CHAPTER 24
Zaki
I saw Arwyn enter the studio while in the throes of repeated dégagés while the girls planned their next mode of torturous ballet drills for me. I clumsily danced over to her, spinning into a very badly executed pirouette. I ended with a curtsy, holding out the edges of the tutu she’d made for me. When she smiled, I relaxed and dropped a knee to the floor for an over-the-top ending pose.
“You love me?” She held up her phone. On the screen was the statement I’d posted regarding our relationship.
“I do.” I glanced back at the girls to make sure they were still deep in their plotting and took Arwyn’s phone. I set it on the floor and took her hands in mine. “I love you, and I’m so sorry for what happened last night, Wynnie. I should have been more vigilant.”
She smiled. “Monty called me. He said he was to blame for all of it because his security was incompetent and I should go easy on you and will I please forgive him so that Tasha will speak to him again?”
I laughed. “We’ve caused quite a stir.”
Arwyn smiled and reached for my hand. I stood up and let her pull me out of the room and around the corner until my back was against the wall.
“I had Monty put me on speakerphone, and I told Tasha there was nothing to forgive.” She reached up and wrapped her arms around my neck, her fingers twirling the short ends of my hair. “There was no intent to harm.”
“Not an ounce. So … we’re okay?”
“Almost.”
“Almost?”
“Are you forgetting the kiss-and-make-up part?”
“No. I was just dragging it out to make you want me more.”
“Oh really? Playing hard to get, huh?”
“Trying. It’s not working too well, though, is it?”
She shook her head. “Big fail. You should just kiss me and concede.”
“I can’t argue with that.” She closed her eyes, and I lowered my lips to hers, savoring their softness for a beat before I put my heart and soul into a kiss that was meant to be remembered.
Too soon, she broke the kiss. “What will we tell the girls?”
“Those who kill snakes together stay together?”
She snorted. “Can you ever be serious?”
“Wynna-bun, I’ve never been as serious as I am right now. I love you. And I want us to be together.”
“I hear a ‘but’ coming.”
“But I can’t stay in Colorado.”
“That’s okay. I can’t, either.”
“You can’t?”
“Not if you and the girls aren’t here. I’m kind of attached. Because I love you, too.”
I laughed and pulled her in for another kiss, a deeper one. “I’m so glad I skipped the Olympics.”
She pulled my face back to hers, and we picked up the kissing. At some point, I heard giggles and whispers.
“Is Wynnie going to be our stepmom?”
“I hope so! But—you don’t think she’ll be mean, do you?”
“Oh. Yeah, stepmoms can be mean. What will we do if she’s mean to us?”
“I don’t know. Lock her in a tower?”
“We don’t have a tower.”
“We’ll have to take her to a castle, then. Xavier has a castle! I’m sure he has a tower!”
“Yes, let’s ask him!”
It was hard to keep my lips from laughing, so I gave up trying.
Enough was enough. I pulled Arwyn to me and turned us to face the little plotters. “Wynnie doesn’t have a mean bone in her body, girls.”
Isla rested a hand on her hip and tilted her head. “Daddy, she helped you kill a snake.”
“Because she loves you,” I protested. “Requirement number one of a good stepmom.”
“Daddy!” Amelie hopped with excitement. “There’s a list of requirements for a good stepmom?”
“There should be, don’t you think? Why don’t you girls go make one? Add ‘must love children’ on the first line.”
“Daddy, the first line is for the title of the list.” Amelie shook her head and turned to her sister. “C’mon, Isla. We have work to do!”
“That should keep them busy for five minutes.” I turned back to Arwyn, unable to stop the smile tugging at my lips. “Now, where were we?”
Her eyes sparkled as she whispered, “I believe we were in the middle of?—”
“This,” I finished for her, my voice a low murmur. My gaze dropped to her mouth—soft, inviting, and begging to be kissed. Slowly, deliberately, I slid an arm around her waist, pulling her close, feeling the warmth of her body against mine.
Her lips parted, a silent invitation, and I swooped her up into my arms. Her surprised chuckle dissolved into a gasp as I claimed her mouth with mine. The kiss was slow at first, tender, exploring, until the spark ignited into something more urgent. I shifted her in my arms so I could cup her cheek, and deepen the kiss, pouring every ounce of longing, hope, and promise into that moment.
When we finally pulled apart, her cheeks were flushed, her breath was shaky, and her eyes were locked on mine. I smiled, brushing a stray strand of auburn hair from her face. “Losing myself—then finding myself with you—is finding home.”
She melted in my arms, her lips curving into the kind of smile that made me want to kiss her all over again.