Page 46 of SlapShot Sweetheart

No, he was so much more than just her friend.

This man was meant to be her home, her heart, her future, and she was clinging to him like someone was going to steal away her favorite cookie that she just discovered. Her fingerswere curled in his hair while the other was clinging to his bicep for dear life. Was this what kissing him was like – because if so, she was kicking herself for holding off and fighting this for as long as she had.

“Theo…” she gasped as he broke the kiss, moving to kiss her throat.

“Are you…” he whispered lovingly, dropping a trail of kisses along her neck. “Free for dinner…” he continued, each word punctuated with a light kiss or a gentle grazing of his teeth that was driving her nuts. “… Saturday night?”

“Are you seriously talking?”

“Absolument…”

“English…”

“En Francais, mon ange…”

“I don’t even know what you are saying…”

“Better for me,” he chuckled arrogantly in that tender way that was just classically him when he was speaking to her. “Dinner Saturday?”

“Dentist?”

“Dinner,” he corrected, smiling as he stopped kissing her for a moment. “I want to take you to dinner.”

“Oh, um yeah, sure.”

“You sound enthusiastic.”

“I was being gobbled alive by some Frenchman, and you are talking about making plans, so yeah, there might be a tone.”

“Gobbled?” he chuckled.

“Distinctly,” she agreed, meeting his eyes as they shared a smile.

“Too much?”

“Just right.”

“C’est bon…”

“We’ve got to work on your English, buddy.”

“We could work on your French,mon âme sœur…”

“There you go again, saying stuff like that.”

“Does it bother you?” he whispered softly, holding her eyes and she saw a hint of vulnerability lingering in those dark depths, making her marvel at the miracle of whatever this was. He would never be one to carelessly assume everything was fine, but instead, he would always seek her out and treat her like she was precious because he was afraid to lose his footing on this common ground between them.

“No,” she admitted silently, not looking away. “I kind of like that you believe in things as crazy as soulmates.”

“It’s true.”

“People let their relationships fall apart all the time,” she countered quietly. “No one stays together anymore. No one remains married. Monogamy is a thing of the past, a pipe dream that once was, and…”

“Not for us,” he interrupted softly. “I’m never letting go if you give me the chance.”

“A chance to prove me wrong?”

“Oui,” he smiled, the corner of his lip lifting knowingly. “A chance to prove you wrong indeed,mon âme sœur.It might take a while, but I’m game if you are?”

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