Page 73 of Only for Love

He presses his lips to my hair. “Might not be what either of us had planned, but that was one of the best moments… ever.”

True. One for the record books.

His cell phone rings, and I sigh. “You need to get that?”

“Not mine. Oh—shit. Yeah. That’s me.” He reaches to his back pocket and digs out a phone, swiping the screen to accept the call. “Hello?”

He listens, and I watch, curious about who is calling him on a Saturday morning when I didn’t think anyone knew he was back.

Grayson pulls himself off the couch and paces. “When?”

More silence, and his brow furrows. “Can do. Thanks.” He ends the calls and pockets the phone then crosses his arms over his chest and stares out the window.

“Who was that?” I ask. There’s something on his face that I can’t read. An uncertainty. Or maybe apprehension. But there’s also a determination. It flexes in his jaw and his neck and burns brightly in his eyes as he casts his gaze out onto my little front yard.

He’s standing at an angle that makes me appreciate howhugehe’s become—taller and broader than in high school. Everything about him is masculine and magnetic. It’s a curious feeling—not having anyone to love or to stare at and then finding some combination of model and action hero who wants to play house with me. And he wants to do more than just pretend.

When he turns to face me head-on, there’s hesitant vagueness hanging on his sculpted face. “I think… it was a job interview.”

“What?” I’m surprised—I don’t know why. He said he was staying, so that means work and a home and… I haven’t thought about how any of this will pan out. Do we date? Do we… what? And what about the Army? Does he have to go back?

I feel myself growing flustered, thinking about the bevy of unknown factors. The internal questions blur and ring in my ears. The pressure of the future suddenly feels oppressive as though answers and decisions need to be made right now.

“Hey, hey—easy there.” Grayson’s at my side, swallowing me in his arms and chest.

I’m not sure I’ve ever noticed my heart as much as since he’s been home. Right now, it’s beating against my ribs as I’m surrounded by his muscles, hidden from the world.

He strokes the back of my head. “What just happened there? Why’re you freaking out?”

“I don’t know,” I mumble, too afraid to voice hopes and concerns. Our relationship-out-of-nowhere seems steady yet so fragile. I’m worried that if I blink wrong, I’ll somehow jinx that magic.

“Don’t hide from me, Ems.”

“A job and… you said you wouldn’t leave, wouldn’t hurt me. But you’re really staying here?”

He nods against me, and I move with him as his body shifts. “Anywhere you are, I swear I’ll be there.”

“Really?”

He tears me from his chest and levels me with a stare so solemn I’m dizzy over whatever he’s about to promise.

“I said I was laying claim to you, Emma, and I want the same thing for Cally. You’re the only family I’ve ever had, and I want that back.”

Cally… family… don’t blink. Don’t wake up.

“Believe me?” His eyes darken in a way that commands my complete attention. “I’ve done nothing for you to give me that trust, but I need you to anyway.”

I’m not pressed against his chest anymore. The warmth that encapsulated me moments ago is gone, but I feel different. Life’s shifted—I’ve been hanging on this roller coaster for years, and now it’s as if we’re cautiously slipping toward smooth sailing. The lump in my throat eases, and my eyelids lift, my gaze falling on the most handsome man I’ve ever seen.

“What do you say?” He inches closer.

“I love you, Grayson.” Deep breath. “When it comes to us, I’m all in.”

He wraps me tight and kisses my temple. “Love you, too. You’re the only one for me.”

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