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“I am now.” I can’t see her face, but there’s a smile in her tone. She snuggles closer to me, and I love keeping her like this—keeping her safe and content.
She looks up at me, and I capture her mouth in a long kiss, showing her once more how much I love her. Showing her I would do anything to protect her. And that includes protecting her from the nightmares that intrude on her dreams.
“Would you tell me about your nightmare?” I ask, hoping she’ll open up to me once more like she did when she told me about her dead husband and about her grandparents.
“Nope. I just want to lie like this and not think about the dream.”
“Okay.” I’m not giving up on this yet, but I’m also not going to push her out of her comfort zone until she’s ready. “I’ll admit I’m all for spending all day in bed with you and skipping hanging out with our friends and my family,” I murmur on the crown of her head.
She laughs, the low, smoky sound sleepy with satisfaction. “I’m sure your family will have something to say about that.”
“You might be right, other than Lucas. I’m sure he’d rather spend the entire day in bed with Simone.”
Jess chuckles. “I bet she feels the same. But as tempting as it is to spend all day in bed with you, I promised to help Em with the hayride this afternoon.”
A bark comes from the other side of the door. I groan and cover my eyes with my forearm. “I guess Butterscotch has figured out we’re up.”
“You were a Marine. Aren’t you trained to wake at the crack of dawn?” Her voice is featherlight, amusement wrapping around each syllable.
I peer at her from under my arm. “I untrained myself.”
Jess laughs again. “I’ll go feed the dogs and take them for a W.A.L.K.”
“I have a better idea. How about we both take them for a you-know-what, and then we can shower together afterward?”
She twists in my arms, and her face transforms into a wince. A smile swiftly replaces the pained expression. “I like that suggestion.”
“How’re your ribs doing?”
She presses her lips to mine. “They’re good. Definitely getting better.”
“You sure about that?”
“Positive. I can handle a little pain. Especially after that orgasm.” She gives me another quick kiss.
While she gets dressed in the shorts and the pale-yellow T-shirt she was wearing last night, I go downstairs and feed Butterscotch and Bailey. Jess appears in the kitchen as they’re chomping down their food.
“You know, you can always leave some of your clothes here.” I hand her a mug of coffee.
She takes a small sip from it. “Is that your way of getting to leave your clothes at my place?”
The corner of my mouth tugs up. “You’re right. That’s part of my genius evil plan for world domination.”
“Well, in that case…” She kisses me lightly on the lips. “Okay, I’ll leave a few items at your place, and you can leave some stuff at mine.”
My smirk transforms into a full-out grin at how she’s trusting me with more of herself, and my insides heat with relief.
By the time we’ve finished our coffee, the dogs are ready to go for a walk.
Jess pulls on one of my clean sweatshirts and we go outside. It might be July Fourth, but the morning mountain air is cooler than she was used to in San Diego.
I thread my fingers with Jess’s. The move feels so natural now, I can’t imagine not holding her hand while we walk.
We turn the corner and head toward the park. A front door bangs shut a few houses down, and Katelyn hurries along the path leading to the sidewalk. It’s only once she’s walking our way that she notices me.
Her gaze drops to our joined hands and lingers there for a beat. “Hi, Troy. Jessica. I didn’t realize you two are dating.”
“We’ve been dating for a few weeks now. Didn’t you see the latest Who’s Dating Who update on Maple Ridge’s Facebook page?” I’m joking, of course. Or I assume I’m joking. Maybe there is an update on the page.
