Go Away, Darling - Alexis Anne Page 0,62

the side, then hopped down into the boat beside me. “Oh I’m interested. What are the terms I’m signing on for?”

Forever. “No terms this time. Just out in the open for real dating.”

“What about Linc? He’d know we were together? Will there be adult sleepovers?”

My heart rammed against my chest at the thought of all the possibilities. “Yes and yes.”

“Your sister, my brothers, my team, Trent?”

“Everyone will know this time.” In fact, if I could never be asked to keep another secret, that would be great.

“I don’t know.” He stood there staring at me, not moving.

He didn’t know? I held my breath as I tried to hold back extreme disappointment. “I...I understand. I’ve asked you for a lot.” Plus adding a child to his life? Permanently?

He stepped closer and slid his hand over my hip. “Oh, don’t misunderstand me,” he growled. “I’m in. One hundred and ten percent in. What I’m not sure about is the speed of things.”

“Speed? Well we can go slow.”

“No.” His other hand landed on my other hip and our sun kissed skin radiated a heat bubble around us. “I’m sick of slow. I propose we go fast instead. I’ll move in with you and Linc as soon as you accept my marriage proposal and we can get started on giving Linc a brother or sister as soon as possible.”

I think my brain exploded. “That little stinker. He set us up.”

“He set no one up.” Chris’s eyes locked on mine. “He only said what we were both already thinking.”

I sputtered. “You want an instant family?” Ridiculous!

“I do.” He nodded once. Definitively. “We’ve already been dating for over a year. It’s not like I’m rushing into marriage with a stranger.”

“We have not been dating a year!” I had no idea why I felt the need to protest the detail.

“I disagree.” His gaze dropped to my lips, sending a zing of anticipation through my body. “We’ve never stopped dating, Olivia. We just decided to take things extremely slowly...and from further apart. But by no means fool yourself into thinking I haven’t been courting the shit out of you these last few months.”

I kind of wanted to melt in his arms the way he said all of that so firmly. His confidence infected me. “Why are you moving into my house? Yours is newer and bigger.”

He shook his head. “Our home is in your house. It always has been. I bought that house,” he nodded to the big white McMansion behind us, “to start a home, a home I found next door instead. I’ll keep the house for Scott and guests and graduation parties. It won’t go to waste.”

I opened my mouth to speak but nothing came out. A minute ago I was handing Chris a cooler and now we were...engaged? And moving in together? And maybe having a baby?

He cupped a finger under my chin and closed my mouth with a smile. “There, that’s easier for kissing.” Then he pressed his warm, soft lips to mine.

And holy amazing kisses! This might be our best yet. It was soft and intense and so full of hope for our future. It quickly turned deeper and more intense, which is when I pushed back. “Why do we need to have a baby so quickly? Shouldn’t we enjoy just being together first.”

“Naw.” He kissed me again. “We have our whole lives for that. If we don’t get started right away, Linc will be ten years older than his siblings. I don’t want him to feel like he’s part of one family and our kids are part of another. I want all of us to always be one big happy family.”

This time I did melt into his arms. “You’re a little young to be a dad.”

“No I’m not. Besides, I’ve gotten some practice in this year.”

Plus he was three years older than Beau and I were when we had Linc. All the rest of my protests evaporated because...why was I protesting? This was what I really wanted wasn’t it? To run full speed into the future with the man I loved?

“Okay.”

A triumphant grin exploded over his lips. “Well then. I guess we have a deal. Hold on just a second.”

He hopped up onto the dock in a single sideways motion and jogged up to the house while I stood there in shock. Did I just do that? I did, right? Chris was moving in with me and we...were getting married?

My heart had just started to pound in my chest when Chris came jogging