25. Wren
25
WREN
T he morning light is soft as it dances across the room. Merrick’s arm is wrapped carefully over my hip, a position that had required a lot of trial and error in the weeks since I’d officially moved into his house.
“You’re up early,” Merrick whispers, his breath on my shoulder sending a delicious shiver down my spine.
“Today feels like a good day,” I tell him, the honesty humming in my chest.
“How are you feeling?”
“I just want this stupid cast off.”
“I know, baby. Soon.”
“Ugh,” I lament, growling when the cast gets in the way of rolling toward him.
“What? Does it hurt? What’s wrong?” he rasps, sleep still lingering as he tries to jump back to give me space.
“ You, Merrick Ellis.”
“Me?”
“Yes. You. You don’t even call me Hellcat anymore which is ridiculous to be upset about, but that was our thing. You’ve been tiptoeing around me since the accident, treating me like I’m some fragile little flower when all I want is for you to manhandle me and give me orgasms the way I need them.”
He smirks. “I’ve given you plenty of orgasms since the accident.”
“Yes, gentle, sweet, make love to me orgasms,” I tell him, flopping back on the bed and throwing my non-casted arm over my face. “I need fuck me into the mattress ones, Merrick. I need them.”
Blowing out a breath, he settles next to me, gently pulling my arm down so I can see him. “I do love you.”
“I love you too, but?—”
“I love you, and seeing you in that car is something that I need time to get over. I know you think I’m treating you with kid gloves, but all I think about is that I almost lost the woman I’m madly in love with because I was too fucking scared to say the words.”
Tears fill my eyes like they always do when we talk about the accident—when we talk about the aftermath and everything in between. Beau and Harlan never told anyone what happened when they got to the house, but Merrick’s father was nowhere in sight when I was discharged a few days later.
Mountain Side Salon and Spa was signed over to Merrick the following week. Aside from the paperwork, there’d been no further communication from his family.
I thought it might break him, but my mother has taken it upon herself to make sure he knows he’s loved and cherished and home here in Wintervale.
With us.
Because he didn’t just come here to find a him and me us .
He found a family us.
And a town us, too.
But he doesn’t need to rehash that this morning, so instead I clear my throat and bat my lashes at him. “You’ve got lots of words now.”
“I’m not sure I’ve ever been happy…not really.” Taking my hand, he kisses my knuckles and I let him, because despite my need for an abundance of earth-shattering orgasms, I need him more.
I need him always.
“I love that you’re happy. I’m just excited for bossy.”
“You can have both, Hellcat. You can have it all.”
“I already do.”