I stop dragging my tongue along the roof of Savannah’s mouth when a deep grunt rumbles through my chest. When the cranky groan is followed by the stomping of a foot, I reluctantly withdraw from Savannah’s sinful mouth. Rylee is standing at our side. Her little hands are spread across her cocked hip, a deep groove between her blond brows.
When she bossily gestures for me to stoop down to her level, I instinctively angle my body to the side. If she is anything like her mother, I'm anticipating a swift kick to my nether regions.
The wind is knocked from my lungs. It isn't what you are thinking. Rylee isn't just a spitting image of her mother—she also has the same fondness. After barely pressing her lips to mine, she charges into the living room, giggling in the same manner Savannah did when we shared our first kiss.
The girl I’ve been crushing on since I was four has competition: her nearly four-year-old daughter.
Shit.
Chapter 22
Ryan
Irise from my crouched position with my hands held in the air like I’m under arrest. Although Savannah finds my cowardly approach amusing, I can see a smidge of jealousy in her fiery gaze.
“If you break my daughter’s heart, Ryan Carter, I’ll never forgive you.”
Although she uses Rylee as an excuse to issue her threat, I heard the message her stern tone highlighted. She’s not worried about Rylee getting hurt; she’s petrified of putting her heart on the line.
“I’ll never hurt her, Savannah. I promise.”
Just like I perceived the underlying message in Savannah’s warning, she heard mine in my reply. I secure my first lung-filling gulp of air since her mouth was torn from mine when her lips tug into a smirk.
Her smile has me wanting to reacquaint our mouths, but the time displayed on her microwave has me unable to act on my desires. My unexpected nap has set me back an hour already, and I need at least a day—if not a year—to adequately worship Savannah's mouth with the dedication it deserves.
“Is this everything?” I ask Savannah, peering down at the suitcases Savannah packed yesterday morning.
While waiting for Alex to devise our next move, Savannah and Rylee are moving into my apartment. A normal man would be shitting bricks at the idea of having his domain overrun with feminine products.
I’m not a normal man.
In all honesty, I can’t wait. In forty-eight hours, ten years of torment has unraveled. I was so angry believing Savannah’s lack of contact was because she was a scorned woman. I was wrong—so very,verywrong.
And I was man enough to admit it.
I divulged my mistakes in great depth to Savannah at 5 AM this morning. She was just as open as me. We shared everything and anything. I even told her what happened the night my dad was killed, and confessed to what I said to Chris the day he died.
Within an hour, nothing was left on the table. Some of the stories shared broke my heart, but the weight our conversation lifted off my shoulders was immense. I truly feel like I can face any obstacle placed in front of me without worry. I’mthatweightless.
We have a longway to go before the dust of the past decade settles, but having Savannah in my life is as second nature as breathing. She belongs with me. She’s my girl.
Savannah huffs, drawing my focus to her heavy scowl. “Yep. My entire life in three little bags. How pathetic am I?”
I catch her wrists and pull her to my body. “Who needs money when you have the world? You’re amom, Savannah. There is no greater gift than that.”
Her smile grows. “You wouldn’t think highly of my mothering skills if you knew the thoughts crossing my mind when Rylee kissed you.” With a pout, she peers at Rylee watching cartoons in the living room. “My daughter is crushing on the man I’ve never stopped loving. This could end disastrously for all involved.”
Suddenly, her spine snaps straight and her eyes missile back to mine. I can see a million thoughts streaming through her eyes, but not a syllable seeps from her lips.
Unfortunately, my mouth has no qualms expressing itself. “Youloveme?” I say my L word with an immaturity a man my age shouldn’t have.
I swear to god, I feel like I’ve whizzed back fifteen plus years to the time I coerced Savannah to kiss me. I pretended to be mortified by the idea, where in reality, I was dying without her lips on mine. She’d been eating Hershey kisses the thirty minutes prior, acutely reminding me I was a teen boy with teen issues. I thought the throaty moans she released while devouring her treat would be the highlight of my night. It wasn’t. The sugary sweetness of her mouth was ten times better.
The air in my lungs evicts in a grunt when Savannah's elbow pops into my ribs. "Don't be a noodle. You’re Rylee's first crush, Ry. This is as serious as it comes."
“Why?” I ask, truly lost.
Savannah’s teeth graze her bottom lip before she murmurs, “She’s never loved a man before. She’ll get hurt if you don’t love her back.”
