Page 12 of Blind Date with a #Doctor (Love Canyon: Blind Date #3)
Carter
I should’ve known bringing Aspen here was a mistake. Not because she doesn’t fit in—because she does. Maybe a little too well.
Watching her laugh at Matt’s jokes, banter with Rachel like they’ve been friends for years, and hold her own against Jason’s ridiculous grilling techniques? It’s doing something for me. I can’t quite name it, but it feels big.
“Your girl’s a natural,” Matt mutters, handing me a beer.
I glance across the yard, where Aspen is playing some ridiculous game of tag with Izzy, Jason’s four-year-old.
Matt smirks, nudging my shoulder. “I’d say it’s time to admit it.”
I grunt. “Admit what?”
“That you’re completely gone for her.”
I don’t answer, because if I do, I might actually say it out loud. I’m not ready to admit it to the world yet.
After dinner, Aspen and I sit on the back porch, plates empty, drinks in hand, the sun just starting to dip below the horizon.
“Alright,” she says, stretching out her legs, her knee brushing against mine. “Be honest. Your friends were taking bets on how long we’d last, weren’t they?”
I smirk, tilting my beer bottle. “Matt definitely was.”
Aspen hums. “And what was the over-under?”
I chuckle. “Three dates.”
She gasps, dramatic and ridiculous. “Three? That’s insulting.”
I take a sip of my beer, watching her over the rim. “Want to prove them wrong?” I ask, voice low, teasing.
Aspen’s eyes darken, just a little, and she tilts her head, studying me like she’s deciding just how much trouble she wants to get into. Then she finally says words I’ve been wanting to hear all day, “Take me home, Reed.”
* * *
Aspen walks in to the house first, barefoot, holding the heels she kicked off in the car, and looks around like she’s seeing my place in a new light. I can’t stop watching her.
“How do you feel about a nightcap?” I ask, stepping behind her, voice low and rough.
She turns slightly, her back brushing against my chest. She exhales softly and says, “I’d rather have you.”
That’s all it takes.
I cup her waist, turning her to face me, watching the way her pupils blow wide, the way her lips part like she’s already waiting for my kiss.
“You sure?” I murmur, fingers skimming up her back.
Aspen’s hands slide up my chest, curling into the fabric of my shirt. “Absolutely.”
She grins, but before she can respond, I capture her lips in a deep, slow kiss. I’m not holding back anymore. Aspen melts into me, soft and warm, and I know I could lose myself in her for hours.
We move through the house in a blur of hands and lips and heavy breathing. By the time we hit my bedroom, Aspen’s sweater is gone, her jeans unbuttoned, my shirt barely hanging on.
She’s beautiful—flushed and breathless. Looking at me like she’s never wanted anything more.
I lower her onto the bed, pressing a kiss to the center of her chest, feeling her heartbeat pound beneath my lips.
I take my time. This is slow, deliberate worship. This is learning her body, where she’s sensitive, where she shudders when I trail my mouth over her skin. I plan to make her come apart beneath me, whispering my name like it’s the only thing she knows.
When she finally collapses against me, completely spent, I hold her like I don’t want to let go.
Later, we’re tangled in the sheets, her head on my chest, my arm wrapped around her. Neither of us speaks. We just breathe together, slow and easy.
I want to tell her that I want every damn part of her. But I don’t say it…not yet. Because saying it out loud? That makes it real. And if it’s real? It means I could lose it.
So instead, I press a kiss to her temple, pull her closer, and let myself believe that this is ours to keep.