Chapter Seven
Holly
I plan on keeping you .
Austin’s words played over and over again in my head as we walked hand-in-hand down the pier. It was busy with people, but I didn’t mind. It allowed me a chance to think on all the things we’d learned about each other at the restaurant.
After the run-in with Rex, I’d filled him in on our past. And even though I’d only ever talked about it to Ivy, I found it easy to trust Austin with the ugly details. I’d even confessed the parts that had clung to me over the years. The deep seated doubts that Rex planted. And… how even a short time with Austin had chased some of them away.
He’d stolen my breath when he promised to annihilate whatever was left.
I plan on keeping you .
Did he mean it?
As we ate—eggplant parmesan, of course—he’d told me about being raised by his grandparents. Anecdotes of a rigid but caring upbringing, generational clashes in his teen years, and most of all, their unconditional love. He didn’t shy away from the emotion those memories brought, and it made me grateful he’d known that kind of life.
Two wonderful people cared about him so fully that it became part of who he was. Did they even know what a gift they’d passed on?
I did. And I planned to appreciate the hell out of it.
“Where are we going?” I asked when he led us past the crowds to the dock area. “I thought we’d be stargazing tonight.” I’d surmised that was what the star emoji meant from our little game.
“Oh, we are, pretty girl.” His voice was deep and soft. It hit me like a purr… or made me want to at least.
Did he know when he talked like that, it made me want to do some very physical things?
He said that eggplant emoji was a slip of the thumb, but I was hoping it was a Freudian slip instead.
“And we were going to take it all in from the pier,” he continued, stopping in front of a large, sleek boat. “But I think we’d both like it better if we were alone instead of surrounded by people.”
I grinned. “Is this your boat?”
“No, it’s borrowed. But if we like it, I’ll buy one.”
I blinked at that. It sounded so…
It sounded like something you’d say to someone you were planning a future with.
I plan on keeping you .
He couldn’t have known how important the phrase was when he’d said it. You’re not keeping material . That’s what Rex had told me.
But Austin thought I was.
Nothing anyone else ever said would matter now.
He boarded the boat and then helped me climb on before starting the engine and pulling away from the dock.
There was a cushioned front deck area that looked perfect for lounging, so I lost my shoes and settled in while he guided us farther from the crowd of the pier. The cool wind in my hair gave me a sense of freedom, but it was the burdens I’d carried for too long leaving my shoulders that gave me real peace.
I thought of the Chub Club ladies from the gym who frequented my salon, and how they’d changed over the years. Finding love had a hand in it, sure. But I had a suspicion that being loved the way they were—purely, with no inhibitions—had allowed them to find themselves in a world where it was so easy to get lost.
That was the key, wasn’t it? Finding someone who loved you well, so you could be who you were meant to be.
Austin slowed the boat, tucking into a dark cove before lowering the anchor. This far out, it felt like we were the only two people in existence.
When he joined me on the deck, he’d untucked his shirt and lost his shoes, and was already staring up at the blackened pinprick sky.
“Wow,” he murmured. “It really is a better view out here on the water.”
“It is,” I agreed.
Except I couldn’t look away from him.
Maybe he could feel me staring because he brought his gaze down to mine, his eyes going instantly hot.
“You’re not looking at the stars, Holly.”
“No. I’m not.”
“You’re looking at me.” His eyes dipped to my lips.
“Did you mean what you said at the restaurant? About keeping me?”
His gaze darted back to mine, becoming fierce in an instant.
“I meant every fucking word. It might feel too fast for you, maybe you need time. And that’s okay because I’ll wait as long as you need. You’re worth it, baby. But I’ve made up my mind, and my heart agrees. You’re the one for me, Holly James. If that scares you—”
I didn’t let him finish. I couldn’t.
I needed to show him.
Closing the distance between us, my lips met his, so hungry for him that our teeth clashed. But he didn’t seem to care as he pulled me tight against his chest, fusing us together with a satisfied growl.
His hand curved around my jaw, fingers gripping my cheek as he explored my mouth, his tongue delving in for taste after taste.
He was like whiskey. All heat and spice. Heady and intoxicating.
I kissed him with every pent-up desire in my bones. With every piece of me I had to give. Because I knew he was the kind of man who’d safeguard it all.
When we pulled apart, I was straddling his waist. When did that happen? Who cares .
“I’m not scared,” I gasped, in case it wasn’t clear. “I… I want to keep you too.” Forever and always . But I couldn’t make those words come. Not yet.
His eyes went soft as they touched all over my face, his calloused thumb sweeping over my neck until chills ricocheted across my skin and my breath came in pants.
“What are you saying, Holly?” The hope in his voice was nearly my undoing. I could feel his hard bulge beneath me, prodding at my core through our clothes.
But I understood he needed clarity. I hadn’t forgotten his doubts from that first day. The way he saw himself as less than desirable.
He was so damn wrong.
“I’m saying… let’s make it real.” I started unbuttoning his shirt, making quick work of it. “Right here, under the stars. Let our bodies say everything we already feel.”
Parting his shirt down the middle, I found his chest. He was thick with padded muscle, and covered with a smattering of hair. Dark red like the color of his beard. Freckles dotted his shoulders and I had the urge to lick each one with my tongue.
Lower, his tummy rounded slightly before his waist, where a trail of fiery hair disappeared beneath his jeans. I wanted what was hidden there. Wanted him buried inside me.
I pulled my lip between my teeth to hold in a moan.
“Holly…” There was a warning in his tone, but I ignored it, my hands sliding down his chest, finally feeling his softness. He was like home. Comforting.
I buried my face there, breathing in the scent of his skin, trying to maintain control. I was out of my mind for him.
“I want you so much,” I whispered against him, my lips brushing kisses over his chest.
“ Fuck ,” he groaned.
“Please…”
“Baby, I need…”
“What? What do you need?” I would give it to him. In a heartbeat.
His hand on my chin gently guided my gaze up to his lust ridden one.
“I need you to take off your pretty dress,” he rumbled darkly. “Because if I do it, I’m going to rip it down the middle and ruin it.”
“Ever the gentleman.” I grinned, unable to keep from teasing him as I shifted the skirt up my hips.
“I don’t know,” he sighed, watching me wiggle out of my dress. “I’m about to do some very ungentlemanly things with your body.”
“Please and thank you.”