Chapter 15
Fifteen
Skylar
What is this day?
What is my life?
Who is this man who seems determined to make me fall in love with him, when I have no business falling in love with anyone?
What has he done to me?
First, the best sex of my life. Also donuts. Then, the fancy train lunch. A walk in the botanical garden. A wine tasting. All the while, making me talk about things I’ve never been comfortable talking about with anyone but my best friend.
And now, as we pull up to my crappy little house, there’s more.
There’s a furniture truck parked on the street, and two burly guys are hauling something large and bulky, wrapped in sheets of plastic, through my front door.
“Hold on,” I say as Finn parks the truck behind the furniture truck. “What is happening?”
“Don’t know. Let’s go find out?”
I shoot a look at him, and his face gives away nothing.
I follow the men through the front door just in time to see them setting up a brand new, gorgeous sectional.
“I didn’t order that,” I tell them.
I turn around to see Finn leaning in the open doorway, arms folded over his chest.
“What did you do?”
“Happy birthday.”
This is too much.
After the workers have gone, Nirvana comes out of hiding and climbs up Finn’s leg. He picks her up and holds her on his forearm like a football.
“Why? Why have you done all this?”
“You said you didn’t want to feel beholden to me.”
“I did.”
“And I don’t want you to feel that way, either. But there are things you need, and things you want. And I want you to have all of those things, free and clear. So, happy birthday.”
“You’re crazy for this.”
He circles his arms around my waist as I lean in to kiss him.
“I want you to know this isn’t normal. I don’t spend money on myself.
I don’t buy extravagant gifts for people.
I’ve been a saver all my life. But when I met you, and we had that conversation about taking vacations, I realized I’d never had one.
It’s not that I can’t take them. I just don’t.
And I decided then and there that there’s no point in holding on to millions if I have no one to enjoy that with. ”
I shake my head. “That vacation conversation was less than five minutes, and it changed your whole perspective?”
He presses a soft, licking kiss to my mouth, nipping at my bottom lip. “Yep.”
“I’m sorry. Did you say millions?”
Another kiss, this one deeper, more intense. “Yep.”
“You talked me into taking the afternoon off to go on a date without calling it a date, didn’t you?”
“Are you mad?”
A shiver runs through me. How could I be mad? I’d have to be an idiot. But he’s seriously worried.
“No.”
“Good. You’re my strawberry.”
I nip his lip in return. “I can’t move to Charlotte.”
“You don’t have to. I’m moving here permanently. My realtor is already putting my house at Lake Norman up for sale.”
At the mention of the most expensive real estate in possibly the entire state, my jaw drops. “You can’t do that!”
“It’s done. Unless you want me to keep it. We can visit on weekends.”
I’m having a hard time processing all this information. “These are married people’s discussions. Not boyfriend/girlfriend discussions.”
He smiles. “So, does that mean you’re my girlfriend?”
I have to think about that. “Once again, I think you tricked me.”
“Are you mad?”
Without another word, I take Finn’s hand and lead him down the hall to my room.
I sit on the bed. “Do I look mad?”
I tease him a little by spreading my legs a bit.
He smiles.
My yellow sundress rides up my legs, and I notice where his eyes go.
The ceiling fan whips up a slight breeze, making me shiver.
But I’m also shivering because Finn has that look about him.
He comes down to his knees in front of me, his gaze on mine. I inch my dress higher on my thigh, but he gently pushes my hands aside and pulls it up himself.
The first touch of his lips against my thighs is like lightning.
Pleasure ripples over my skin and spreads out to my limbs, even into my fingers and toes.
My inner muscles flutter involuntarily, and he groans.