She quirked an eyebrow. “You and Jessica?”
And now things quieted down below his waistband. “Right. Jess and I were childhood friends, and about five years ago, we, uh, decided to try dating. That picture was taken during my first all-star weekend—I was picked as a rookie sub. Jess and I were seeing each other at the time, so I brought her with me. That’s it.” He held on to Lily, and she continued tracing outlines on his skin.
A furrow appeared on her forehead. “I assume things fell apart.”
“Shortly after that weekend, as a matter of fact. I think we lasted a whopping six weeks.”
“What happened?”
He pulled in a cleansing breath. “It just wasn’t … It didn’t work. Turns out we were better friends than lovers.”
Staring into Lily’s eyes, he noticed for the first time they held gold flecks and were ringed in a deep, dark blue. Wonder if T.J. would paint them?
“Who broke it off?”
He lifted her hand from his chest and kissed her fingers before putting it back. “I did.” The small spark that had existed between him and Jess had died a quick death. At least for him, and guilt still haunted him. He’d done a piss-poor job ending it.
“But you kept the picture.”
“No, I left it in the Bay Area, and when my mom and sister came out to help me decorate this place, Mom brought it with her. She thought I wanted it, and I didn’t have the heart to tell her I didn’t after she went to the trouble. It’s been in the nightstand ever since. I never look in there, which is why I have condoms and a picture I forgot existed.”
Lily’s expression turned thoughtful. “What’s the longest relationship you’ve been in?”
Suppressing a flinch, he barked out, “Me?” Oh yeah, that didn’t give away anything.
She flashed him an impish smile. “I wasn’t asking Hobbes. Yes, Professor. You.”
“Well, that would be … a few months?”
Three rapid-fire blinks. “So Jessica’s among the longest relationships you’ve had?”
He nodded. “It’s not that I don’t want one, it’s just that—”
“You don’t chase indiscriminately.”
He craned his head and stole a kiss. “Relationships take time and energy, and hockey’s been priority one. But it’s more than that. I guess I’ve just been disappointed. I start seeing someone, but then I find out they’re way more interested in what I do than who I am. I got tired of it, got tired of meeting the same clones over and over, so I took a break from dating. I was still on that break when I met you at the wedding.”
She nodded as if this explained everything, then rose in his arms, cradled his face, and laid a long, slow, spine-tingling kiss on him.
His heart rate was skyrocketing when she pulled away, and little breath was left in his lungs. “What was that for? I’m not complaining. I just want to know so I can keep doing whatever made you kiss me like that.”
Head canted, a dreamy smile on her face, she seemed to study him. “Checking to see if I’m a clone. Or was it a clown?”
“Neither!” You’re different from anyone I’ve ever known.
She giggled. “Well, that’s a relief.” Her expression shifted, and she suddenly looked embarrassed.
He gave her a squeeze. “What is it?”
Her eyes slid to the side, and her lashes fluttered against her smooth skin. Then she riveted her beautiful blues on him. “You’re, um …” She gave her head a little shake, and her silky coils bounced.
He traced her jaw with his fingertips. “What are you trying to say?”
A huge inhale, and then she rushed out with, “You’re the second man I’ve ever slept with.”
To say he was stunned was an understatement, and he froze in place. “Seriously?”
Cheeks pink and polished, she gave him a head bob. “Seriously. Does that make me lame?”
A “Wha—” escaped him in a half laugh, half choke. He shook his head until he could get his tongue working again. “Of course that doesn’t make you lame.”
It makes me one lucky son of a bitch.
Though she was smiling, her eyes were shiny with tears. Oh no! No, no, no! No tears. Hand cupping her head, fingers threading into her curls, he pulled her to his chest and wrapped his arm around her protectively.
Something had been triggered inside him, and he couldn’t make heads or tails out of it, but it was raw, and it was visceral. On one hand, his blood effervesced with joy—he wanted to pound his chest and let loose with a Tarzan howl—yet on the other, it troubled him that she could think being with only two men made her lame. His overarching emotion, though, and the one thundering through him as he held her, was the need to make her his.
Chapter 21
Making Beautiful Music
While Lily worked in his kitchen, her back to him, Gage watched her with something like star mist clouding his brain—maybe he was still floating in a post-sex haze. Pretty certain he had a fuck-me grin permanently frozen on his face, he basked in the domestic scene and let his mind wander. This is what it could be like every day. Everything about this felt right, though he couldn’t form it into precise words. No, the feels were flowing over him, but like quicksilver, he couldn’t grasp them. He just knew that when he was with her, he didn’t want to stop being with her. Didn’t want to miss a minute. Not tonight, not any night.
She turned and slid a full platter of colorful food onto the island. “I found all kinds of great stuff. You eat really healthy.”
“Because I pay someone to cook my meals and stock the healthy stuff. Otherwise,
