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I never expected it to.
I brushed my lips to her forehead. “Well, you’ve got both me and Alex today,” I told her, bringing a small smile to her face. “May as well put us to work while we’re available.”
Alex groaned, and Tawney softly laughed. I pressed my lips to hers one more time before releasing her. “What do you need done, babe?” I asked her.
She splayed her hand over my heart for a moment—which was an action that spoke so much louder than words—before she tilted her head back to look up at me. “Just stay here with me.”
I covered her hand with mine. “Always, baby.”
9
Tawney
Icrouched down and wrapped my arms around Alex. “Make sure you listen to Mason’s mom and do what she tells you.” I told him this every time he went to stay at Mason’s overnight, and I knew he was a good kid. It was just a force of habit.
He groaned, and I watched as he literally restrained himself from rolling his eyes. “I know, Mom.” I barely bit back a smile. He knew he’d get in so much trouble if he ever rolled his eyes at me.
I pressed a kiss to his cheek. “Call me if you need me. I love you.”
He pressed a kiss to my cheek, too. “I love you, too, Mom.” He wiggled out of my arms. “Bye, Mom!” he yelled over his shoulder as he rushed out the door. I laughed and waved at Mason’s mom. She waved back at me as Alex climbed into her backseat.
I’d met Mason’s mom, Anna, at Alex’s first open house for school. And he and Mason had clicked that very same day, as well, and had been inseparable since. But I was happy. I loved that my son was thriving.
I worked on closing up the store, my belly curling in anticipation. Slater was coming over and spending the night with me, and he’d promised to cook. I didn’t mind cooking, butman, Slater’s cooking was out of this world . . . and maybe I’d get some extra afterward, too.
I couldn’t get over how incredible Slater had been when I’d fallen apart. I hadn’t even known Alex had taken my phone to call him, but he had left work and come right over, taken over taking care of Alex, and he did his best to comfort me. He helped so much that day, and I was so thankful for him. He made the pain a little more bearable.
I was a bit alarmed at how fast I was falling for him, but everything in my gut told me that this wasright, thathewas right.
Right as I turned off all the lights in the bookstore, I heard a knock sound from the back. My heart started thumping crazily in anticipation, and I quickly rushed into my home so I could get the door.
Slater was standing on the other side wearing a pair of dark wash jeans that were clearly worn in some places with a plain white t-shirt. He looked good enough to eat.
“Hi,” I breathed, a wide smile on my face.
He leaned in and pressed his lips to mine in a short, sweet kiss, but it still fired up my blood. He pulled back a little, a crooked grin of his own on his lips. He held up a grocery bag. “Ready to eat?”
“Hell yes.”
He laughed and stepped inside, closing the door behind him. I took a seat at the bar that separated the kitchen from the dining room and watched as he took charge of my kitchen. Within minutes, the place was smelling absolutely heavenly, and my stomach was rumbling like a lion lived in there.
He tossed me a teasing smile over his shoulder. “I can hear your stomach way over here.”
I flushed, my cheeks brightening to a light red. “Sorry; I didn’t realize how hungry I was,” I confessed.
His smile made my heart skip a beat in my chest. “Not much longer,” he assured me.
He was right. A few minutes later, he had placed a plate of food in front of me—a type of stir fry. And I wasted no time digging in. We were quiet as we ate, just enjoying each other’s company. And it spoke volumes that we didn’t have to fill the silence with meaningless talk. It meant we were comfortable with each other.
And that wasamazing.
Once we were done eating, I washed dishes while he dried them and put them away. Again, we worked in companionable silence, and somehow, without words, he made me fall even harder for him.
“What movie do you want to watch?” he asked once we were settled on the couch.
“I want to watch something old,” I confessed.
“Hmm,” he mused, flipping through the movies available to rent. He stopped onMystic Pizza. “How about this?”
