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“I have an idea,” he said, nuzzling my neck and pulling me closer.
I was in shorts and a tank top, and Sean was wearing nothing but his boxers.
After we came back to his New York apartment, Sean had made sure to introduce me to every nook and corner. We’d made a habit of making sure we had sex everywhere. On the couch while watching TV? Check. On the dining table right before dessert? Check. In the bathroom right after finding a creative way to finish dessert? Check. The kitchen wasn’t spared either, and there was an imprint of my hand on the glass cabinet from when Sean had taken me deep on the counter.
Going by the way his lips trailed a path down my face and to my neck, he was getting ready for another amorous adventure. He smelled of his cologne from last night—a hint of citrus and cedarwood. Before his warm lips on my skin could make me catch my breath, something else did. I saw my old black tutu on a hanger in front of the dresser.
“What’s that doing here?” I asked, sitting up on my elbows.
I turned to Sean with a questioning look because there was no one else I could accuse. He had a very knowing smile on his face as he reached up and ran his thumb lightly over my lips.
“You’re smiling,” I noted as I looked at him.
His brown eyes were warm with amusement, a playful expression on his face.
“From now on,” he said, kissing my nose, my lips, and my neck, “I’ll have you know that whenever I’m smiling, it’s completely your fault.” He finished up by kissing me on my bare shoulder. His eyes, tender but all knowing. “If there’s a question you need to ask, you’d better do it now before I lose myself in you.”
I placed a hand on his shoulder to nudge him aside as I got off the foot of the bed and walked toward the tutu. It was old and faded … but it was mine. My memories were tied up in this smooth fabric. Loss and love intertwined.
“Where did you get it from?” I asked, amazed.
He sat up, swinging his legs off the bed. “During one of my evenings with Henry, I asked him if he knew of any special things from your time dancing, and he said you had this tucked away in your closet somewhere. He said you wore it last when you danced the night of his accident and never again. So, I brought it out.”
“But I gave up on ballet a long time ago,” I said, running my fingers over the tulle.
“But I remember seeing a rather wistful expression on your face at Brianna’s dance performance. So, when I noticed a ballet dance company down the road from my new apartment, I thought of you. You’re going to dance again, Chloe. I want you to have everything you’ve missed in the past ten years.”
I walked over to him and cut his words off with a kiss. He held me tight against him as he kissed back. When we broke apart, I looked up at his warm brown eyes.
“I love you,” I said.
His voice lowered. “Move in with me,” was all he said as his arms tightened around me.
I inhaled. I wanted to. Ever since that horrible fight, I’d regretted turning him down.
“To your new apartment?” I asked cautiously as my heart thrummed.
He hadn’t moved there himself.
He nodded, easing me down gently onto the bed next to him. “Yes. I bought that place for us, and I didn’t have the heart to move in there alone. If you don’t like that apartment, we can find another one. But move in with me, Chloe. Live with me. It’s been only eight months together, but I want to wake up with you and go to bed with you night after night.”
All my breath left my lungs as wave after wave of emotion took over me. It took me a while to find my tongue, and when I did, I nodded, blinking back the happy tears.
“I will,” I said, my hands brushing up his shoulders and cupping his face.
I loved this man. The way his stubborn expression broke into a smile just for me. The way he reached for my hand every time we walked together. The way he loved me, even when I couldn’t.
His eyes lit up at my words, and he bent his head over mine, his mouth soft and warm. He tasted heavenly, his hand sliding up my back and cupping the back of my neck. I reached up to thread my fingers through his hair and angled my face so I could deepen the kiss. When we broke apart, chest heaving, I stared at him. Finding an impossible urge to tease him.
“I don’t know about the new apartment though. What if it’s too far from my workplace and my next boss has me running errands at all hours of the night?”
He picked me up with a growl and nuzzled my ear. “Then, I’ll kill him.”
I tut-tutted as I ran my hands through his hair while his lips made their way down my neck. “Behave, Sean. What will Lucas think of his newly changed dad speaking like this?”
“He’s taking Brianna out on a date by the time he turns twelve. He’ll understand what I mean,” Sean said, his lips finding the dip in my cleavage and pulling me back to the bed.
Laying me down, he got on top of me on his knees, looking down with a proud smile.