Page 194 of Burning Ember

He shakes his head, “Nah, no reason to now.” He looks down and grins. “Plus, I promised Will I’d take her for a ride today.”

When I bite my lip, he laughs, and pulls it from my teeth. “Doll, calm down, I’ll go slow like I did last time, and only on these back roads.”

“Okay. Just be careful. I don’t want to have to maim you. I kind of like how sexy you are.” I slip off the counter and kiss him one more time.

When we break apart, he asks, “Do you think I can bribe Will to start sleepin’ in her own room? Maybe I’ll let her open one of her presents early.”

I throw him a cheeky grin. “She’s very bribable.”

His thumb caresses my cheekbone. “Are you sure you’re ready for that?”

“Luce, if your hand was in my panties right now, you would not be asking me that. If you knew how many nights I’ve stayed awake wondering if I should turn around and wake you up with my mouth—”

“Fuck. You’re kiddin’? ” Then he groans and looks down as his erection returns.

A knock on the door a few seconds later has us jumping apart and Mav scrambling for the towel he dropped. I open the door only as much as I dare and slide out of the doorway. As I do, my eyes land on Lily.

“I heard that by the way. Miss wants to be an elementary school teacher,” Lily teases. “What exactly do you plan to teach the little minds of the world? Mmmm . . .”

“Lily, seriously.” I smack her arm. “Where’s Will?”

She waves me off. “Downstairs eating a whole bucket of those mini chocolate chip cookies we got at the mall.”

She turns to head back downstairs, but I lay my hand on her arm. “Uh-mmm . . . I need to go to the store. Now that you’re back, do you want to go with me?”

Her eyes light up. “Of course. Like I’d say no to more shopping.”

“I need to go to the pharmacy. Get a couple of tests.”

Her smile disappears. “The drug store is not what I . . .” Her eyes widen. She clasps her hands over her mouth and gasps. “Are you pregnant?”

“Jeez, Lily. Shhh. What if Will hears you? I don’t know yet, okay? That’s why I need the tests.”

The door opens behind me. Spinning, I come face to face with Mav in dark jeans that hang loosely on him and nothing else. His cologne, a scent that makes my brain fuzzy with thoughts of sex, wafts off of him.

When both Lily and I simply stare for who knows how long, Mav quirks his eyebrow. His lips curl into a smirk. “Somethin’ you need, Doll?”

“Uh-mmm, I’m just going to go down and help Will with those cookies,” Lily says and hustles down the hall.

My eyes fall to Mav’s torso. It doesn’t take them long to latch onto the new tattoo. It has both an image and words circling it. His hand grabs mine and he moves my fingers so they’re touching the black and gold snake, and the red diamond it’s coiled around.

“When did you do this?” My eyes flicker up to his.

“A few days before you were discharged from the hospital.”

‘Why?”

“Because it’s a promise.” When I arch my brow, he explains, “Even though you’re as strong as a Diamond, I’m still always going to be here to protect you.”

I run my fingers over it again. The new tattoo lays on his abdomen in the exact same spot where my bullet scar is on my body. I tilt my head to read the words circling the image. My fingers dance over each word and Mav shudders. I look up to see he has his eyes closed. And God . . . he looks so at peace.

Silently, I read the words.

Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. 1 Corinthians 13:7

Paying it forward is not always easy. But it’s always worth it.

EMBER