AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“We should maybe try to be more responsible moving forward,” he says this with that silly, crooked grin of his, “but if it happens, it happens. We’ll deal with it. Together.”
I’m not sure if it’s the culmination of the entire evening or what, but tears flood my eyes as I shake my head. “You can’t just deal with a baby, though, Justin. Dealing with a baby leads to resentment and hate, and I won’t put my own kid through my childhood.”
Instead of offering placating words, Justin wraps his arms around my bare back, pulling me in for a tight hug.
He just…
Holds me.
Holds me through the tremors that come from nowhere.
Through the tears that suddenly need to fall.
Then through the shivers as my body comes down from the heightened emotions.
And rather than talk about it, he simply lifts me up and carries me back to the bathroom, where he turns on the shower.
“Hopefully the water heater had a moment to reheat,” he mumbles, before stepping us both into the shower, pulling the shower liner closed behind us.
I cling to him, afraid that if I let go, everything will crumble to pieces around us. I’m not quite ready for the reality of the last few hours.
We went from roommates to crossing a line we can’t get back, and if he ultimately decides he regrets it…
Eventually I have no choice but to let go, and Justin takes the time to wash us both. After, he wraps me in a new towel, puts one around his hips, and lifts me back in his arms, where he carries me once more to his bedroom.
When I crawl into bed, he takes my towel from before as well as the one from just now, and walks them to his hamper, discarding both, followed by his own. I watch as he walks naked back to bed.
“You want a shirt to sleep in?”
I shake my head. I want to feel his body for as long as he’ll let me…
He slides between the covers next to me, then gently pushes me to my side so he can spoon me from behind.
After he brushes my hair away, he says softly near my ear, “Your mom is a bitch. I don’t know her and frankly, I don’t care to. If she looks at you, a woman who is bright, and gorgeous, and has a smile that lights up an entire room, and she doesn’t know how fucking special you are? She doesn’t deserve you. My family will gladly claim you as their own. Just know that if Mom insists on you calling her mom, I refuse to be called your brother.”
A small giggle bubbles up, and I can’t stop it from breaking free.
“Let’s just take things a day at a time, okay? Maybe in a few months, you’ll realize you’re sick of me and decide some other coach is more up your alley…”
I look over my shoulder at him, doing my best to give him an incredulous look. “You think I’m just going to go sport hopping?”
That grin I love so much is aimed at me before he leans in to press a soft kiss to the corner of my lips. I turn my head as best as I can in an effort to have a true kiss, and he doesn’t disappoint.
“I’d rather you didn’t,” he whispers against my lips, “but I’m not going to be the person who holds you back. I want to be the one who watches you fly.”
This man…
Just like that, my soul feels like it’s back on even ground.
“Fly like…on an apparatus? A dismount from the beam? Or…?” The words feel like a teasing caress. Back to my easy-going, lighthearted self.
He brought that back out in me.
“Sure.” He nips at the shell of my ear. “Also, in life. In love. Marriage. Parenthood. All the places you can soar and be your best self.”
I snuggle back into him, closing my eyes. “You talk a lot of future for someone who just confessed he wanted to kiss me, what, an hour ago?”
“I know a sure thing when I see it, and you, Lennox…” His arms tighten around me. “When you walked toward me at the airport, I knew. You’re my sure thing.”
