She sat up, an alarmed expression on her face. “You have a game tonight.”
“And you and Daisy are coming.” The thought warmed him—he was stoked to have Daisy there. Showing off was a definite possibility tonight.
“That’s not what I meant. Did I just mess you up for tonight? And don’t you have to go skate this morning?”
“No morning skate. Coach suspends it this late in the season. As for ‘messing me up,’” he shrugged, “I doubt it makes a difference. But in any case, it’s too late now. Which means we can keep doing this all day and it won’t change how I play tonight.” He playfully tugged at her covers, but she kept them firmly in place.
“Uh-uh, Professor. You need to save your strength. I’m not going to be the reason you have a bad game.”
“I won’t have a bad game.” He leaned in for a kiss, which she gave him. “But you’re right about one thing. I need to start fueling up.”
A half-hour later, he slid poached eggs on their plates and added whole-grain toast. They were back at the kitchen counter, and Lily’s eyes were fixed on the gray palette beyond the windows as she nibbled at her food. She was dressed in Sarah’s pajama pants and a light blue sweatshirt that highlighted her eyes. The clothes were a little baggy on her, but it didn’t matter. Lily would look beautiful in a sack.
He couldn’t remember feeling this comfortable with anyone before. They laughed at the same jokes, enjoyed the same music, and shared a similar, even demeanor. They could be talking or not, and it felt right.
And in bed? He’d never experienced anything like it. Ever. Their lovemaking went to a whole new level he’d never known existed. She brought out a boldness in him and matched it with her own. They fed off each other’s energy, practically combusting when they got going. It left him hungry for more.
He sipped his orange juice, studying her over the rim of the glass. Flawless skin, golden hair like twining silk, and eyes with the depths of the blue Pacific. As he took her in, an arrow buried itself in his chest. It was almost painful, but at the same time something warm seeped out and encased his heart. He could feel himself tumbling, falling deeper under her spell.
Emotions bubbled over and rushed out of him at once.
“Come with me to the Bay Area and meet my family,” he blurted.
Shit. Judging by her wide-eyed expression and the fork clattering from her hand, he should have kept that idea bottled up. At least it was better than yelling the second half of the thought: “Come live with me!”
“What?” she part-laughed, part-yelped.
He reached over and took her hands in his. “Listen, I’m serious. We get a couple of days off in a few weeks before the big playoff push. I want to bring you and Daisy with me.”
She blinked, and her mouth went slack.
Too much too soon. Shit! Back the hell up, doofus.
With a headshake, she seemed to recover. “That’s really sweet, but it feels a bit, um, sudden. Besides, Daisy’s in school.”
But he liked the idea of going on vacation with them. Maybe someplace else? Where his family didn’t live? “Okay. Here’s a different idea. Ever seen the ice castles in Dillon?”
She shook her head.
“Neither have I, but they look really cool, and we could drive there in under two hours.”
Lily’s mouth opened and closed a few times. He barreled ahead. “Can Daisy miss a few days of kindergarten? That’s about all the time I’ll have anyway.”
“Where would we stay?”
His heart rate did a two-step—she hadn’t said no. “I can rent us a house or a condo with plenty of room.” He grabbed his phone, swiped, tapped, and scrolled. “Here’s an Airbnb three-bedroom house with a hot tub and views.” He held it up to her. “You could even have your own room. Of course, if you decide to visit your sex stud in the middle of the night and put him to work, he’d be totally down with it.”
She glanced up at him, and he winked. Her eyes landed back on his phone. “It’s almost six hundred dollars a night!”
“Your point being …?”
“That’s a lot of money!” Her gaze shot back to his. So much seemed to stream through her eyes, as though she were calculating a series of equations.
“I can afford it.”
“I don’t know what to say,” she murmured.
“I do. Say yes.”
“Can I think about it?”
“Of course.” He lifted her hands to his lips and placed a kiss in each palm.
A wave of pink colored her face. He liked his chances. He’d figure out later how to break it to his mom that he was canceling his plans to come home.
They spent the rest of the morning lounging—playing music, laughing, talking, and abandoning a board game midway through to roll around in the sheets one more time. Lily couldn’t remember when she’d been so relaxed, and it wasn’t only the sex marathon that had chilled her out. It was simply being with him.
But while she wanted to linger in that carefree state, real life was buzzing an annoying wake-up call, so she left Gage to his pre-game nap and returned to her quiet house.
With time on her hands before Ivy brought Daisy home, Lily stretched out on the couch, even though a mound of laundry cried for attention. She plucked out her wedding ring and slid it along her chain, staring at the distorted reflection in its gold surface as thoughts of Gage infiltrated her mind and crowded out most everything else. And no surprise. Even now, gone from him a mere hour, she craved the easy smile that lit her up, the deep
