Page 117 of Praising Haru

I frown. “Hard.”

He laughs. “How aboutNot Thatfollowed by an ellipsis?”

I stare at him. “Um, the first part of my forum username. Why?”

“Because you can tack anything on the end. Not that feminine. Not that masculine. Not that vanilla.”

I grasp his face and plant a huge, noisy kiss on his lips. “I love it!” I bounce up and pace. “I could design and make my own clothes between doing freelance jobs. I wouldn’t make much from either to start with, but business would grow, wouldn’t it?”

I pause long enough for Kyle to nod.

“It would be risky, but what’s the worst-case scenario?”

“You tell me.”

“It doesn’t work out, and I go start looking for jobs again.”

“Right.”

I stop, clasp my hands beneath my chin, and stare at him. “I can make it work.”

He smiles.

“I can make it work.” My tummy is light and bubbly. I straddle his lap and kiss him. “I can make it work.”

“I believe in you. Tell me what I need to do to help you make your new dream come true, beautiful.”

My heart swells, and I fall in love with him all over again. “Can I get back to you?”

“Of course. Decision made?”

“Yes. I’m going to follow my dreams here.”

“Am I part of your dream?”

I roll my eyes. “Do you have to ask?”

He chuckles. “No.”

“Not yet, but when I’m earning enough money to pay my way, do you want to look for somewhere big enough for two?”

“You’re asking me to move in with you?”

“Yes.”

“I would love to, gorgeous. We don’t have to wait. You could move in here, and we could find somewhere bigger once your freelance business andNot That…have taken off.”

I gnaw my lower lip. “Would we be rushing into living together?”

“How long have we known each other?”

“A year.” I chuckle. “More like fourteen months.”

He gives me a stern look. “How long have we known each other, beautiful?”

“Not eleven years.”

“Are you sure?”