Page 81 of Love In Translation

If he loved her as much as she loved him, then anything was possible.

Emotion rippled through him. “I do. So damn much. I’ve never loved anyone as much as I do you.”

Her heart fluttered in her chest and peace ran through her. She was home, at the place she always longed to be.

“I love you too. And we can figure this out, together.”

Hope skittered across his face, and the grip on his arms of the chair loosened. “How?” he demanded.

“I’m not sure yet, Fletch. It’s something we need to talk about, discuss, probably argue about.” She saw he needed more and shrugged. “Maybe you can shorten your expeditions, or maybe you can accept that offer to present the documentaries of those Lazarus animals, the ones back from extinction? Or maybe you can hack through a thinner jungle or cross a smaller desert.” His mouth quirked as hope and humor slipped into his eyes. “Whatever you do, we can be together when you aren’t exploring.”

“Okay, I can do that. The Lazarus documentaries, that is.” He grinned. “I’m hot shit, but I’m not sure I can change the jungles or make the deserts smaller.”

She made a show of rolling her eyes before laughing. Then another thought occurred, and she grimaced. “Is there any way you could move your home base to the East Coast so I could keep working at the UN?”

He stroked her arm, from her shoulder to her wrist. “Most of the planning could be done via video conferencing,” he assured her.

“And your production company?”

“The same,” he replied. “Being based here wouldn’t be a problem.”

Rheo knew something was worrying him. She couldn’t dive into happiness and excitement until they settled the big issues between them.

“What’s still bothering you, Fletch?”

He winced. “I don’t think I can live in Brooklyn, Rhee,” he admitted. “I’m happy to move closer to you, but I can’t do a city.”

Fair enough. Rheo thought for a minute. He’d made some pretty big compromises so far. It was her turn to go all in.

“If we were wealthy, I’d suggest we buy a second home, somewhere close enough for me to commute when you are home, but rural enough for you to breathe freely. I could stay here in this apartment when you were away.”

Fletch’s eyes lightened. “Maybe we don’t need a second home. Maybe we only need to buy some land,” he told her.

Rheo loved hearing his “we’s” and rejoiced at him treating them as a team.

“How so?”

“Despite you raising your pretty little nose at my having a tiny house, it is transportable, and it isn’t as tiny as you think. It’s probably as big as this apartment. And we could add to it, or build another house, when we have cash, making it bigger and more permanent.”

She’d totally forgotten he owned a house, tiny or otherwise. And, frankly, at this point, she’d move into a shed if it meant being with him. Crucially, what they now had were options. Her mind started working overtime.

“We need to find a place, or town, where you feel comfortable, somewhere you are happy to be when you’re home,” Rheo said, making mental checklists.

“I’m happy wherever you are.”

So sweet, but they had a million things to do. Plans to make. She needed a new spreadsheet... “We need to look at our schedules, check real estate listings, we need to—”

Fletch leaned forward and captured her face in his hands. “The only thing I need is for you to tell me you love me. And that we’re heading for bed.”

Rheo, her lists forgotten, smiled at him, feeling happy and soft. Safe and secure. And horny.

“I love you, Fletcher. Please take me to bed.”

Fletch stood, bent his knees, scooped her, and held her against his chest. When their eyes connected, Rheo swallowed at the depth of emotion in his eyes.

“You are, and always will be, my base camp, Rhee.”

“And loving you is all the adventure I need, Fletch.”

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