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I squeeze my eyes shut and sigh. “I don’t know what the hell I want. I went into administrative assistant work because it pays the bills, and I know a lot of people who can hook me up with jobs. But it’s miserable.”
He hums softly as he works on a particularly vicious knot. “What made you quit?”
I recoil a little. The last thing in the world I want to do is talk about John. But he deserves to know. “That guy I sort of dated…”
“The dickhead?” he asks.
I laugh and nod. “He cornered me in the office. He was being his usual charming self, and I snapped, I guess. I threatened to come after them with a harassment suit, so I was given a severance, and they paid out the rest of my vacation. But I can only afford maybe another month without income.”
He’s quiet for a long time as he smooths my hair down my shoulders, and then his body goes a little tense when he asks, “When is your lease up?”
I immediately know why he’s asking, and the thought both thrills and terrifies me in equal measure. I can’t pretend I haven’t fantasized about him sweeping me off my feet and taking me back to the lodge to stay, but I also know I can’t be dead weight there.
“Maddox,” I start to say, but he eases me up and grips me by the shoulders, and my words fall silent.
“I’m not saying I can solve your problems, but would it be so bad to try it out? There are other apartments there that are sitting empty. We don’t have to live together—”
“That’s not the issue,” I interrupt, because it’s really not. Maybe it’s nuts, but I know I could live with him. I just…I couldn’t be a housewife or some sort of kept girlfriend. “I know damn well I could live with you starting today, and it would be fine. But I wouldn’t be happy unless I was pulling my weight.”
“There’s plenty of work up there, trust me,” he says flatly.
I roll my eyes. “Are you serious? I could barely manage half an hour on horseback.”
His mouth softens into a smile, and he shakes his head, brushing a lock of hair behind my ear. “Baby, you don’t have to work with the horses. You could do anything.” His eyes are shining, and he tips his head to the side. “You really think you could live with me now and be just fine?”
I flush, but I refuse to take it back. “Yes. But I’m totally fine if you don’t think—”
My words are cut off with a kiss. He’s pressing me back into the couch cushions, slipping his knee between my thighs. I get all hot and bothered again, but not like I want this to go anywhere. It’s just basking in kissing and being kissed.
Loving and being loved.
“You’re amazing,” he murmurs when he finally pulls back.
I drag a touch from his temple to his chin. “I’ve never had the time to think about what I want to do with myself,” I confess. “I thought this might be a good time, but the only thing I’ve been able to figure out is that I’m falling for you, and I want to be with you.”
“So, let’s try it.” He pulls my hand away from my face and spreads it open with his thumb before kissing my palm, then the inside of my wrist. “You can do whatever work you feel comfortable doing.” He stops and kisses my lips one more time. “And you can also take your time to figure out what would make you happy.”
It seems too good to be true, but I don’t care. I can’t care. Not with him holding me like this. Not with the promise of a future with this man. I finally tilt my head up to look at him, and I see a smile in his gaze.
“Will you stay with me tonight?”
He cups my cheek again and answers me with a kiss before using words. “Baby, I’ll stay right by your side as long as you’ll have me.”
