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More tears are in her eyes, but she’s smiling now. She sniffs as they stream down her cheeks, and she leans forward, pressing her forehead to mine.

“I’m so happy you’re awake. I’ve been waiting to tell you how much I love you. I want you to come home. I want us to never be separated again.”

I tilt my chin to kiss her cheek. She lifts up, but hesitates before kissing my mouth. “The doctor is worried about infection...”

“Kiss me.” My voice cracks, but the order is clear. Her lips press together, and she hesitates. “Melissa,” I say a bit stronger. “I’m not worried about infection. Kiss me, dammit.”

She breaks into a smile before lightly cupping my cheeks and leaning forward. Her soft lips press against mine, and I curse my inability to hold her. Lightly pulling my lips with hers, it’s just a tease of a kiss. I growl and lift my head, kissing her more forcefully, but the movement sends a stab of pain into my ribs.

“Ugh,” I gasp, falling back against the pillow.

“Oh my god!” She hops up. “I’ll call the nurse!”

“Melissa,” I growl. “Get over here and give me a real kiss before I fucking hurt myself.”

My words freeze her on the spot. She blinks back at me then exhales a laugh. With a shake of her beautiful head, she’s at my side again in the same spot as before.

“You’re the most stubborn man,” she whispers in that low, sultry voice I love.

“What do I have to do to make you listen to me?”

Her eyes sparkle as she cups my cheek. “I’m listening to you.” She touches my lips softly with hers and pulls back. I let out a frustrated growl, and she speaks again. “I hear every word you say.”

This time her lips crash against mine with all the longing we both feel. Mouths open, my tongue finds hers and curls with it. Desire floods my veins, and I manage to lift my right arm. It’s heavy, but I hold the back of her neck, drawing her body closer to mine. She lets out a little sigh and lifts her chin. Pulling her closer, I press my mouth to her soft throat.

“You have to be careful,” she whispers, threading her fingers into the sides of my hair.

“I’ll let you know if anything hurts.”

Slipping off the bed, she’s again beside me. My arm falls and she catches it, moving it under the blanket. “You’ve had some pretty serious injuries. Let me call the nurse.”

All I want is to hold her. I’ve waited so long for this moment. “Only because I don’t want to stay in this bed longer than I have to.”

She smiles and leans forward to kiss my forehead. I make a move to catch her and she laughs, dancing back. “Your recovery might be extensive.”

“Don’t worry. I’m not finished with you.”

* * *

Three weeks, and I’m back in the Alexander-Knight office in Princeton, collecting the files I’d brought up from Wilmington and sorting through the files I’d dug out while I was here away from Melissa.

The doctor in Baltimore released me a few days after I came around, once my infection cleared up. I had to check in with my doctor here, who put me on bed rest. I still get winded, and at times I feel like an infant learning to walk again.

Speaking of infants, Melissa brought Dex from Wilmington to stay with us, and my ultimate bachelor pad looks more like a nursery than ever. It’s exactly the way I like it after those nights alone, hating the sterile single-ness of the place. Today, they’re in Baltimore meeting with Bea. Our wedding plans have been restored, and Melissa is taking pictures of doughnuts. I didn’t e

ven question her.

“These are the last of the files,” Nikki says, taking a stack of accordion folders off my desk. “You want them in the back filing cabinet?”

“We should probably think about scanning them and saving them on the hard drive.” I open my MacBook and click on the main directory folder. “As a leader in online security, it’s pretty ridiculous for us to keep paper files in the office.”

Her chin drops and she pauses at my door. “I’m not planning to stick around and help with that. I’ve sent my resume to a few offices, and I have an interview with one tomorrow.”

Stopping what I’m doing, I push back against the desk and slowly stand. “I guess we never finished talking about that.”

“There’s nothing to talk about. I don’t belong here anymore.”

Patrick has returned to Wilmington with Elaine and Lane, and I briefly glance in the direction of Stuart’s empty office. He hasn’t made it in yet this morning.