she looks as beautiful as ever. I scoot over to make room.
“Hi.” She smiles as she sits beside me on the couch.
“Hi.” I put my hand on her thigh. Finally, I can touch her.
She brushes the hair back from my forehead as she watches me in the darkness.
We stare at each other, and it’s there between us, this magical spell she casts on me. It swirls in the air, steals my breath, and makes me ache for her.
She cups my face in her hand and stares at me for a moment. “I love you, Tristan,” she whispers.
I get a lump in my throat as my eyes search hers.
“A . . . great deal, actually.”
“It’s about fucking time, Anderson,” I whisper.
She smiles as she leans down and kisses me softly. Her lips linger over mine. Our faces meld together as we hold each other tight.
This is special . . . she is special.
“I . . .”
She puts her finger over my lips. “This isn’t about how you feel,” she cuts me off. “This is about me . . . loving you. I wanted to tell you, and I know it’s premature. But I can’t hold it in anymore. It doesn’t matter how you feel about me, but I wanted you to know how I feel about you.”
I smile up at the beautiful woman in front of me, and I tuck a piece of her hair behind her ear.
I do love you.
I pull her down to me, and we kiss more urgently. My tongue swipes through her open lips with a hunger for intimacy. “This needs to be celebrated.”
“I know.” She smiles against my lips. “But we can’t.” We kiss again. “Not yet,” she breathes.
“Can you lie with me for a while?” I whisper.
“I can do that.” She gets under my blanket and lies half over my body and kisses my chest.
We lie together in the darkness. It’s quiet, and I can feel her heartbeat against my chest. It’s not sexual or urgent but a closeness and a sense of belonging to each other.
A deep connection.
She’s snuggled into my chest, and I smile into the darkness.
She loves me.
For the first time in my life, I feel at home.
We walk down the bustling street. “That went well,” I say. We just had a meeting across town, and a price was agreed to on a company we have been trying to get for over twelve months.
“It did,” Fletcher replies.
“Watch what happens now,” I say. “They will suddenly be urgent for the takeover to happen.”
“Why is that?”
“This is what happens—they resist and resist so that by the time we take over, they are so over it that they just want to get out.”
“No way,” Fletcher gasps as he stops in front of a shop window. He takes out his phone and takes a photo of something.
“What?” I ask as I go back to see what he’s looking at.
“That’s Harrison’s screen saver.”
“What is?” I frown.
“The rocket. It’s a model that you have to build.”
“Huh?” I peer into the shop to see a huge red-and-gold rocket with all the bells and whistles on display. “Harry likes this kind of thing?” I frown.
“This is his ultimate. Mom won’t buy it for him because she says he won’t be able to do it. It’s way too hard. He’s asked for it two Christmases in a row.”
I stare at the model as my mind races. Hmm . . . “Very interesting,” I mutter under my breath.
“Wait till I send him the pic. He’s going to go batshit crazy,” Fletcher whispers.
I smile as I stare at the elusive spaceship. “That’s a normal state for him, isn’t it?”
Fletch shrugs. “I guess.”
“Let’s check it out.” I walk into the store, and the bell goes off over the door. This is very old school.
“Can I help you?” an old man with white hair asks. He looks a little like Santa Claus.
“Yes, I was interested in the spaceship model in the window.”
“Oh.” He twists his hands together. “That’s for experienced modelers only. I doubt you would be able to complete it.”
I stare at him deadpan. Don’t assume you know what I can do. “And what makes you think we wouldn’t be able to do this?”
“Well.” He gives me a condescending smile. “I can see you are not a modeler.”
“How so?”
“Well.” He holds his hands up toward Fletcher and me. “Your suits tell me you are in big business.”
Fletcher and I exchange a glance. Don’t piss me off, old man. “We’ll take it,” I snap.