AllFreeNovel
Share Us
That’s okay. He’s a grown man, and he can do as he pleases. I gnaw at my thumbnail and wonder if I had greater expectations at what this morning would be about. Truth is, I wanted Luke to be here. The idea of waking up to him in my home and having breakfast with our daughter is something I secretly craved.
I hate myself for having that expectation.
Sex doesn’t equal love.
I’m getting a bowl from the cupboard to pour Ainsley a bowl of cereal when the doorbell rings. I advise my daughter to keep playing while I look to see who it is.
As I open the door, my heart skips in a way that makes me roll my own eyes.
“Morning,” Luke says, standing in my doorway in fresh clothes and holding a brown bag in his arms. “Thought my girls might want bagels this morning.”
“You changed,” I state, taking in his jeans, long-sleeved shirt, and freshly shaved face.
“I had a hotel room and figured it was better to go there last night.”
“That was smart. She woke me up and commented on my lack of sleep attire.”
His laugh is light. “Good thing we didn’t damage her with the sight of me in my birthday suit as well.” There’s a shift in his stance as he stands there, looking down at me with an arched brow. “Can I come in?”
I blink and then hold the door open, nodding as I welcome him in. “She’ll be excited to see you.”
“Only her?” His lips smash together as his hands fiddle with the bag.
“Well, I might have hoped you’d be here this morning. It was smart you left. We don’t want Ainsley to get the wrong impression.”
He swallows. “Agreed. We shouldn’t give her false hope. But I wasn’t asking about her. I was asking about you.”
I smile and then take a deep breath. “I don’t bullshit with men. If I don’t want them around, I tell them. I just don’t have a lot of experience with men Idowant around. It makes me feel vulnerable. Correction:youmake me feel vulnerable.”
“No bullshit, huh? I like that.” He walks in the door and waits in the foyer while I close it.
“Do you have any admissions for me?”
“I didn’t realize I had to explain myself. I’m scared of you, so knowing that I make you feel vulnerable is a relief.”
“Why would I scare you?” I ask, dumbfounded.
He takes a step closer, his mouth inches from mine. That uncertain stance he had in the doorway is now replaced with the strong stature of the confidant man he is. “You’re the only girl I’ve ever woken up, thinking about, and fallen asleep, dreaming of.”
“That makes you scared of me?”
“Fucking frightened.”
He leans in and gives me a chaste kiss on the mouth and then holds up his bag. “Bagels for three?”
I trace my lips with my fingers and watch him walk down the hall, stopping at the playroom. Our daughter rushes into his arms.
As they select their bagels and spread vegan cream cheese on them, I lean against the doorframe and sigh.
Maybe things will be okay.
“Thank you so much for making this the best day of our lives!” my client gushes as we wrap up her elegant afternoon wedding.
This was a unique affair, slightly different than what I’d been planning the last few years. The couple wanted a simple yet exquisite afternoon affair at a vineyard in Wallingford. They didn’t need Melissa’s designs, yet booked me to coordinate the vendors and logistics for their affair that required everything to be brought in, even the catering.
“It was an honor to work with you. I wish you the very best. I’ll be in touch with the photographer so you have samples to choose from when you arrive home from your honeymoon. I know you want those thank-you cards in the mail soon,” I say.
“You’ve made this process seamless!” The bride smiles as her new husband shakes my hand and thanks me profusely.
