Page 18 of The Heart of a Capricorn (BLP Signs of Love #19)

Five days had passed since Chauncey had to leave on his assignment.

I tried to keep busy with work so I didn’t worry myself to death.

That was hard to do because it had been radio silence from Chauncey since he’d left.

There hadn’t been anything on the news about it either, so I was completely in the dark.

Every time I saw Ciara, I would look for any indication of news, but she didn’t give any, or she just didn’t have any.

The day after Chauncey left, Ciara and I had a conversation about the relationship between Chauncey and me, and she told me she was happy for both of us. She also tried to assure me that Chauncey would be okay, but until I laid eyes on him, I couldn’t feel secure.

The good thing about working practically nonstop for those days was that I was able to complete a lot of the work, and we had made significant progress toward finishing it.

While I worked, the rest of the girls were out exploring the city. I didn’t have the mental headspace to do that if I weren’t doing it with Chauncey.

When I was at work, I was good. When I got back to my room and was alone, that was when the sadness crept in.

Only days passed, and I missed him like crazy.

I had time to think about my true feelings for him and realized that I had fallen in love with him.

It was crazy because it hadn’t been long, but still.

I couldn’t stop my heart from hammering every time I thought of him.

I missed the sound of his voice. The feel of his hands on me.

The way he felt when he was inside of me.

I just missed him. The crossword puzzles weren’t enough.

Nothing would be enough until I knew he was safe and sound.

I knew that if things progressed once we left, I would have to deal with him leaving on potentially dangerous missions.

But I also knew, or at least thought, that there weren’t that many unsafe flights.

I believed that the majority of the flights were safe.

If I knew all of that, why did I worry myself so much?

That was a question that I couldn’t answer.

Even the situation with Brice, yes, he died in a plane crash, but car accident rates were so much higher.

Maybe it was because it was the first time I had to deal with someone I cared about flying since Brice. I even managed to fly, but for some reason, I didn’t worry as much. It was something that I had no explanation for.

It was a Saturday, and I didn’t have work to distract me, so I stayed in my room all day.

I’d ordered room service for each meal. I had a massage and tried my best to relax, but I couldn’t help thinking about Chauncey.

I was afraid of watching the news and learning something bad had happened, so I found a station that showed old romantic comedies and watched those all day, curled up in my bed.

My parents and Katrina checked on me, but I wasn’t in the mood to talk, so I just sent them text messages to let them know that I was okay. I wanted to turn my phone off but kept it on in case Chauncey called. He promised me he would come back in one piece, and I held him to that.

I was in the middle of my movie marathon when my phone rang. I picked up from the nightstand, and my pulse raced when I saw Chauncey’s name scrolling across the screen.

“Hello.” I tried not to sound sad or anxious when I answered.

“Lyric.” He breathed a sigh of relief when he said my name. “I had to call to hear your voice.”

“Chauncey. I’m glad you are okay. I miss you, and I wish you were here.” A tear escaped and trickled down my cheek.

His background was quiet, so I wasn’t sure if he was back home, here in Vegas, or somewhere else.

“I miss you, too. What would you do if I were there?” His voice lowered, and my stomach tightened.

I scooted down in the bed until I was flat on my back. I stared up at the ceiling and gathered my thoughts. I’d much rather tell him how I felt in person, but since I didn’t know when I would see him again, I decided this moment would be the perfect time.

I closed my eyes and spilled my feelings. “First, I would hug and kiss you. Then I would tell you how much I missed you and how much I love you.”

I squeezed my eyes shut because I couldn’t believe I just told him that. I needed to, though. I learned over the years that it was best to tell people how you felt about them when you could.

My admission and Chauncey’s sudden quietness made me hot all over, so I tossed the covers from my body. Of course, my brain went into overdrive. Did I say it too soon? Did he not feel the same way?

“You love me, L?”

I kept my eyes closed as Chauncey’s voice soothed my nerves.

“Yes, Chauncey. I do. It’s crazy because we’ve only reconnected a few weeks ago, but these last few days made me realize that. So yes, Chauncey Baldwin, I love you.”

“I love you, too, Lyric Hampton. Listen, I have to take care of something, but I’ll give you a call back later.”

“Oh, okay.”

I wasn’t ready to hang up, but if he had something to do, I had no choice but to wait until he called back. I wanted to ask him a thousand questions, one of them being how he knew he loved me. I also wanted to ask where we went from here.

We hung up the phone, and for a minute, I just stared at the ceiling. Expressing my feelings to Chauncey made me nervous, but I also felt free. Knowing he felt the same way made things so much better.

A couple of minutes passed before I sat up and returned to watching movies. About ten or fifteen minutes after Chauncey’s call, there was a knock at the door. I ignored it because I hadn’t ordered any food, and I wasn’t expecting anyone.

The person knocked again, so I got up to answer it. Before I could reach the door, it opened, and Chauncey came swaggering into my room.

“Chauncey!” I ran and jumped into his arms.

His chuckle vibrated through my chest when he held me against him. He kissed the top of my head and palmed my ass. Tears fell down my face because I was so happy he was okay. Hearing and seeing it were two different things. I was also surprised that he was here in my room.

We embraced each other for a couple of minutes before we separated. I stood back a little and hit his chest. “Why didn’t you tell me you were coming?”

He chuckled. “I wanted to surprise you.”

“That, you did.” I wrapped my arms around his waist and hugged him again. I leaned back and put my hand on the side of his face. “I can’t believe you’re here and in one piece.” I stepped back and let my eyes roam over the length of his body to make sure he was, in fact, in one piece.

“I told you I was coming back. I know I can’t always guarantee one hundred percent safety, but I know I will always do what I can to make it back to you.”

A smile burst over my face. I laid my head on his chest, and the steady pace of his heart comforted me.

“Thank you,” I whispered.

I did all of that worrying for nothing. I let him go to fulfil his duty, and he came back to me unarmed. For that, I was grateful and happy. My heart was at peace. My mind was at rest. Maybe now I could enjoy the rest of my time in Vegas when I wasn’t working.

“What are you thanking me for?”

“I’m thanking you for coming back. I’m thanking you for understanding me and reassuring me that things will be fine.”

Chauncey bent down and kissed me. “You don’t have to thank me for that, but I understand.” His hands lowered from my ass to my thighs and picked me up. “I do want you to show me how thankful you are.” He winked as he carried me to the bedroom.

“I can do that.”

When we entered the room, Chauncey placed me in the middle of the bed. His pupils looked larger, as he held my gaze while he slowly removed my tank top and shorts I had on. Since I hadn’t planned on going anywhere, I didn’t have on a bra or panties.

My fingers ached with the need to touch him as he undressed himself. When he got on the bed and ran his finger down my arm, I shivered.

“You don’t know how much I missed you.” His voice was thick with emotions like love and need.

His dick saluted me, and my mouth salivated. I trailed my hand up his hard abs and over the tattoos on his chest.

“I missed you, too.” My fingernail gently stroked his nipple.

Chauncey placed himself between my legs. A slow smile built on his face.

The minute his lips were on mine, my knees weakened. He kissed me so deeply I got lightheaded.

His dick rested against my inner thigh, and I wanted him inside of me so bad. My body ached for him. I reached between us and put his dick inside of me, catching him off guard.

“Couldn’t wait, huh?” he asked when he broke the kiss.

“No.” I cried when he moved his hips.

Each stroke did something to set my insides on fire. Slowly, Chauncey made love to me as he stared at me.

Our hands were locked above my head. I was spread so open for him.

“Did you really mean it when you said you loved me?”

“Yes. I meant it,” I said through gritted teeth.

He felt so good inside of me that I didn’t want to let him go.

“Good, because I meant it too. I also mean it when I say I want you to be my wife.” He leaned over and licked the side of my neck.

My toes locked, and my core tightened. The orgasm that crept up on me would be hard.

“You want to be my wife, Lyric?”

“Yes! Yes!” I cried as my orgasm rocked my core.

It was no question that I would marry Chauncey, because he made me feel . Feel seen, feel heard, feel loved. I wasn’t afraid to be with him, and my gut and heart told me he was the one.

Chauncey smiled at me and kissed me again. His dick still lodged in me, stroking, and taking pieces of my soul with it.

“I don’t want you to leave Vegas without my last name.”

Oh, he was for real, for real.

He lifted my leg and put it over his shoulder. “Can we make that happen, Lyric? No matter where I am in the world, I want everyone to know that I belong to you, and you belong to me.” His lips grazed the side of my ear. “Answer me.” His pace quickened, and I felt his dick twitch.

“Yes, Chauncey.” Another orgasm slammed into me.

My parents or my best friend wouldn’t be happy about me getting married without them being there, but if Chauncey was for real, I would deal with the consequences later.

This trip wasn’t supposed to go this way, but there was nothing I would change. I felt the best that I’d felt in years. My career was thriving, and I had a fine ass man to call mine. There was nothing else I could ask for.