Page 58 of An Unexpected Turn
“Definitely,” I whispered, and kissed the corner of her mouth. “All the time.” I grazed my lips against hers. “I’m excited for that, but I admit, I kind of like this.”
“Being in a little bubble all by ourselves?”
I nodded, drawing her closer when she lay next to me. “I wish I could take you out, not care who notices how close we are, but that will come soon enough. Until then ...” I threaded my fingers into her hair as she hooked her leg around my hip. “It’s nice having you all to myself.”
My gaze drifted over her shoulder. “What’s in the box?” I motioned to the large box leaning against the window and taking up all the space next to her bed.
“Another bookcase. It’s supposed to be easy to put together, but when I look at the instructions, I get aggravated and stuff them back in the box.”
“You’re in bed with a licensed and bonded contractor. I can put that together in less than an hour.”
She rolled her eyes but fought a smile. “I admire your confidence, but I wanted to put it together myself. I’ll figure it out soon.”
“It’s already got a layer of dust on it.” I sat up and kissed her forehead. “I’ll get my tools from the truck.”
“No.”
She pressed her hands to my chest and pushed me back on the bed.
“I only get a little time with you. We aren’t going to waste it on a bookcase.”
“Sweetheart, I’ll be right there.” I cradled her cheek and nodded behind her. “I’m not going anywhere yet.”
She tilted her head, narrowing those deep brown eyes at me as she kept her hands on my chest.
“Okay,” I relented, raising my hands in surrender. “If that’s what you want, maybe you can stack books on top of the box until you let me put it together.”
I snickered when she shoved my shoulder and settled next to me.
“How about,” I said, smoothing her hair off her forehead, “you take that back, and I’ll build you one instead.”
She lifted her head, resting her chin on my chest.
“You don’t have to do that. You’ve done enough around this place. I’d like to enjoy you as my guest, not my contractor.”
“I could be both. And no, I don’t have to, but I’d like to.” I trailed my finger along her spine. “But if you want to keep me in bed to have your way with me, I guess I can comply.”
“How long do we have?” She yawned into my neck.
I peeked at the alarm clock on her nightstand.
“A couple of hours.”
“Dammit.” She rubbed her eyes.
“Go to sleep.” I kissed the top of her head and pulled the covers over us. “You had a long day. And I wore you out a little while ago.”
A tired smile drifted across her mouth, probably enjoying the same dirty memories of tonight that would be on replay in my own head after I had to leave.
“I don’t want to waste tonight.” Her mouth dipped in a frown as she peered up at me.
“Tonight was far from a waste.” I picked up her hand and laced our fingers together. “Sleep, sweetheart. Good practice for when we have a whole night instead of just a couple of hours. And stop acting like we’re racing against the clock. We have all the time in the world.”
“Easier said than done.” She skimmed her hand up my chest as her eyes fluttered shut. “I’d love a whole night with you.” She burrowed into my neck, a soft sigh falling from her lips right before her breathing slowed. “Wake me in a few minutes.”
I wanted more than just one night with Peyton. In fact, I never wanted to leave this bed, or her.
That realization should have been enough to shock me awake, but I let myself drift off. Maybe it was too soon to be this sure, but I stopped worrying about what was supposed to be wrong between us when it all felt too damn right.
