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He stepped around the desk, reached out, running his thumb over my chin. “I’ve been wrapped up in you since we were kids. But we’re not kids anymore.”

He removed his hand, making my entire body go cold. “What do you mean?” I asked, my voice barely rising above a whisper.

“I mean...” He tilted his head, taking me in. “I would like nothing more than to date you, see where this could go. But it’s not just us in this relationship. I have a child who needs you, and you have a brother who needs me.”

“And you think dating me would tear that apart?”

“It could,” he said. “But I’m willing to believe in us, if you are.”

I lifted my chin, because even if he’d been steered by worry, I was guided by what I knew in my heart. “They aren’t worth risking.”

He nodded, looking more dejected than I’d ever seen him.

“But,” I continued, making him look up, “it’s not a risk when it comes to you and me.”

He pinned me with a questioning stare. “What do you think happens if we break up? Rhett forgives me for breaking his little sister’s heart? You live in my house and stick around for Maya when seeing each other tears us apart?”

I stepped closer to him, taking his face in my hands. He needed to see me. Tohearme. “It’s not a risk because I know our hearts. You would never turn your back on Rhett, and he might be hotheaded, but he would never write you off completely, because whatever breaks us apart, if anything does, will not be unforgivable.”

“How do you know that?” he asked. “Because I’ve crossed so many lines in my life.”

“I know because Iknow you. Remember? I’ve seen you every morning when you hug Maya like it’s the most important part of your day. I see you come home from work and jump out of your truck instead of sitting out there and stalling to come inside. I’ve seen you call your ex, no matter how much it hurts, to make sure Maya stays connected to her mom. You’ve told me every dark bit of yourself, and I still care for you, Fletch. No matter what happens, I still love you.”

He leaned into my touch, closing his eyes. “But Maya...”

“I love that girl,” I said. “And if you think so little of me that I’d let a breakup take me away from her, then you never really knew me at all.”

“You really want to do this?” he rasped, tortured eyes on mine. “Because if we start, I don’t think I can hold myself back again. These last few days have been hell.”

I reached up, running my thumb along his bottom lip, and then I kissed him instead of saying what I really thought.If we start this, I hope we’ll never have to stop.

He wrapped his arms around my waist, pulling me close and kissing me with that same hunger from before at the barn. Except this time, we both knew what we were getting into. We knew the terms, the people we’d affect with our relationship, and we trusted ourselves to handle it, together.

Still kissing me, he backed me up to his desk, and when I butted up against it, he lifted my leg, pulling it around his hip.

Heat pooled in my center as I felt his growing erection pressed against me.

He tugged my hair, making my head fall back as he trailed kisses along my jaw, his short stubble scratching deliciously along my skin. His voice hummed against my throat as he said, “You are so fucking beautiful.”

My heart warmed at his words, at finally hearing what I’d always wanted him to think. I held on to him as he continued his assault of kisses to my collarbone, shoving aside the straps of my tank. His hand slid down my waist to my slit, giving me pressure in just the right spot.

“Fletcher,” I breathed, reaching for his shirt and undoing the buttons one by one until his chest was fully exposed and I could run my hands over the ridges of his muscled torso.

My fingers played along the edges of his waistband, and he ordered in my ear, “Don’t make me wait.”

Emboldened by his words, I unbuttoned his jeans and slid my hand into his underwear, taking his thick cock in my hand. He let out a guttural moan as I pumped. “Fletch...” I never expected him to be this big, this ready.

He met my eyes, holding my gaze and took off his shirt, leaving his chest bare to me.

This was really happening.

I stepped back. “Do you want to get the light?” I whispered, suddenly shy. He had the perfect physique, and I was far from a Victoria’s Secret angel.

“Not a chance in hell. I’ve waited twelve years to be with you; I’m not missing a second of your beautiful body.”

My cheeks warmed with his words, but I couldn’t help feeling shy. “I’m...” Nervous, I couldn’t say out loud. Hooking up with a guy was one thing. Making love to Fletcher...

He was my high school crush, the guy I idolized as a teen, the person I thought of over the years, far more often than I cared to admit. And now, he was the man I loved, the one I could see a future with. What if I didn’t live up to his expectations?