Page 57 of Unhitched

Chapter thirty-seven

Mya

“What is he doing here?” I whisper.

“Go find out, stupid.” My sister waves me off with her hands.

“Okay, okay.” I push back from the table, the chair legs scraping against the tile. Looking into my reflection on the microwave door, I run my fingers through my hair, tucking a strand behind my ear.

With each step I take toward the entryway, my heart thumps inside my chest. When he comes into view, I freeze.

He’s devastatingly handsome in his jeans, T-shirt and bomber jacket.

His hair doesn’t seem up to his standards of put-togetherness, but it might be a stress thing.

Why is he here? He’s tugging on the back of his neck, nervous in a way I’ve never seen him.

“Kace… What are you doing here?” I manage. From somewhere behind me, the record player kicks on, and the crisp sound of Daughtry on vinyl fills the air.

“You weren’t home when I woke up.”

“Umm. Yeah… I came to visit my sister.” I scrunch my brows, glancing around me .

“Visit?” His eyes pin on me, full of hope.

“As opposed to?”

His body deflates. “Moving here.”

“Movin–what? I left you a note.”

“Yeah, I read it.” His head tips back, and his fingers run through his hair like he’s upset.

“What’s going on? Are you okay?”

“No, Mya. I’m not okay. I woke up to find that you packed all your shit and left.”

“My suitcase, you mean? I brought the whole thing. I didn’t want to wake you by sorting through it.”

His face scrunches in confusion. “I tried calling you.”

I cringe. “Sorry about that. My car charger broke, and since we fell asleep before I could plug my phone in, it died on the way here. Thank god I no longer need printed MapQuest directions to get me places.”

His fists clench. “And the note?”

“What about it? Did it fall off the milk container? I was wondering if tape loses its effectiveness in the fridge. I should have left it on the counter. Sorry. You know my brain doesn’t function well in the morning.”

“What are you talking about?” His fist flexes before running through his hair again.

“What are you talking about?”

“I’m talking about the note you wrote me. About how you don’t want to be with me.”

Oh. That note . The blood drains from my face, and I divert my gaze to the carpet. Shit. Shit. Shit. “You weren’t supposed to see that,” I mumble to myself, shaking my head.

He’s frozen in my periphery, speechless.

What do I say? Is it a good thing he found it? I didn’t plan on him reading it. It was a pretty harsh letter. And yet… I glance up. “Kace…”

His gaze meets mine, and I swear both our hearts are beating in sync at full volume. “Yeah?”

“What are you doing here?” I bite my lip.

He takes a breath, stepping into my space.

He opens his mouth to speak but closes it, and my eyes lock onto his lips as he wets them.

I’m suddenly acutely aware that we haven’t kissed since the first time.

While it was a total disaster, I want nothing more than to be reminded of how it felt to have his lips on mine.

He slips his fingers into my hair, cradling my face and searching my eyes. My breath hitches. My brain short circuits. I will myself to be more light as a feather and not stiff as a board , but what the heck is happening right now?

His worried eyes shift back and forth across my face. “You don’t want to be with me anymore. Is that true?”

I shake my head, his skin brushing against mine with his gentle hold. “That’s all I want,” I admit, my fingers fidgeting between us. “Being with you is all I think about.”

“Fuck, Mya,” he mutters. His grip on my hair tightens as he closes the space between us, and his thumbs brush across my cheek. “I thought I lost you.”

“Lost me? I thought you didn’t even want me.” The way he’s touching me seems contradictory, but emotion wells in my chest at the thought that it could still be true.

He shakes his head in amusement. “I’m losing my goddamn mind over you. We’re past want at this point. I need you.”

“Really?” I ask like an idiot because… excuse me, what?

“I know I’m a moron. I’m sorry it took me so long.” He takes a deep breath like the oxygen will provide him courage. When he exhales, his breath is warm against my skin, and I want to steal it in a kiss. “I was scared.”

My hands softly grip his waist. “I’m not going to hurt you, Kace.”

He shakes his head. “I don’t want you to promise that. It’s not something anyone can guarantee because shit happens.”

“Okay. Well, what do you want then?” I beg. I’ll give him anything if it means we have a chance.

“I just want you.” He’s looking at me like I’m the eighth wonder of the world. “Exactly how you are. Except completely moved into my apartment. My bed. My life.”

This time, I’m speechless.

“Say something,” he says over the loud beating of my heart.

I grin. “I knew you did illegal things with your hacking.”

I catch a sliver of an amused shake of his head, and then his mouth is on mine. His lips press against me, soft but commanding. He doesn’t waste a single second, swiping his tongue, asking for access I happily give him.

My hands slip under the hem of his T-shirt so I can feel his skin against mine as our kiss deepens. It’s already everything I’ve ever wanted since the first time and worth the painfully long wait for this moment.

Our tongues tangle, and with each kiss, we’re brought closer together. His fingers slip further into my hair, cradling the back of my head, and my stomach flutters. My grip on his waist pulls him flush to me. Kace groans, and I can’t help but smile at it.

Knowing I can kiss him anytime I want now, I break the connection.

He chases my lips, closing the small distance again to give me a single kiss.

He pulls back just enough to press his forehead to mine, his grip falling to my ribs.

He brushes his thumbs right below my bra line, and I curse the long-sleeved tee that separates us.

I can’t help but smile. “I didn’t peg you as a stalker.”

“I couldn’t wait another second,” he says breathlessly. “And now that I know it’s even better than I imagined, I’d break a hell of a lot more laws.”

“We have so much time to make up for. Do you know how many times I’ve wanted to kiss you in the past two months?”

He grins quickly before kissing me again. “Not as many times as I’ve wanted to kiss you.” His eyes shift over my face.

I chew on my lip, fighting back my smile. “What are you thinking?”

“About how we should go have breakfast with your family. ”

I deflate a bit. It’s not that I don’t want him to spend time with my family. I just want him to myself first, now that he’s mine . “Really?”

He leans until I can feel his breath against my ear. “And the whole time, I’ll be thinking about how I can’t wait to be inside you. With you being mine this time.” My cheeks flush, and I chew the corner of my lip. He pulls back to take in my reaction and chuckles. “You’re so fucking cute.”

Pressing my face to his chest, he wraps his arms around me in a hug, and everything about this feels perfect. “I don’t want to wait to be alone with you,” I say into his jacket.

“We’ve got time.” He pulls back, slipping his hand into mine. “But we drove separately, and going home means we have to be apart for two hours, and I’m not ready for that.”

My grin widens. “Okay, fine. Pancakes it is then.” I tug him toward the kitchen. “But you have to promise you’ll still want me in your home no matter what embarrassing stories my sister tells.”

He stops, and it jolts me a little. Pulling me back into his arms, he says, “Our home,” and kisses me senseless again.