head. His biceps bulged as he got his hands into a comfortable position. “Guess I preferred hanging out with you two.”
I cocked an eyebrow. “You trying to get laid again, buddy?”
Ian snorted. “I need at least twenty-four hours. Pretty sure I pulled a muscle that last time.”
“Well, whose idea was it to try out the shower? You’re not getting any younger, you know.”
He didn’t smile, but his eyes were warm and amused.
I loved them like that. My eyes just looked like I’d been screwed within an inch of my life all night. The sleep was fleeting because we talked for hours between kissing and touching and discovering.
He told me about going to his father’s grave, and I held our hands clutched to my chest and cried silent tears while he confessed all those unnamed fears that held him back. I couldn’t be mad at any of it because he and I both knew that I’d been aware of my feelings far longer than he was.
Denying his, keeping them locked away, was no surprise to me, but his ability to talk about it now was even more than I expected. We talked about Sage, and how we wanted to tell her as soon as she got home.
This wasn’t a normal dating scenario, and we wanted to respect whatever emotions she felt about it, even if that meant only sneaky sleepovers after she went to bed.
As I wandered the room, I noticed a couple of framed photos on the edge of the dresser. One of his parents on their wedding day, surrounded by the six kids. Poppy, of course, wouldn’t join the family for a while after that. I picked it up and studied Ian’s serious little face.
“I remember this day,” I said. “I was so sad I couldn’t come. Even then, I felt like anywhere you got to go, I should be there too.”
“I asked my dad if you could be there.”
My head lifted. “Really?”
He nodded. “He said they were keeping the ceremony just for family. I was so pissed. I told him I’d trade Erik for you, which he didn’t appreciate.”
I laughed, setting the frame back down and picking up the next one. My eyes pricked. “Oh my gosh, look at us.”
We were so tan, so young. Ian sat with his hands on the handlebars of an old four-wheeler. I sat behind him, my arms wrapped around his middle and my chin on his shoulder. He had a soft smile on his face, and I was grinning widely.
“Do you remember what my mom said when she took that picture?” he asked.
Slowly, I nodded. “We were sixteen. She snapped it and said, You two. Someday you’ll realize how special it is, what you have.”
Ian was quiet, studying me while I stared at that version of our younger selves, a perfectly preserved memory that he’d been thoughtful enough to keep. Just as I was going to set it down, I noticed a small box, the kind you’d get at a jewelry store to hold the velvet ring box. It was black leather, with a thin band of gold foil embossing along the lid.
“What’s this?” I asked.
He didn’t answer, and when I glanced at him over my shoulder, he was watching me intently. “Open it,” he urged.
I set the frame down and carefully picked up the box. It was light, but when I tipped it, I heard something inside. Carefully, I shook it close to my ear, but I couldn’t tell what I was hearing.
With one hand holding the bottom, I wiggled the top lid off, holding my breath just before it came off.
My heart burst wide open when it did.
“Ian.” I looked over at him in shock. “Are these…? They’re not the same ones, are they?”
It was the look in his eye, so steady and sure and full of love, that gave me my answer.
On a disbelieving laugh, I picked up a sparkly pink paper clip, long ago bent into an oblong shape, and the color muted with age. I was too busy staring at the jumbled pile inside the box that I didn’t hear him leave the bed until his hands coasted around my hips and he anchored his arms around my waist. He nuzzled his nose into my hair and inhaled deeply.
My eyes fluttered closed, and I held the small box to my chest. “You kept them all these years?”
Gently, he kissed the side of my head, tightening his arms where he held me. “Couldn’t ever bring myself to get rid of them. Every time I moved or had to pack up my stuff, I came up with some reason they should stay.”
I turned in his arms, smiling up into his face when his hands smoothed down the shirt I wore until they rested firmly on my backside. The way he looked at me, I’d never felt so cherished, so perfectly understood.
Ian ducked down to give me a lingering kiss, a light brush of his tongue over mine.
“And it took you this long to admit you loved me, huh?”
His eyes, intense and deep, searched mine. “What can I say? I like to keep everyone on their toes.”
When I laughed, he kissed me again.
“One more?” he whispered against my lips.
I groaned. “You’re going to break me.”
Ian licked along the edge of my jaw and slowly steered us back toward the bed, where he pushed me onto my back and gently spread my legs open. He didn’t move to remove the shirt, and I fiddled with the buttons while he stared down at me, facial expression ravenous.
“I thought you needed twenty-four hours,” I teased.
He licked at his bottom lip, and the filthy look in his eyes had my stomach flipping. “I do.”
Then he quirked an eyebrow and settled his big body between my legs and lowered his head, licking a long stripe between my legs while I clutched at his head. “Just having my breakfast early,” he murmured, eyes locking on mine.
With a decadent sigh, I flopped back and stared at the ceiling while he did just that.
“You sure about this?”
She nodded, brushing a cookie crumb off the edge of her lip. “You should definitely be part of the conversation.”
Harlow and I had snuck in one more round before Sage got home—she was upstairs unloading her backpack—and I was pretty sure my quads would be sore for a week at this rate. But even now, I couldn’t stare at her mouth for too long without wanting to start all over again.
“Stop,” she hissed, laying a hand over my eyes.
I chuckled, tugging it down and kissing her palm. “What?”
Her cheeks were bright pink. “Stop looking at me like you want to toss me onto the table.”
A pleased hum came out of my mouth. “Excellent idea. It’s sturdy enough.”
She rolled her eyes. “Good thing I’m on birth control, or I’d be halfway to pregnant by now.”
I picked up her hand, kissing the tips of her fingers, imagining her round with a child. With our child. “Whenever you want to get off it…” I mused, leaving the rest unsaid.
She snorted, her eyes warm and happy. “One day of sex, and he’s ready to knock me up.” Harlow leaned in and kissed me with a soft brush of her lips. “What a caveman you are.”
I grunted, trying to sneak my hand under the hem of her shirt. She smacked it away, shifting her chair out of my reach. I frowned.
The sound of Sage pounding down the stairs had us sitting up straighter in our chairs. If there was any hesitancy on her part, even the slightest hint that she was disappointed or worried, I was prepared to let them stay at the house, and I’d sleep in the guesthouse on my mom’s property until she felt more comfortable with the idea.
Harlow didn’t look nervous, but I had a knot in my stomach, and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t undo it. This was big. Possibly the biggest conversation we’d have to have about our relationship, and the only one that could derail us.
Sage hopped off the landing, her hair a messy knot on the top of her head. “How was your dinner last night, Mom?”
Harlow darted a look at me, and I gave her a tiny smile.
“Actually, I wanted to talk to you about that.”
Sage paused, glancing between us nervously. “Okay.”
Harlow nudged one of the open chairs toward her daughter, and she sat down slowly, immediately picking up on the serious tone in the room. We’d purposely chosen seats next to each other, and underneath the table, Harlow wove her fingers through mine as I settled them on top of my thigh.
“I didn’t end up going out to dinner with Coach Scott,” Harlow started.
“Oh. How come?”
“It didn’t seem like it would be fair to him, if I did.” She tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. “So I came back home before I even went inside the restaurant.”
“Not fair? What does that mean?”
Harlow took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Do you remember back in New York, I talked to you about what dating is like. You start with going out with someone, for drinks or dinner, to get to know them better, see if you’re compatible. See if you like each other.”
Sage nodded, her eyes wide in her face.
“Dinner with Coach Scott felt a little too close to a date for me,” she said slowly. Harlow looked at me, and the change in her expression had my chest clenching tight. “And I didn’t need to go on one with him, because I already had someone else I’d rather be with,” she said quietly. “Who I already know, and trust, and?—”
“Holy shit, are you dating Ian now?” she interrupted loudly.
“Sage,” Harlow sighed. “Language.”
“Yes!” She punched her fist in the air. “Finally.”
I sat back in my chair, and Harlow’s mouth fell open. She recovered quickly. “You … you knew?”
Sage grinned, holding her fist out to me. Numbly, I tapped mine to hers.
“Duh. I know what chemistry looks like when I see it.” She shrugged. “I thought it might take a while, but you guys didn’t see how you looked at each other. So obvious.”
I swiped my hand over my mouth, exhaling a disbelieving laugh.
Harlow smiled at her daughter. “So you’re okay with this? Even if we keep living here?”
She nodded. “Totally.” Then she held up her hands. “Wait. Wait. Does this mean I’ll finally get a little brother or sister? Oh please say yes. I was not cut out to be an only child. I have to pass along all my skills to someone.”
I couldn’t help it; I tipped my head back and laughed.
Harlow joined me.
And while Sage watched with her eyes gleaming, I leaned in and gave Harlow a sweet kiss on the lips. “I think that went well,” I murmured.
“I think so too.”
“Does that mean we’re done now? Because I learned something new on Mario Kart this weekend, and I think I can finally beat Ian.”
I stood, stretching my hands over my head. “Yeah right. I’d like to see you try.”
We went over to the couch, and before starting up the game, Sage turned and wrapped her arms around my waist for a quick, fierce hug.
“I’m really happy it’s you,” she whispered.
I set a hand on her back and smiled at Harlow over her head. “Me too, kid. Me too.”