Page 56 of Sincerely, Mr. Braden

I pocket my phone and head into the bedroom. Seth’s suitcase is open on the bed, his clothes neatly folded. I learned on the island that he’s as tidy as I am and is just as neurotic about making the bed in the morning. He’s standing by the window, buttoning a yellow plaid shirt, which he paired with rust-colored jeans and orange sneakers. He snags a sweater from the chair beside him and puts it on—a blue cardigan with white and green diamonds scattered across it. Quintessential Seth.

He turns, a slow grin sliding into place as he drinks me in for the hundredth time this morning. His eyes light up behind those black-framed glasses as they skim down my red sweater and dark jeans, tucked into my comfiest black boots. That’s all it takes to get me fluttery inside. There’s no better feeling than seeing him smile and knowing he forgives me. But falling asleep and waking up in that beautiful man’s arms, and orgasms and a sexy shower before breakfast, rank a close second.

“Ready, sweets?” He reaches for my hand, pulling me into a kiss as we head out of the bedroom.

“I like your outfit.”

“Yeah? Me too. Thanks.”

It’s Friday, and my well-trained brain mentally ticks off my to-do list as we make our way downstairs. “Don’t forget, you’ve got a conference call with Jared and Wells tonight about the grand opening.”

“Bossing me around before breakfast?” He swats my ass.

“Someone’s got to keep you in line,” I say as we hit the landing.

He catches my wrist, tugging me back to him. His gaze dips to my mouth, his eyes turning molten, and then he takes me in a slow, penetrating kiss, turning my insides to liquid heat. Yup. Superpowers. I don’t think I’ll ever get enough of this man.

When our lips finally part, he flashes a devilish grin.

“If that’s what happens when I’m bossy…” I poke his chest. “Get your butt downstairs, Braden.”

He laughs and kisses me again. “Careful, Nunnally, or I’ll carry your sexy ass right back upstairs and remind you who’s boss.” He leans in for another kiss, and his gaze catches over my shoulder. “Uh-oh, sweetheart. Looks like I owe you a clock.”

I follow his gaze to the pieces of my clock scattered across the floor. I was so caught up in us, I totally forgot it had fallen off the wall. “Guess time really did stop last night.”

He huffs a laugh and runs a hand up my back. “I’ll buy you a new one.”

“It’s okay. It stopped working a week after I got it,” I say, nudging a shard with my boot.

“Fell for you too hard, huh?” He bends to pick up a piece of the frame. “I feel your pain, Mr. Clock. I’ll clean up the crime scene.”

I step past him toward the kitchen. “Then I’ll make breakfast.”

“I just had breakfast in bed,” he reminds me.

I glance over my shoulder. “That was your morning delight. This is sustenance. You’ll need it later.”

He chuckles. “Do you have a broom?”

“Give a girl a second,” I call out from the kitchen as I turn on the coffee maker. I grab the broom and dustpan from the utility closet and head back to him.

“A second?” He scoffs. “That’s for amateurs. I gave my sweetheart a third.”

“Actually, a fourth.” I give him the cleaning supplies and a trash bag, then steal a kiss and whisper, “Shower.”

While he cleans up, I start making breakfast. My heart is so full, I’m afraid to think too hard about how good it feels to be on solid ground with him again. The domesticity of making breakfast while this six-foot-something man cleans a mess we made with our sexy times feels like a scene from someone else’s life.

Someone lucky.

But it’s not someone else’s life. I’m the lucky one.

“Coffee smells good,” Seth says as he drops the bag beside the trash can and puts the broom and dustpan in the utility closet like he’s done it a hundred times before.

“Thanks. I harvested the beans myself right after I got the eggs out of the chicken coop.”

He comes up behind me while I’m pouring pancake batter into a pan and slides his arms around my waist. “If I’d known cleaning would get me breakfast, I would have volunteered sooner.”

“This is a new incentive-based system.” I turn, wind my arms around him, and go up on my toes to kiss him. “Thank you for helping.”