Page 108 of Mine

“I’m back,” Landry announced before he sank to his knees on the couch. He slid into my lap, his long legs folded on either side of me as he straddled my hips. “I got some ice, baby.”

I smiled up at him as he put the sealed Ziploc bag on the side of my face, his other hand on my cheek, his fingers stroking my skin.

The way he was looking at me—his eyes so soft, the gentle, careful way he was touching me, the caressing sound of his voice—was all a little much, as my adrenaline had died down. I shivered hard.

“You all right?” He shifted in closer to me, his legs tightening.

I slid my hands over his thighs, loving the feel of him. I forgot all about Robbie, and when I looked up for him, he was gone. But that was okay. It didn’t matter. I was in love with Landry Carter, and my real friends, the ones who shared my life with me, they understood, they got us together, and even if it had started out as something they were unsure of, they trusted me and my judgment.

“Let’s go home,” I told him, hands on his face, his beautiful face, as I bent him toward me and kissed him.

“Whatever you want.”

So I pulled Landry along after me and then put my hands on his shoulders and steered and pushed him all the way out of the club. Outside on the street, I draped an arm back over his shoulder before I eased him in against me.

“Ask you a question?” He smiled at me as we walked.

“Sure.”

“You love me, huh?”

I grunted because it was a stupid question.

“Did you love anybody before me?”

“No.”

“And if I die, will you love anybody after?”

“You won’t die,” I said flatly.

“But if I did.”

“Only you, Lan.”

He nodded, pleased with the answer. “You promised, right, the night we met. You’re gonna love me forever.”

“Yes. I promised.”

We were silent then before I realized he was humming softly, and I turned to look at him.

“So, what’re we gonna do when we get home?”

I just looked at him.

He blushed and it was so cute, and other people might have thought he was sweet and innocent, but between the bedroom eyes and the hint of a smile, I got that he understood me and where my brain had gone.

“If you’re lucky, I’ll let you out of our bed before the weekend,” I told him.

“Who says I wanna be?” He chuckled and the sound made me sigh.

I was so in love with him. I told him.

“I know,” he said smugly. “I love you too, Trev.”

“TREVAN?”

I looked back at Landry in the present. “Sorry, I was thinking about that party, since you brought it up.”