Not all kisses have to mean anything. I’ll just give him a quick peck. I’ll have thanked Win for a special breakfast, Ben will be happy, and I can enjoy as much of these yummy-smelling pancakes as my stomach will let me.
His mouth on mine triggers a hot flash fire in my belly. There’s a brief moment of shock. Of surprise. Then pleasure. Hetastes of vanilla and dark chocolate. His fingers slide along the nape of my neck, and he angles his head. Our lips align perfectly. A small rumble of sound, half-groan, half-sigh, sneaks into my mouth. My toes curl, and I lean closer, craving more.
“Mommy!”
My God, Ben is rightthere.
I yank myself away from Win, my cheeks burning.
Ben peers up at me as I fuss with the sheets.
Win is up and off the bed in seconds, mumbling something about a mess in the kitchen. Then he’s gone.
“Is Win okay?” Ben asks me.
I can still taste Win’s kiss on my lips, and I don’t think I’ll ever forget it.
“Um. I’m sure he’s doing as well as I am, baby,” I mutter, struggling with my unexpectedly potent response to Win’s kiss.Brain-fried.From the way he was kissing me and the speed he bolted out of my room, he definitely felt something too.
“I don’t understand,” Ben says.
I shake my head. “Never mind. Wanna help Mommy eat this yummy breakfast?”
It’s a beautiful morning in Rios.
The sky is powder blue, and the sun is warming my bare legs and shoulders as I sit on the back porch step, watching Ben practice cartwheels. Ever since Win showed him what one was, he’s become obsessed with perfecting it.
He’s in shorts and a yellow t-shirt, and I’m in a knee-length purple sundress with thin straps. We’re both barefoot. Benhateswearing shoes unless he’s going out, a habit he likely inherited from me. As he flings himself across the soft, green grass, I keepmy cell phone on the porch instead of filling it with a thousand more photos and videos than I need.
Behind me, a door creaks, and I twist around to see who it is.
Heat licks over my cheeks as my gaze collides with Win. “Hey. I thought you left for work already.” I try to stay casual about a kiss that turned molten hot, lightning quick.
Murph and Joel had left for work by the time Ben and I finished our lazy, self-indulgent breakfast in bed. Ben ate more pancakes than I did, but what little I had definitely helped settle my stomach. Then I got us ready for the day and carried our empty tray down to the kitchen, loaded the dishwasher, and started it.
Win hovers near the door, avoiding my gaze. His hand grips the doorknob, a sign of his tension. “I was just leaving. I wanted to say bye to you and Ben.”
Ben is doing yet another cartwheel. We’re probably in double digits by this morning, and he’s showing no sign of stopping soon. “You created a monster. I’ve never seen him so laser-focused.”
Win chuckles. “He’s improving so fast. I can come out with him when I get back from work.”
“He’d like that. Thanks.”
Win turns to leave.
“Um, Win. Are you sure I can’t do something around the house? Maybe I could start dinner? Y’all have been doing so much for Ben and me. I’d like to help out.”
A line forms between his brows. “None of us expects you to clean or cook for us while we’re at work, Rose. And you’re having a baby. You need?—”
Ben sucks in a breath. “Ababy?”
Win blanches, and I wince, briefly closing my eyes before looking down, already knowing what I’ll find.
Ben peers up at me from the bottom of the porch, his eyes enormous.
Yep. He definitely heard that, and there is no way to convince him that he didn’t.
“Uh, sorry, Rose,” Win apologizes.
