Page 188 of Power Play

I stared at her mouth. “It should.”

Her breathing changed as my hand slid from her neck to her waist.

“I have a million and one thoughts running through my head right now about all the ways I want to touch you.”

Color spread across her cheeks. “Ryan—”

“But I need you to come inside.”

The heat in her expression shifted when I brushed my thumb across her side.

“I need to show you the last part of me, mi hada. I need you to understand why you choosing me as your man matters so fucking much.”

She searched my face, and the teasing disappeared completely. “Okay.”

I picked up my duffel and unlocked the door while Charm followed me inside. After tossing the bag near the wall, I turned on the lamp beside the couch instead of the overhead light. The apartment looked exactly how I’d left it six days ago, with books stacked on the end table, unopened mail near the kitchen counter, and one clean glass upside down beside the sink.

Charm belonged in the middle of it so easily that the thought scared me.

She set her purse near the couch as I walked into the kitchen and opened the refrigerator. Her favorite sauvignon blanc sat behind the orange juice. I’d bought it before leaving, and that felt like another confession I wasn’t ready to examine.

“You have my wine.”

“I have eyes.”

“That doesn’t explain why it’s in your refrigerator.”

“You complain when I buy the wrong kind.”

“I complained once.”

“You gave me a lecture about acidity.”

“It matters.”

I grabbed the bottle while Charm came closer to the island. When I opened the cabinet and reached for the mug with the faded Great Lakes design, she immediately smiled.

“You’re putting wine in that?”

“You like this mug. You always pick it.”

“I like making fun of that mug.”

“Same emotional category.”

I poured her wine, grabbed a beer for myself, then reached into the cabinet above the refrigerator for the tequila. Charm watched me set the bottle on the counter, and her smile disappeared as I poured a shot.

“Ryan?”

I knocked it back, letting the tequila burn clean down my throat.

Her brows pulled together. “What’s wrong?”

I reached for the beer but didn’t open it yet. “I needed a little liquid courage, mi bebé.”

“For what?”

I looked at her. “To help me explain.”