Chapter 33
Chapter Thirty-Three
ELENA
I let myself hope.
Again.
I needed to.
And he seemed better. So much better.
Still, hope was a dangerous thing.
It wasn’t just me and my heart I was looking out for now. I had a daughter to think of, to protect.
The sound of car doors shutting outside didn’t make me jump like they did just days ago, almost like having Chase back in Sable Point brought me enough peace to begin settling my nerves. Two voices I easily recognized became increasingly clearer as they approached the house.
I stretched as life slowly seeped back into my sleep-stiffened muscles.
Night shifts were wreaking havoc on my system.
The blade of bright afternoon light slicing across my pillow through a thin crack in my blackout curtains indicated that it was probably time to get up anyways, and these visitors weren’t unwelcome.
After hefting myself over the edge of the bed as gracefully as I could these days, I slipped on my plush robe, the soft cotton warming my skin in the chilly air of the old house.
My bare feet found the smooth, cold hardwood floors, each board creaking a different note as I padded toward the back door.
When I rubbed my hands across my belly, my little girl responded with a flutter of movement, like butterfly wings beneath my palm.
The gentle thump of her echoing stretch brought a smile to my face.
“Time to start our day, baby girl.” The words floated through the still morning air of the empty house, barely more than a murmur. “And it sounds like Daddy’s here.”
I caught my lower lip between my teeth, heart skipping at the word I’d just spoken so naturally.
Daddy. The truth of it settled deep in my bones, even though I’d never dared voice it before.
But now, with Chase back in Sable Point, back home where he belonged?
The certainty blazed through me like wildfire.
It wasn’t about biology—it never had been.
Chase might not have been here for every flutter or kick, but he’d shown me more kindness, more love, more gentleness in a handful of months together than Peter ever had—or could.
Chase was the kind of man who would protect and cherish a child, even one who wasn’t his by blood.
My fingers traced idle patterns over my belly, the baby shifting beneath my palm as if in agreement.
DNA be damned—this little girl already had a father in every way that mattered.
But was he ready for this? To be a dad?
This was where the danger came in. If I pushed him too hard, too fast, he could relapse. Then where would we be? On our own again.
Or maybe having something—someone—to fight for would be enough to keep him clean. I wasn’t enough to be that someone for him before, but maybe our daughter could be.
I pulled back the sheer curtain panel covering the window of the back door and peeked out. Chase and his dad were standing a few feet from the porch with their brows furrowed, fingers pointing this way and that, discussing the issue at hand—my deteriorating porch steps.
Chase had fixed a few little things here and there since he’d been home, and I appreciated it more than he likely knew. Maybe I wouldn’t need that handyman after all.
I used the panel next to the door to disarm the security system before gripping the knob and twisting, opening the back door to the cold December air.
“Morning, Evertons.”
“Mornin’, kiddo,” Jay greeted.
Chase swept his gaze over me, head to toe and back again, a gentle smile on his lips—lips I’d love to kiss again. My skin blazed at the thought, at the way he was looking at me.
We hadn’t crossed that line yet. It was another item on the list of topics I was carefully avoiding. I didn’t want to be the reason he spiraled.
“Good morning,” he said carefully. Too carefully.
God, I missed my Chase—the one who made me smile, made my heart race.
But so much had happened.
“Listen,” Jay said, breaking into my thoughts, “I think we’re gonna need that miter saw after all since the risers are all rotted to shit. I’ll run back to the barn and grab it.”
“I can—” Chase started.
“Nah, Son, you make that girl a cup of coffee,” Jay said, pointing a finger at me and raising his brows. “Decaf, ya hear? Don’t need that baby coming out with twelve toes.”
I laughed and shook my head. “Two hundred milligrams of caffeine per day is perfectly safe in pregnancy.”
“Aw, whadda you know?”
I pointed at my chest with a smile. “Doctor.”
“Yeah, yeah.” Jay waved a hand over his head as he turned and walked away.
Chase stood and looked on with that same smile on his handsome face. He shoved his hands in his pockets and looked toward the ground when my eyes met his. He kicked at a rock in the grass.
“Really have gotten close with them, huh?”
“Yeah, I have,” I said with a shrug. “It’s nice.”
“He shoulda fixed these damn steps weeks ago, then, if you’re so close,” Chase muttered.
I laughed again, and his head snapped up at the sound. His grin transformed into something a bit more self-assured, like he was proud of himself that he could still make me laugh.
“So, how ’bout that coffee?”
Chase nodded and took the steps gingerly, meeting me at the door in a few strides.
“Hey, Sweetness,” he murmured when he reached me, leaning down to place a gentle kiss on my cheek.
I attempted a smile, but it probably came across as more of a grimace. I didn’t want kisses on the goddamn cheek. I was in my second trimester, I was horny, and Chase was home.
God, I wanted him. But some things were more important than assuaging my libido.
Like Chase’s sobriety.
I mentally scolded myself.
“What just happened?”
“Huh?”
“You look like you just had a whole damn conversation in your head.” Chase tapped the tip of his index finger against my forehead.
“Nothing. I just—”
I looked up at him, and my breath caught in my lungs. He was so damn beautiful. Those tortured blue eyes nearly undid me right there. I averted my gaze and bit my lip, chewing on it same as the words that were on the tip of my tongue.
Some sort of feral growl rumbled outward from Chase’s chest. “Elena…”
When my eyes snapped back to his, they were dark with unmistakable lust.
Oh lord. I needed to get a handle on this situation, and fast.
“Sorry!” My voice was an octave or two too high as I whirled around, making my way into the kitchen. “Coffee!”
I was just scooping the grounds into the filter when I felt the heat of Chase’s large frame at my back. I took in a steadying breath as he brought his hands to my shoulders and began gently kneading the muscles there.
It felt heavenly. The moan that escaped my lips was one he’d heard before, only his fingers has been doing far dirtier deeds when they’d elicited the noise in the past.
“Fuck, that sound. Been dreaming of it for months.”
The thumb of one hand continued working at the knots in my trapezius while the other hand swept my long dark hair to one side, exposing my neck. In a second, Chase’s lips were there, kissing the soft skin behind my ear.
“I missed you so much, Sweetness. Tell me this is okay. That I can still kiss you. Even after everything I—”
“Yes,” I said, breathless. I’d been afraid for so long. Afraid of trusting him again. But in this moment, I wanted to believe more than I wanted to protect myself. “Please kiss me.”
His lips traced a scorching path down my neck as his hands slid around to cup my belly. The simple touch sent electricity zipping through my veins.
“I can’t believe how much she’s grown,” Chase murmured against my skin. “How much I missed.”
My heart clenched at the pain in his voice. I turned in his arms, needing to see his face. “You’re here now. That’s what matters.”
His eyes were bright-blue pools of desire and regret as they searched mine. One of his hands came up to cradle my face, thumb brushing across my bottom lip. “I’m never leaving again, Elena. You or her.”
God, the way he’s looking at me. Like I’m everything.
“Chase...” I breathed his name like a prayer as he lowered his mouth to mine.
The first brush of his lips was tentative, questioning. But when I pressed closer, wrapping my arms around his neck, he groaned and deepened the kiss. His tongue swept into my mouth, tasting, claiming. My fingers threaded through his hair as heat bloomed low in my belly.
We broke apart, panting, when the baby gave a particularly strong kick against Chase’s stomach rested against mine.
A look of pure wonder crossed his face. “Was that...?”
“Yeah,” I whispered. “She’s happy you’re home. We both are.”
His hands moved from my face toward my stomach, hovering just a hair away. “Can I?” He asked, meeting my eyes.
I nodded, and his hands came down gently on my robe-covered stomach.
It wasn’t enough.
I tugged at the tie, letting the robe part and fall away leaving me in nothing but a T-shirt that was two sizes too big—his T-shirt.
The growl was back.
“Woman, you are killing me right now.”
His hands reverently stroked my belly through the thin cotton. And then he dropped to his knees, pressing his cheek against my protruding belly button.
“Hi, baby,” he whispered.
Tears welled in my eyes, and I couldn’t stop them from falling even if I tried.
“I’m sorry this is the first time we’re meeting. But I promise, I will be here every day, for the rest of your life, as long as you’ll have me.”
I brought one hand to cover my mouth, stifling the sob that tried to escape. The other threaded through the dark hair on the top of Chase’s head.
I didn’t know how long we stayed like that, but all too soon, the rumble of Jay’s truck pulling into the driveway broke us apart.