Page 108 of Tapped By My Roommate
“You awake?” Ethan checked as I sighed happily. It was nearing three a.m., and if one of us should be crashing right now, it was Ethan.
I blinked a few times to clear my head and tried to recall his question. “Yeah, sorry. What did you want to say?”
“It’s about Zilla,” he said. “I want to keep her.”
“Well, yeah, I figured after the whole rescue operation…”
“I mean, here. I want to keep her here.”
Ethan pushed down the blankets and levered himself up on an elbow. It was too dark to make out his features, but I couldfeelthe intensity as he hovered over me. This was important to him.
“I don’t want to foster her or rehome her, Rhett.”
He sounded so worried that I raised a hand to his face and drew him in for a kiss. “So bring her home.”
“She takes a lot of space.”
I nodded. “I read up on green iguanas. She’s gonna keep getting bigger, huh?”
Ethan licked his lips. “Yeah. She, uh, eventually might need a whole room since they’re small here. And, there’s only two in the apartment. I can probably keep my bed in with her for a while, or I could sleep on the sofa. Eventually, we might move, but until then—”
“Ethan.”
“What?”
“Is this your way of asking to move in with me?”
He looked confused. “We already live together.”
“To my room, I mean. If you want to move into my bedroom, all you have to do is ask. Zilla can have her space, and we can have ours.”
“You’d really be okay with that?”
“Absolutely. I want you in my bed every night anyway.”
Ethan blushed a little, which still charmed me. The blushes came less frequently than they once had, but each one was a gift that reminded me of Ethan’s sweet nature.
“I want that too,” he said.
Ethan and I had spent too long keeping our distance. Now, I wanted him in my arms as much as possible. My schedule was still crazy busy—and would soon be even busier once I started spending a couple of hours a week working on my car with Keith.
“But I just need you to know that Zilla is a big commitment,” he warned. “She’ll live a long time, and there won’t be any getting rid of her…”
“Well, you’re a package deal, aren’t you?” I asked. “Can’t have the lizard lover without the lizard. There won’t be any getting rid of either of you. Not if I have anything to say about it.”
A beautiful smile bloomed on his face before he rolled on top of me and showered me with kisses.
“Thank you.”Kiss.“You’re the best!”Kiss.“I love you so much.”
I laughed even as his body on mine made my skin buzz and awaken with new lust. I wanted him all the time. But his words choked me up. I’d known, really, that he loved me. But hearing the words made it tangible in a way it hadn’t been before.
I captured his face in my hands and gazed into his eyes. “That’s the first time you’ve said it.”
“Said what?”
“That you love me.”
His eyes widened. “Didn’t I say it before?”
