Page 95 of Center of Gravity

I was almost too nervous to eat, but standing there in Rob’s arms lessened my anxiety and I felt my appetite returning. On multiple fronts. I ran my hand down his chest and over the front of his trousers, cupping him through the fabric as I bit my lip.

He shook his head, a warning flash in his eyes, but it was all show. “Don’t you dare. You know exactly what you’re doing.”

I nuzzled his neck and flicked my tongue at his earlobe. “And you love every second of it.”

The spatula he was holding clattered to the counter, and then he palmed the globes of my ass, squeezing as his hips pressed into me. He kissed me again, a deep, sensual twist of his tongue over mine. Then he pushed me away.

Staggering back a step, I laughed. “Levelling up, huh?”

“I don’t know what that means.”

“Uh huh.” I caught a sliver of his grin as he turned back to the stove and stirred the eggs, his tie tucked inside his shirt in that careful way that always made me smile. I reached for the coffee pot again and he lightly smacked my hand from the handle without even looking at me. “It’s already on the table. Go sit.”

“Who’s sassy now?” I winked at him and sauntered off to the table.

Winslow leapt up from the couch and took up his position as Sentinel of Scraps at my feet because he knew I was a sucker. I bent over to give him a few scritches. I mean really, who turned down a three-legged dog? No one.

“Nervous?” Rob asked as he set a plate of eggs and bacon in front of me, then retreated around the island to refill his coffee.

I leaned over the waft of steam rising from my plate, inhaling. “Yep.”

“You’ll dazzle them. I have no doubts.” He leaned a hip against the counter, picking up his mug for a swallow and eyeing me over the top. “You going to eat?”

Why was he so concerned about whether or not I was going to eat?

“Fixing to. Worried I might pass out and screw up my chances?”

“Nope, but a good breakfast is important.”

My brow twitched up and I gave him a funny look for his funny behavior. He appeared a little nervous himself and tugged at his collar once, almost upsetting his coffee. Huh. Maybe he really wanted me to get this job, maybe he was hoping he could stop telling people he was dating a dude on a moving crew or something. He’d never said anything like that, but still. A vague sense of unease washed over me that morphed into pressure behind my eyes.

I licked my lips, glanced down at my plate, then picked up my fork. I could feel his gaze riveted to me as I cut into the eggs.

Something clinked against my fork. Squinting in confusion, I peered down into the yolky yellow clump, where a bit of metal gleamed. I gave him a questioning glance and then pushed the eggs aside. “It’s a key.”

“To my apartment.”

“Okay.” Color me confused. “I already have a key, though.”

Rob set his coffee down, running his hand over his jaw. “Right, but that was for convenience.”

“Yeah, I know. And it’s very convenient.”

“This one’s official.”

It dawned on me suddenly and I felt like an idiot. “You want me to move in. For real? Officially?”

“For real. Officially,” he repeated, then came around the counter again and knelt beside me, his eyes searching my face. “And desperately. If you’re ready, that is.”

He knew I’d liked the comfort of having my room at home, of being around Mom and Lainey part of the week. There were still tender parts on me and being around the two of them lightened my load sometimes in a different way than Rob did. Though he’d done a lot for me. He’d listened to me countless times when missing my dad hit me especially hard, had wiped the tears from my cheek and held me close and never said sugary bullshit trying overly hard to make me feel better. He just let me be and existed beside me. And I loved him for that, too.

I scooted my chair back, twisting around in the seat so I could bend down and embrace him, breakfast forgotten. “I’m ready.”

He rose on his knees, cupping my jaw. The kiss he gave me this time was so gentle and sweet it made my heart stutter. “I was hoping you’d say that, but if you hadn’t, I would tell you it’s an open-ended offer.” The concern in his expression went straight through me like a shot of honey down my throat, coating my insides with a gooey warmth that made me smile. This man had turned me into a lovestruck sap, and the only reason I wasn’t freaking out about it was that I knew he was in exactly the same boat.

“No, I’m ready. I promise.” I hadn’t been waiting for an invitation, per se, but I’d hoped that eventually we’d be living together, and now that it was in front of me, I was almost giddy with excitement. Now, if I could just get a job in Savannah, I could leave Buffs behind and really feel like we were settled together. I sealed my promise with a kiss and he braced his hands on my knees, standing with a groan.

“Good.”