Page 22 of Starting Our Chance

However, this new position was also incredibly nice. I was tucked against his long, lean warmth in an innocent cuddle, but it wasn’t until his arm draped around me that I was suddenly hit with a wave of nostalgia. Being with him was both familiar and new. Tears pricked at the corners of my eyes. I’d missed this connection with him.

Mama came in moments later with the popcorn. She returned to the kitchen to putter about for a while, but it was past her early bedtime, and she soon hollered to us that she was off to bed before wandering up the creaky old stairs. I knew that her presence in the house would weigh more heavily on the good Southern boy next to me, rather than me, the horny daughter who would do anything to get at that wicked mouth of his again.

While waiting for Mama to get settled for the night, I absently wondered if other adult children who’d returned home ever let their parent’s presence bother them. Well, I wasn’t a child any longer, and soon I would be making enough money to afford a place of my own. In the meantime, I just had to make the best of things.

By the time Mama went upstairs, I had overcome the wave of heartache and now sighed contentedly into Duke’s warmth. Whatever was on the TV had us sharing a few laughs, but mainly it sparked a friendly, chatty conversation. Although nothing earth shattering or mind blowing happened, it was so good to share this time with him.

During a natural pause while we watched the blond playboy make a fool of himself on the TV, I blurted out the one thing that wouldn’t stop rolling through my mind. “What does this mean?” I gestured to the space, or lack thereof, between us as I curled into him.

Duke’s body twitched against mine, and then he was pulling me over so that I was part way up his lap, but more importantly, facing him. “There’s no denying there is something between us,” he said softly. “There always has been. And if I don’t give it a chance right now, then I might find myself missing out on something I was meant to have. And I’ve already missed out on you once, so I’m not letting you walk past me again.”

“Duke,” I murmured. “I’m no saint. And I’ve made huge mistakes in my life—”

“And when you’re ready to let me in, you can tell me about them. But I can promise you”—his eyes bored holes into my very soul—“that it won’t make me run. You’re here now, and I’ve got you. And if you’ll let me, I’ll keep you.”

“Wow.” I swallowed hard. “I don’t know if I deserve that.”

He shrugged. “I think you do. I know your personal accomplishments are important to you; they always have been. We both came from not much at all and made ourselves through blood, sweat, and tears. The way I see it, we’ve found one another now, and all that we were and what we’ve become makes it the perfect time to start our chance.” He paused and trailed his fingers through my hair. “I have my own share of scars from the battles I’ve fought to make it to the top. But no matter what happened, I never stopped thinking about you. Hell, when you were up north, I would daydream about rushing up there, faking a chance meeting and making you mine. But it was never practical, so I just buried myself in work.”

My heart was full. This man understood. “You never stopped thinking about me.” I repeated. When Duke nodded, I whispered, “Wow, what do you know about that.”

And yet, what could I offer? He was so confident that we had both taken our time apart to grow and seize the bull by the horns. Yet here I was, an adult living back home with her mother.

“I’m broke,” I blurted out, letting the most obvious of my secrets out into the open just to see how he’d react. “I have nothing to offer you or this fresh start of ours.”

Instantly, a spark lit his eyes. Raking his knuckles down my cheek, he captured my jaw and rubbed his thumb across my lips. “You have everything to offer me because I don’t want money, I just want you. If you’ll have me, that is. And just so we’re clear, I could never share you with another, but I’m not asking you for forever, either.” My heart twitched in a weird way that I didn’t want to think about as he added, “I’m just asking for a chance, right now, in the present. I can’t let you pass me by again—the future is where we see what this turns into. This is for us right now.”

My heart was so full, it felt ready to burst. So, to relax some of the tension, I made a silly quip about living with my mom and how impractical it was for anything more than a few stolen kisses.

“Remember when you were sick, and I brought you a brandy because you thought drinking it would cure you so you could attend that parade that you desperately wanted to dance in?”

I laughed, slapping my palm against his chest. He captured my fingers and gave them a squeeze. “Yes,” I muttered breathlessly. “I remember. You snuck into my room; climbed the damn porch.” I gestured to his adult physique. “But Duke, you’re all grown up now, not some lanky teen bean pole who could scale anything.”

Duke wiggled his brows at me. “For you, Lore, I’d try anything.”

“Well, there is always your place.” I cocked my head to the side, suddenly needing to ask something. “Do you live alone?”

Something flashed through his eyes before it was gone so fast that I didn’t know if it had been there at all. “Yeah, basically, aside from an old tabby who lives in the barn and rules the yard from my porch. My folks live down on the river. I wanted them in town, and as soon as I could afford a really nice place, I had them move. And the bulk of the farm is closer to Harrisburg then to Waynesboro Parish. I have workers who bunk there, but I just couldn’t let this place go.” His voice had been so excited, until he got to the last bit and gestured to the window.

Following his gaze, I thought of something to say to lighten the mood. “Well then, there we go. We can just use your place.” I dropped a kiss on his forehead. “I’d really like my token of appreciation for rounding up the cattle now.”

His breath hitched, and I heard that rumble again from deep inside his chest. Score! I’m going to make him do that over and over, until it becomes my name on his lips.

Duke was hot. So hot.

My teeth sunk into my bottom lip as I thought of how his mouth had tasted. I longed to taste it again.

“Lore,” he murmured, his posture tense, watchful.

Breathlessly, I asked him, “So, what were you going to give me that was better than the flowers? As far as I’m concerned, I only got a tease.”

His hands slid over my hips and pulled me back onto his lap. I swallowed hard and grabbed for his shoulders. There was no mistaking the look in his eyes: hunger, raw and powerful. This man was going to devour me—if I let him. Hooking a finger on the waistband of my yoga capris, Duke pulled them low enough to reveal the tiny black panties that I was wearing.

He took an agonizingly long time to trail his fingers over my waist and up my belly to my sternum. I closed my eyes and let the sensation of his touch consume me.

“Is this what you want?” Duke bent his head while simultaneously landing a kiss on my flat stomach.

Unsure of what ‘this’ meant, I nodded my head vigorously. If it was sex that he was insinuating, then yes, absolutely. If it was a relationship, I was going to give it my all. But forever? That was such a long time that I wasn’t sure that I could hold up my side of the bargain. I had worked so hard to reform myself, but I also knew that this reformation process wasn’t complete—and it was possible that Duke could be caught in the cross fire. Could I really make something work with him?

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