Page 101 of Echoes of You

Nash’s lips twitched. “Maybe.”

I huffed out a breath.

He bent and brushed his lips across mine. “Hey, a little bodyguard roleplay might be fun…”

I grinned against his mouth. “You might have a point there.”

I sank into the contact, deepening the kiss. My tongue tangled with Nash’s until he pulled away, breathing a little heavier. “We can’t. Not tonight.”

I groaned and let my head fall back to his chest. “Fine.”

Nash chuckled as his fingers tangled in my hair, moving in gentle strokes. “Do you want to go to The Wharf next weekend?”

I pulled my face back a fraction. “The Wharf?” It was Cedar Ridge’s fanciest restaurant. I’d been there a handful of times over the years, mostly with the Hartley family for one special occasion or another. The food was delicious, but it wasn’t really Nash’s scene.

He swallowed. “Isn’t that what you do when you’re dating? Go to fancy dinners?”

A hint of a smile played on my lips. “Do you think that’s what I want?”

Nash sighed, his fingers stroking through my hair again, the feeling heavenly. “The guys were giving me a hard time about the fact that I hadn’t taken you on a proper date. I’m not good at that kind of stuff, but you deserve it. To be spoiled with all the stuff that comes with a relationship.”

I pushed up on my elbow so I was looking down at Nash. “You’re right. I do deserve to be spoiled. With the things that mean the most to me. Do you know what those are?”

He stared up at me, so much emotion in those green depths. “What?”

“Feeling your arms around me. Having that sense of comfort and home just by being in your presence. The certainty that you know me so well that you would bring a dog home before I even told you that I missed having one.” I pressed a hand to Nash’s chest. “You make me feel safe, understood, seen…loved. You have for my entire life. I wouldn’t trade that for a million fancy dinners.”

He reached up, his hand sliding along my jaw. “You can have the fancy dinners, too.”

“Honestly, I don’t really want them. I’d much rather have our all-the-toppings pizza from Wildfire while sitting on our couch.” I’d had the fancy dinners and extravagant galas, and the truth was, I didn’t like them all that much. “I love the way things are between us. The way they’ve always been. I just wanted to add some hot sex to the mix.”

Nash barked out a laugh. “How’d I manage to land my dream woman?”

I grinned. “Just lucky, I guess.”

He pushed up, taking my mouth. “Damn lucky.”

Nash’s phone let out a series of signals, and he cursed as he pulled away.

I glared down at the device as he tugged it out of his pocket. “Now it’s your phone that’s the cockblock.”

He smiled, shaking his head. But that smile fled as he scanned the screen.

“What is it?”

Nash’s knuckles bleached white. “Lawson went to interview Adam tonight. He has an alibi for your attack.”

My stomach twisted. “It could’ve been my dad. Or it could’ve been random.”

“Or Adam got someone to cover for him.”

That did sound like something he would do.

Worry carved itself into the planes of Nash’s features, and shadows swirled in his eyes.

My fingers trailed over his face. “We’re going to figure this out. And in the meantime, I promise I’ll be more careful.” I would’ve given anything in that moment to ease the storm inside Nash.

He cupped my face. “Can’t have anything happen to you, Mads. It would ruin me.”

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