“I like having you here,” he retorts. “The client apartment was a stupid idea. And… shit. I don’t want you to leave.” A dull flush colors his cheeks. “I was thinking about all the things we could do together. All the holiday stuff. And the Mustang… now that it’s basically done, I thought we could take some drives. Maybe head up to Mount Hood, check out the Bigfoot Museum on the way. Webb and Noelle went, and they said it was really cool.”
My heart twinges with longing. All the things Ace just suggested, I want to do them. With him.
But my job. My house. And that’s besides the fact we haven’t been dating long. What if, a month down the line, we end up regretting it?
Then again, what did I promise myself after Tacoma? What’s Annaliese been urging me to do for years?
Stop playing it safe.Take a chance on falling in love. Risk my heart, knowing the danger, but also the reward.
“Tink…” Ace strokes my cheek. “I don’t want to push you into anything you don’t want. But having you here… this place feels like home, instead of just a place to live.”
I blink in surprise. “But you have your teammates here. And Eden and Bea and Noelle.”
“I know. But it’s not the same.”
As I look into his bright blue eyes, I’m torn in two directions. There’s the practical, safe path, where I go back home and see Ace on the weekends. And then there’s the path my heart is drawn to.
But instead of explaining any of that, I blurt out another question I’ve been wondering. “Ace. Why do you call me Tink?”
“It’s your nickname. Why wouldn’t I use it sometimes?”
“Because—” My cheeks go hot. “I hear other guys call their girlfriends honey or sweetheart. But you call me the same nickname everyone did in the Army.”
Ace pales. He sits up straight. “Shit, Yara. I didn’t think. Do you want me to call you?—”
“No. I guess I just wondered.”
An earnest expression moves across his face. “It’s not because it’s the nickname everyone used. It’s because… Well. To me, Tink stands for all the incredible things about you. How smart and creative you are, of course. But also the character?—”
“You think I’m like afairy?” To someone else, that might be a compliment. But not to me.
“Not like that. It’s because she was brave. Loyal. She would do anything to protect the people she cared about. And that’s you.”
It’s so far from what I expected, I can’t speak right away. Tears spring to my eyes, and my chin wobbles.“Ace.”
“I won’t call you that anymore,” Ace says. “I’ll come up with something else. Something more romantic.”
“No.” I lunge forward, flinging my arms around him and hugging him hard. “I didn’t realize. But hearing you explain it… it’s the best nickname ever. I don’t want you using anything else.”
His arms come around me. “Are you sure?”
“Yes,” I reply firmly. “I’m sure.”
He looks at me for a long moment, assessing. Then he gives me a cautious smile. “Okay. I’ll keep using it.”
“Good.” I kiss him on the lips. “If you want, I can call you King?—”
“No.” His response is immediate. “King is fine when my buddies use it. But I like hearing you say my real name.”
I nod. “Okay. Just Ace, then.” After a moment’s thought, I add, “Anyway, an ace is better than a king. So I’d rather call you that.”
Some of the worry fades from his eyes. “So that’s settled, then.”
“The nicknames. Yes.”
“But what about next month? If you need to go back, I understand. I’ll…” He pauses to think. “I’ll come every weekend, unless I’m traveling for a case. And I can probably work remotely sometimes. Take some vacation time.”
Take a risk,my heart urges.
