Fight Like You've Never Lost (Summer Lake #14) - S.J. McCoy Page 0,98
He sat up against the headboard and pulled her with him, wrapping her up in his arms and hugging her close to his chest. “I want you to move in here with me. I want you to live with me.” He almost said marry me. But he wanted to wait on that—wanted to make sure that when he asked her, he did it right. “I don’t ever want to be without you again. And if you still have any doubts or any hesitations, then you’d better tell me now.”
She looked up at him.
“Whatever they are, tell me, babes. It’s like I said last night. This time I’m going to fight for you. No matter what you think might stand in the way, I won’t let it.”
She smiled.
“What?”
“You. Always ready to fight. You don’t need to. We already won.”
He sank his fingers in her hair and kissed her. She made him feel like he’d won. He’d won the most important fight of his life.
When he lifted his head, she smiled. “If you keep kissing me like that we won’t be going to work anytime soon.”
He chuckled. “I should probably call Dan and tell him we’ll be a while—we have to take a shower before we can go anywhere. And I don’t think you want to walk into the office in my sweats and T-shirt, do you?”
“I might. I think it’s a good look on me.” She laughed and scrambled out of bed as he chased after her.
“No way! I’m the only one who gets to see you dressed like that!”
Chapter Twenty-Five
Dan leaned back in his chair and smiled at them. “So, can I breathe easy again now?”
Leanne laughed. “You can. And you can tell Missy that I agree with her that you’re a hero.”
He waved a hand at her. “I wouldn’t go that far. I just knew that all it would take was forcing you to be in the same place for long enough.”
Ryan nodded. “Thanks, Dan. Though thank you seems like such a small thing to say.”
Dan shrugged. “I was being selfish, too, you know. I wanted you both here. I wanted you both to work with me. And I wanted to see you back together.” He smiled. “My world feels like it’s complete now.”
“Complete, and a lot less stressful once Cal comes in, right?” asked Ryan.
“Yeah.” Dan glanced at Leanne. “And you’re good with that?”
“I am.”
Ryan turned to her. “He always liked you, you know.”
She laughed. “I know. It was me that had a problem with him. I thought …” She stopped herself. She didn’t want to go there. What she’d seen last night had proved that Ryan hadn’t cheated on her, but it hadn’t explained who had sent those texts. But all that was behind them now. There was no point dragging it back up.
Ryan raised an eyebrow at her, but she shook her head. “I think he’ll be great.”
“Good because he wants to come this weekend.”
Ryan laughed. “I thought he said Monday.”
“He did. But I spoke to him again this morning and he said he’s just killing time until he comes. His decision is already made. He’s all in.”
“So,” Leanne said, “ss everything set up? Are we officially in business?”
Dan grinned. “We are. I think we should wait until the beginning of the month before we go live, but we’ll have a full caseload right out of the gate.” He checked his watch.
“Are you ready to go?” asked Ryan.
“Yeah. If we’re good?”
“We are,” said Leanne.
When Dan got to his feet, she gave him a hug. “Sorry. I had to.” She stepped back with a smile. “You’re the best, Danno.”
His eyes twinkled when he smiled. “It’s my pleasure, and I’m not just saying the words. It’s true. I’m happy for you guys, and I’m happy for me.”
They followed him out into the main office. Then Leanne went to find Donovan. She felt bad that she hadn’t made much time for him since Tuesday and it was the weekend already.
He grinned when he saw her. “How’s it going, boss lady?”
“Couldn’t be better. Though I want to apologize for abandoning you.”
He laughed. “Not a problem. I’m finding my feet. Thanks for bringing me with you. Are we going to make it official at the firm—that we’re not going back?”
“I am. Do you want to?”
“Err, yeah!”
She laughed. “Okay. We’ll put a call in on Monday morning. What are you doing this weekend?”
He grinned. “Don’t worry about me. I’m good. I’m hanging out with the guys, and Brayden introduced me to Austin—he’s