Maybe he has.
It ignites something in me that feels intoxicating. Each movement is a silent confession of everything he’s felt but hasn’t said. I thought everything had fallen into place when we kissed in LA, but no… this is everything.
There’s no Lily.
No judgments.
No friends giving us their unwanted opinions.
Nothing holding us back.
This is us, just as we’re meant to be—together.
Unable to break our connection but wanting to move into the privacy of my apartment, Grayson leads me through the threshold, the door slamming behind us. The world around us blurs and time ceases to exist.
We pull away for a moment and his forehead rests against mine, our breathing ragged and uneven. Looking back into those eyes of his, I realize I’m not dreaming at all. He’s really here.
“I thought you might’ve decided not to come,” I admit.
“Getting to you was all I could think about,” he replies. “I’m sure I just played one of the worst shows of my career because all I could think about was getting on that plane. Aboutyou. Jake told me so—twice.”
A soft smile forms on his face, but it doesn’t last long. His lips are back on mine before I have any time to conjure a response. This man can’t keep his hands off me—and God, I love it.
We’ve already spent too much time holding back. Now, with nothing standing in our way, there’s no reason not to give in to everything we’ve both wanted since the moment we crashed back into each other’s lives.
I kiss him back with the same desperation, fully giving in to the ache in my core that hasn’t dissipated since I left LA. His hands slip under the silk of my tank top, sliding up my stomach and over my ribs until his thumbs are brushing underneath my breasts. My nipples tighten instantly, begging for more.
“Jesus, Mia,” he whispers next to my ear, his voice rough, like it’s painful for him to hold back. “Tell me this is real. Tell me I get to touch you.”
“You’re already touching me,” I gasp as his thumbs roll over the hard peaks of my nipples.
“Not enough,” he growls. “Not nearly enough.”
I want him more than anything. But something twists in my gut—a flicker of caution under all that burning desire.
“I have to ask,” I begin, not really sure I want to hear his answer as I create some distance between us by sitting on the couch. “As happy as I am that you’re here—whatisthis, Grayson? You just got divorcedtoday. I need to know what this is before I let myself feel things for you—again.”
“Mia,” Grayson says, his eyes softening. He joins me on the sectional and places a hand gently on my leg. “I was unhappy for a long time. Way before we kissed. I was going through the motions for so long, I didn’t realize I was sleepwalking through my own life… until you.”
He pauses, then adds, “I shouldn’t have kissed you in LA. Not then. But Imeantit. I’m crazy about you. I just… I needed to wake up. You woke me up.”
I understand what he means—going through the motions when you should be really living, doing the same things you always do because it’s comfortable. I don’t want to live like that anymore either. I want to get everything I’ve ever dreamt of, and there it is, sitting right in front of me, telling me it wants me, too.
“I am,” I say softly. “I’m crazy about you, too.”
Relief washes over his face. But something simmers in his eyes, something tense brewing again.
“I have to be honest with you about something,” he says.
“What?”
“The thought of you and Brandon together—I couldn’t bear it. It almost broke me. I don’t want to think about you with anyone else. Don’t put me through that again. You’remine, Mia.”
I nearly melt at his words.
You’re mine.
I don’t want to be anyone else’s. Doesn’t he know that?
