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Lachlan and I are inevitable.
An ocean could separate us and I know deep down we’d still find our way back to each other.
His hand flexes against my stomach and I know he’s seconds from waking.
His thumb rubs in a circle around my belly button where my shirt has ridden up. He lets out a sleepy yawn, burrowing his face into the back of my neck. His stubble scratches my skin and I try not to giggle when it tickles.
Slowly, I roll over to face him. His hand finds it’s way back to my hip, pulling me closer. He blinks his eyes open, the blue becoming brighter as he fully wakes.
“Dani.” My stomach dips at the sensual sound of my name in his deep sleep-thick morning voice.
I brush my finger over one of his dark brows, suddenly shy. “Hi.”
He smiles, those straight white teeth blinking into existence. He grabs my hand, playfully nipping at my fingers before circling our hands together.
I wait for the shoe to drop, for him to realize how wrong this is and shove me out of his bed, his apartment, with anger on his face.
But he keeps looking at me, his eyes feathering over my face like he’s trying to memorize every detail and feature.
Last night, he kissed me in his bed for a long time before he got up to extinguish the candles from the main room. When he returned, we kissed some more, our hands exploring each other’s bodies, but not too much, before we finally fell asleep.
Lachlan cups my cheek and my skin automatically heats from his magnetic touch. My nipples pebble as goosebumps pimple my skin.
“What are you thinking?” I whisper, breaking the silence.
He traces the shape of my lips with the tip of his index finger. “Nothing.” I open my mouth to say I doubt that, when he adds, “I want to remember what this moment looks and feels like. I don’t want to taint it with reality.”
I understand what he means. Placing my hand on the column of his throat, I feel the steady pulse of his heart.
“Can we stay here forever?” I don’t mean to say the words aloud, but somehow they slip out.
The lines beside his eyes deepen for a second with thought. “I wish.” His hand moves down to my hip, staying there. “I need to let Zeppelin out.”
“I don’t want to move.”
“Me either, but life waits for no one.”
I know he’s right. Somehow, we manage to finally move from beneath his warm covers. I try the light on the nightstand, but it doesn’t come on. “Still no power.”
He sighs, tugging on a sweatshirt that was hanging on the doorknob. It’s not as worn in as the one I kept of his. He hasn’t asked for it back. I think he knows it’s mine now.
“I’ll be back.” He opens the door and Zeppelin immediately barrels inside, running from me to Lachlan and back again.
“I better call my brother.”
Lachlan winces at the reminder of my sibling. That truth creeps in as an unwanted stain on the night we spent together. No matter how hard we try, reality is a bitch that won’t stay away.
He gives a single nod before escorting Zeppelin from the room. I follow, watching him tug on his winter coat and leash the dog. He gives me a small, hesitant, almost shy smile before leaving.
I grab my phone from where I ended up leaving it on the couch last night and call Sage.
He answers on the first ring.
“Fuck, Dani, I’m so sorry I couldn’t get home. I have no idea when I’ll be able to leave. The roads are still hell and the power—”
“It’s okay, Herb, don’t worry.” I hope the dorky nickname will help alleviate some of his stress. “I’m fine. Don’t stress. Get home when you can.”
“I will.” A relieved sigh echoes through the phone. “I’ll let you know when I finally get out of here.”
