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When the door opens, Stanley launches himself off the couch and his feet skitter across the hardwood as the lock clicks shut.

“Hey, bud. Were you a good boy for our girl?” Cade asks.

Our girl.

I bite back a smile, my chest doing that fluttery thing it's been doing more and more lately.

Things between us have been shifting, evolving into something deeper, more real.

Last night proved that. We talked through a damn dog camera about nothing and everything, and I found myself saying things I've never dared voice before.

He gave me pieces of himself in return, made me feel seen in a way that terrifies and thrills me in equal measure.

It's happening slowly, this healing he's doing to me. Cade is carefully piecing me back together, mending every crack in my shattered heart one fragile shard at a time. And I'm letting him because he's the only person in this world I trust not to destroy me all over again.

I rise from the couch, padding barefoot toward where he stands in the hallway, that massive hockey bag slung over his shoulder while he lavishes attention on Stanley.

God, he looks good. Tired but victorious with stubble darkening his jaw.

“Glad to have you back,” I say, my smile in full force now. I can’t help it. When I see him, I feel like a kid in a candy store.

When Cade looks up at me, time stops. We just stare at each other, drowning in this magnetic pull that's been growing stronger every day. He was only gone one night, but every cell in my body ached for him in ways I didn't know were possible.

“You’re still in my shirt.” His eyes drop to the purple fabric and before I can come up with a fancy retort, he grabs me, pulling me flush against his chest. His mouth lands on my neck as he leaves gentle kisses behind.

“I missed you so much, Pretty Girl,” he murmurs, his voice low with a rough edge that sends a shiver down my spine.

I melt into him completely, arms winding around his broad shoulders as I breathe him in. The warmth of his body, the desperation in his touch, ignites something wild and needy in my chest.

“I missed you, too,” I admit, making him pull back just enough to cup my cheeks. His eyes roam my face for a few seconds before he drops down and kisses me.

It’s not gentle or hesitant. It's consuming, claiming, stealing every breath from my lungs as he sets my entire world on fire. I clutch at his hoodie, desperate to get closer, but before I can pull him deeper, he breaks away, forehead pressed to mine, breathing like he just ran a marathon.

“Did you have a good sleep?” he asks, his voice gravelly and strained.

I blink up at him, my lips still tingling while my entire body screams for more.

“Not as good as when you’re here.”

He closes his eyes with a pained groan, hands tightening on my hips. “Don't say shit like that, Sav. The only reason I haven't already carried you to our bedroom and locked the world out is because Stanley would never forgive me.”

Smiling, I rest my hands on top of his. “You really do have a flair for the dramatics, don’t you? How was your trip?”

“It was good. It was a tough win against a good team, so I can’t complain,” he says, his hands gripping my hips. “Happy to be home, though.”

Home.

His eyes darken as he looks at me, and I hate that look. That look makes me wonder if he thinks I’m his home now. The feelings I have for him run far deeper than I’d ever anticipated so soon, and I’m still grappling with the reality of what that means and how crazy what we’re doing really is.

“Happy you’re here too.” I swallow, breaking our clinch as I look around the room for something else to do so I don’t have to deal with my feelings.

Before I can figure that out, Cade slips past me into the kitchen and tosses his bag onto the counter.

He gives Stanley another scratch on the head and unzips his bag before pulling out a brand-new dog toy in the shape of a polar bear.

Stanley dances on his feet, and Cade smiles. “Aw, buddy, did you really think I’d be able to leave you for a night and not get you something special?”

He points at the floor in front of Stanley. “Sit.”

Stanley drops his butt to the floor immediately while staring up at Cade with his tail wagging.

After a few seconds of making him wait, because apparently even dog training requires dramatic timing, Cade tosses him a gift.

Stanley snatches it mid-air and trots over to the couch with his prize, and immediately begins his symphony of squeaks.

Squeak. Squeak. Squeak.

The sound would drive most people to homicide, but we’ve grown used to the noise.

“He’s going to destroy that thing in under an hour.”

“Good. Means I picked the right one. Now, where was I?” Cade mutters to himself, still rummaging through the bag.

Arms folded, I lean against the opposite counter, watching him rifle through that massive duffel bag like he's searching for buried treasure. The thing is enormous. Seriously, I could probably curl up inside it and still have room to spare.

Maybe next time I could stow away and surprise him.

The thought makes me smile before reality kicks in. What am I even thinking? I wouldn't need to hide in his luggage like some lovesick teenager. He's already invited me to Connecticut—openly, eagerly—so he can meet Adley.

Cade looks over his shoulder just as I’m pouring him a cup of coffee and he gives me that heart-stopping smile again. Will it ever not make me weak in the knees?

“I just need to get a couple of things,” he replies, digging around more forcefully this time. After making the drink, I place it next to him and he mumbles out a soft thank you before saying, “Aha. Here it is.”

He pulls out a sleek box and slides it across the counter toward me. It’s a phone, and I glare at it in confusion. “It’s the latest model. Figured it made sense to add you to my plan so I can actually call you like a normal human being.”

I place my hand on top of the box, surprised and a little overwhelmed by his kind gesture.

“Cade, this is—”

“Practical,” he cuts me off before I can protest. “It's practical, Sav. You need a phone that actually works, and I need to be able to reach my fiancée without having to hack into pet surveillance equipment.”

His fingers drum against the counter, nervous energy radiating off him.

“It’s also got the best updated camera, so when you come and watch me play tonight, you can take some killer shots of me.

” He winks and I want to laugh. I want to be grateful for such a thoughtful gift, but it feels strange to accept something like this.

Not to mention I don’t want to leave my old phone behind.

It might be old and broken, but it has a lot of memories on it.

“I know you probably don’t want to give up your old phone, and I get that, but keeping it at home is probably the safest place for it. I spoke to the guy, and he said it’s easy to transfer your photos over. All you need to do is connect everything to your laptop.”

“My laptop?”

He pauses and studies me for a second. “Shit. You don’t have one, do you?”

I shake my head, embarrassed at the omission. What college student doesn’t?

“How have you been doing all your assignments?”

I shrug. “I write all my notes out and then I head to the library after classes with any free time I’ve got and use the computers there. It’s worked so far.”

He shakes his head, looking at me in awe before pointing at me. “See. I told you. You’re a fighter. Feel free to use my laptop whenever you want. Same passcode. July 17. We’ll get you one too, if you want.”

A new laptop?

He wants to get me that too?

Can’t he see he’s already given me everything?

“Cade,” I say, more forcefully than I expect. “It’s too much. You don’t have to do all of this.”

His brows furrow. “What if I want to?”

“It’s just you’re giving me so much, and I’m giving you nothing. I’m starting to feel like a burden.”

“You’re not a burden. You’re my wife.”

“I’m your fiancée .”

His smile fades.

“I don’t want you to feel like you have to do all these things to help me out. I can probably afford to buy one myself.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. I set some cash aside, and if I’m not using it for a rent deposit, I can use it to purchase a laptop. It’ll be cheap, but it will do the job.”

It feels weird saying that. For so long, I’ve worked my ass off never thinking the money was mine because I was working toward a bigger purpose. Cade has changed everything, though, and I should be more appreciative of that fact.

“Okay,” he says quietly, and I worry I’ve upset him.

I take a step forward and place my hand on his jaw, pushing it up so he’s looking at me.

“Thank you, Cade. For making my dreams a possibility. You’ve done more for me than anyone in this world.

Thank you for the phone. I can’t wait to call Adley on it, but I don’t want you to ever think I’m taking advantage of you or the situation. ”

“You still don’t get it, do you? I want you to take more advantage of me,” he says with a little smirk. “In every way possible.

When he wiggles his eyebrows, I shake my head, pushing him away in jest. He doesn’t let me go, though.

He pulls me in for another kiss. His hand tangles in my hair, his fingers tightening just enough to make me gasp, and he crashes his mouth against mine.

Urgent and unrelenting, it’s almost as if he’s been as starving for this as me.

Cade’s lips trail lower, searing a path down my throat and across my collarbone. “I missed you,” he says against me, his voice thick with need, his breath hot where it fans across my skin. “Missed your smell. Missed your laugh.”

A shiver ripples through me, the anticipation winding tight in my stomach as I lean my head back, opening myself up to Cade. I don’t resist him. At this point, I think it’s clear I can’t. Instead, I arch into him, letting him take what he wants, which is everything I want to give.