Page 95 of One Little Mistake

I’m shaking all over. Down to the tips of my fingers. I’m scared. It’s been so long. A whole year. And the birth… I worry I won’t be good enough, that I’ll mess something up—but Max eases every fear with his touch, his patience, his care. He grounds me and helps me let go. Of everything.

“I can’t control myself around you,” he murmurs between kisses. “You’re so beautiful… it’s unreal.”

His words hit me right in the chest. Am I really beautiful?

“Tell me you want this, too. That you want me.”

“Yes,” I exhale, already burning for him. I don’t want to think about anything else. Not now. Not when this—this thing I’ve dreamed about for weeks—is finally happening. I fall into him, completely. No regrets. Just a rising tide of pleasure carrying me far from anything real. I whisper his name, rake my nails across his skin, nip at his neck, and silently pray that come morning, this won’t vanish like some cruel dream.

He’s like a starved animal—and I don’t mind being his prey. Everything about this feels right. So right I don’t even think about stopping. We were made for each other. Cut from the same cloth. I just wish we’d found each other sooner.

“I really hope we didn’t wake Grandma,” I mumble, half-laughing as I try to catch my breath, still reeling from what just happened.

“She mentioned her hearing’s not so great,” Max grins, lying on his side and pulling me close, threading his fingers gently through my hair. “Did I hurt you? Are you okay? I’m sorry if I was too rough.”

He kisses my shoulder, and the lump that forms in my throat almost chokes me. God, please. Let this be real. Let this last.

“I’m okay,” I whisper. “Really.”

I want to ask, what now? But I’m scared. Scared that Max will say it was just a one-night thing. That what happened between us was nothing more than chemistry.

“I’ll stay with you guys here for a week or two, if that’s okay?” he says.

“Why are you even asking? You’re going to do whatever you want anyway. Since when has my ‘n’' ever stopped you?”

“You don’t want me to stay?” His voice tightens slightly as he props himself up on his elbow.

“It was a joke, Max.”

“Well, your sense of humor’s... weird.”

“Says the guy who once named a cactus after me,” I laugh.

My hand finds his in the dark, our fingers intertwine, and we fall into a comfortable silence. There’s barely enough room for the two of us on this narrow couch, but I wouldn’t trade it for a king-size bed. Because Max is here. With me. That’s what matters.

His breathing is steady, his arms are wrapped tightly around me—like he’s afraid I’ll disappear.

I don’t want morning to come. I don’t want this night to end.

I fight sleep with everything I have, but eventually, it wins. And when I open my eyes, it’s already light out.

I reach across the mattress—and touch nothing.

Max is gone.

I sit up quickly.

Where is he? Did he leave? Did he just.vanish?

Panic grips me. My mind races with worst-case scenarios. I scramble out of bed and glance over at Tim’s crib. Empty.

Breathe, Erin. Breathe. You just overslept. He didn’t leave you.

Still, my heart won’t calm down.

I pull on my robe and rush out of the room barefoot, desperate to find them. I stop in front of the window—and that’s when the tears hit me. Hard.

But they’re not tears of heartbreak. They’re tears of something else entirely. Joy, maybe. Or overwhelming tenderness.

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