Page 54 of I Saw Her First

You’ve been through hell, Wes. You deserve something good.

Pauline’s words from lunch come back to me, and resolve straightens my spine. I cross the room to Daisy and, taking a big breath, blow out the dancing yellow flames.

There’s only one wish on my mind this year, and it’s about damn time I make it come true.

Daisy grins as smoke rises from the candles, carrying the cake through to the kitchen. I follow, watching as she sets it on the counter, then turns back to me, gnawing on her bottom lip.

“I hope you got what you wanted for your birthday,” she murmurs, gaze moving over the Yankees hoodie I put on after showering at the pool.

I shake my head, stepping closer. She’s less than a foot away from me, and I don’t miss the way her eyes darken as she looks up. I swallow, knowing that once I say this, I can’t take it back.

But I don’t care anymore, because even if she is Jesse’s ex, I knew herlongbefore he did. I’m not proud of myself for thinking this, but I can’t stop the thought that’s looped through my head ever since Jess brought Daisy home.

I saw her first.

As for her being inexperienced… I’m shocked to realize I don’t care about that as much as I thought I did. Maybe I should, but the fact is, I had a child with Lydia before she was even close to Daisy’s age. Daisy seems young to me now, but she’s old enough to know what she wants, and she wants this as much as I do. That much is clear. Besides, I don’t have to sleep with her. Not yet, anyway.

But I also can’t keep denying how much I want her.

“Daisy…” I inhale shakily, lifting a hand to her soft cheek. “What I really want for my birthday, more than I’ve wanted anything in a long time, is you.”

23

Daisy

My breath stutters. “What?”

Did he really just say what I think he did? Is it possible I misheard him?

His fingertips trail down to sweep my hair back from my shoulder, his touch igniting fireworks across my skin. Instead of answering right away, he lowers his mouth to my collarbone, brushing his lips over the freckles there, and heat sparks low in my belly.

“I want you,” he repeats, drawing back to meet my eyes. Then he slides his hand into my hair to cradle my face, stroking my cheek softly. “Daisy…” My name comes rushing out on an exhale. “I’ve wanted you for months.”

I raise a trembling hand to touch his chest through the Yankees hoodie—hisYankees hoodie. It’s so much softer than I remember. An image of Jess flashes through my mind, and I hesitate. When I stop to think about it, I know getting together with his father would hurt him, and I don’t like that, but he didn’t think twice about bringing some random woman home at the beach house, did he?

Still, I’m not the only one who needs to worry about Jesse here, and I’d hate myself if Wes did something he’d later regret.

“What about Jess?” I ask, almost afraid to say his name. Afraid it will snap Weston out of this and he’ll step away again.

“I don’t care.” His gaze falls away, and he gives a firm shake of his head, as if to emphasize his point.

But I need to be sure. “I don’t want to come between—”

“There’s nothing to come between. He won’t speak to me, no matter how hard I try. He doesn’t want a relationship with me. He refuses to grow up, and I’m sick of fighting everything. With him, with you… I won’t deny myself a chance at happiness anymore.” Weston’s gaze comes back to mine, just as the word “happiness” leaves his lips.

That’s all the confirmation I need.

I slide my hand around the back of his neck, fingers gliding across his soft, warm skin, and tug his mouth to mine.

When our lips finally meet, every fiber of my being sighs in relief. Every worry, every fear, every reservation evaporates from my mind as our lips touch. It’s tentative at first, as if neither of us is sure how to proceed, but that only lasts a second. I feel the moment he gives in, and I melt against his solid form, gripping his sweatshirt. His rich, warm cologne floods my senses, the press of his mouth on mine enough to make me combust.

But I want more. I want so much more of him.

I graze my tongue along his bottom lip, whimpering as he parts his lips to let me in. My body becomes electric, charged with months of longing, with all the things I feel for this man in front of me. And when he meets my tongue with his, his moan makes heat pool hot between my thighs.

“Daisy…” The word is a breathy rasp between kisses as his mouth trails along my jaw, my neck. “I want to take this further, but I don’t want to rush you…”

I take his face in my hands and force him to meet my gaze. “I’ve wanted you since you first walked through the door at Joe’s, Wes. I’m beyond ready. I want all of you. I want everything.”

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