Page 17 of Steadfast

“Agreed.”

He didn’t let me go, but his hands moved, sliding across my wet shirt until he’d wrapped me in a tight hug.

“I’m gonna head home and change,” he said against my neck, pressing a light kiss there. “I’ll come get you at five.”

“How old are you? Eighty?”

“If I get you at five, we can get our food and have more time to spend before you have to get home,” he explained, leaning back to press his forehead against mine.

“Five, it is,” I agreed, grinning.

“Wear a dress.”

“Don’t tell me what to do,” I replied instantly.

“Please, would you wear a dress?” he corrected dryly. “I like being able to slide my hands up your skirt instead of having to take your jeans off.”

“Well, when you put it that way,” I grumbled good-naturedly.

“Swear to God, you’re the most argumentative woman on the planet.”

“You could have someone easier,” I replied breezily, pulling away.

“If I wanted easy, I wouldn’t still be chasing you,” he shot back, pinching my ass.

“You already caught me.”

Richie laughed ruefully. “I don’t think I’ll ever really catch you,” he argued. “See you at five?”

“Yep.”

I was smiling as he left the room, but what he’d said made a little knot form in the pit of my belly. We’d been together forever, what did he mean when he’d said he’dnever catch me? I was well and truly caught. The only thing that would make me morecaughtwould be a ring on my finger, and that obviously wasn’t going to happen for years.

I pushed the worry into the back of my mind as I changed out of my wet clothes and went down to help Saoirse plan out dinner. Cian had disappeared somewhere and Aisling was busy on the living room floor, dressing her Barbies, a hairbrush and a million tiny hair ties beside her.

“I’m just going to make tuna casserole,” Saoirse announced when I strode into the kitchen. “Everyone likes it, and it’s impossible to screw up.”

“You don’t have to make it, Sersh. I can just make something before I go.”

“No way.” She shook her head. “You never go anywhere. I can handle this.”

“I go places.”

“You go to work.”

“That’s a place,” I joked.

“You didn’t even go to your graduation,” she pointed out, pulling things from the cupboard.

“It’s just a stupid ceremony,” I said, boosting myself onto the counter. “Why do you and Cian keep giving me shit for not going?”

“Because it’s a big deal.”

“Not really.”

“Well, maybe we wanted to celebrateyoufor once,” she said, slamming a can of soup onto the counter. She turned to look at me. “You celebrate all our crap!”

“Where is this coming from?” I asked gently, confused as all hell.

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