Page 129 of All This Time

She brushes my hair back again. “I was trying to move on, Fletcher.”

Testing the waters metaphorically, I say, “Did you ever wonder why my picture was in the month of April for the calendar?”

“Because that’s when my birthday is,” she replies.

“Bingo. I tried to move on too, Laney. There were times I had to force myself to block you out just so I could focus on my job. But I’ve kept tabs on you—following the salon on social media and through your brother, seeing pictures of you at car shows with Dilynne, staring at pictures of you and Ellis that your brother has posted over the years.”

“I haven’t googled you in two years,” she admits. “I was pretty proud of that one, considering that I used to do it every night.”

“Damn. Why are you so obsessed with me?” I tease her, tickling her ribs.

“Um, I think you’re talking about yourself, mister break-into-my-phone-to-access-my glucose-monitor.”

I pull her mouth to mine. “And I’d do it again. I like knowing that you’re okay.”

“I’m not used topeople worrying about me,” she admits on a whisper against my lips.

“Well, you’d better start getting used to it, because that’s something I want to be my responsibility now.”

She leans back, assessing me, her brows drawing together. “What do you mean?”

“Fuck, I was gonna wait until later to say this, but…” Lifting her hair from her neck, I bury my head there, pressing my lips to her skin until I make my way up to her ear. And then I pull her onto my lap and whisper, “I want this, Laney.”

“Want what?”

I lean back and look right into her eyes. “You. Me. Us. I—I want to make this work.”

Her whole face transforms—pure shock written all over it. “Oh my God, Fletcher—”

Pressing a finger to her lips, I silence her. “Don’t say anything right now, but just know that I’ve never been more certain of anything in my life. Last night, it all became so clear to me—because not being able to hold you and let everyone know that you’re mine was killing me. This possessiveness that you bring out in me had nowhere to go. I know we have so much to talk about and things to figure out. I’m sure you have questions, and I sure as fuck know that I don’t have many answers right now. But what I do know is that I’ve wanted you since I was seventeen. And now that we’ve finally uncovered the truth of what happened between us in the past, I want to try to make this work.”

Her eyes are full of tears. “I—I can’t…”

“Like I said, you don’t have to say anything right now.” Pulling her hand from under the water and placing it over the center of my chest, I hold it there. “Just know that this is how I feel and what I want. The final decision is up to you.”

The lump in my throat feels like the size of a softball, but at least now she knows how I feel, what I want, and that I’m willing to do whatever it takes to make it work.

“Kiss me, Fletcher,” she says, pulling me back to the moment.

So I do what I’m told, taking her request as a sign that at least she’s not saying no.

Chapter 25

Laney

Face Down, Ass Up

I have to be dreaming. There’s no way that I’m straddling Fletcher Adams in a hot tub and he’s telling me that he wants a future with me.

But is that what I want?

“You have no idea what you do to me, Laney Hart. No fucking clue.”

Before I can get another word out, Fletcher crushes his mouth to mine, pulling our bodies together so tightly that no space exists between us.

When our lips touch, I swear I can see fireworks and heat blooms all over my skin. My hands are shaking as I bury them in his hair and drag my nails down his neck, extracting a groan from him that ignites even more heatbetween my legs.

He grips my hip possessively with one hand as he buries the other in my hair, holding me to him, guiding me to tip my head to the side as his tongue passes over my lips, beckoning me to open up to him. When our tongues touch, we moan simultaneously and then I gasp for air on a shaky breath.