Page 52 of Words I Couldn't Say
I scooted back from the chair. “I’ll be right back. I need to take this.” As soon as I was out of earshot, I held the phone up to my ear. “We were just talking about you,” I admitted, to which he let out a deep, hearty laugh.
“Is that so? Good things, I hope?” he teased, causing me to grin.
“It seems we’re busted. Mom knows I’ve been sneaking out, and she knows exactly where I’ve been going.”
“What did I tell you?”
“I know, I know. You were right,” I conceded.
He let out a low whistle. “Can you say that again?”
“Shut up.”
“If it makes you feel better, your dad cornered me earlier, too. We’ve definitely been outed, babe, and not only that, we’ve been summoned to a family dinner.”
My jaw dropped. A family dinner?
“You should probably close your mouth, or else I’m going to think it’s an invitation.” His voice thickened with desire.
When I whirled around, Tucker was standing off to the side, his eyes full of delight and the corners of his mouth quirked upward in a sexy grin.
“What…what are you doing here?”
He strolled towards me and placed one hand on the small of my back. The other came up to cup my cheek. His eyes bored into my own, and his gaze enraptured me. “It seems we’ve been caught,” he murmured.
All I could do was nod.
“I know it’s only been three weeks, but, Ava, having you back in my life has renewed me. I don’t want to hide how I feel for you. I don’t want to pretend friends with benefits is acceptable. Because it’s not.”
“What are you saying?” I asked.
“Something I should’ve said a long time ago. I want you to be mine. Only mine.” He paused then grinned a goofy smile that melted my heart. “I feel like I’m in middle school, but out of respect for your father—and out of respect for you—I have to ask. Ava, will you finally, once and for all, make an honest man out of me and be my girlfriend?”
My heart soared to heights unimaginable. This was it. This was exactly what I’d been waiting for. This was exactly why I’d returned home, and it was finally happening. I couldn’t answer quickly enough.
“Yes, Tucker. Nothing could make me happier.”
His eyes softened at my words. I wished I could read his mind because my own was running a thousand miles a minute, and my heart was racing equally as fast, both nervous and thrilled to give myself to him in this way. He was asking not just for my body, but for my heart as well. Heck, he’d already had it all along.
He drew me into his arms and bowed his head before capturing my mouth with an urgent hunger that set my insides on fire. Our chests were pressed together, and I nearly forgot we were making a very public display of affection.
The kiss was lingering, intoxicating, and deliriously different from any we’d ever shared. It was as if he were attempting to convey his feelings in that one act of affection. My breath was ragged when he pulled away, and he left me astounded by the expression in his eyes. It was a magnificent mixture of desire and heat coupled with all the devotion and tenderness he still felt for me. Things I still felt for him. For years they’d lain dormant and one kiss, one touch, one confirmation that I was his, was enough to revive those emotions. And they quickly took hold deep down inside both of us.
“I’ve never wanted anything more. You’ve made me the happiest man on the planet.” With one more quick peck on my lips, he took a step back and gave me an ear-splitting grin that lit up his features. “Ava Banks. My girl. It feels like I’ve been waiting forever to call you that. I’ll see you at family dinner tonight.”
My hands rose to my lips and the heat of his kiss lingered on my lips long after he’d departed.
When I returned to the table, I knew that the entire scene had been witnessed. Charlie and Mom were grinning, while Lexi, ever the romantic, had tears in her eyes.
Lucy held her hands over her chest and gushed, “That was so romantic.”
Maya and Chloe watched Tucker with stars in their eyes before their heads whipped around to look at me.
“That’s the boy from next door?” Maya asked.
I nodded.
Maya fanned herself. “Wow. He certainly grew up.”
I grinned at her. “Yes, Maya, he definitely did.”
Chloe piped in. “Does he have a brother?” Her eyes gleamed with hope.
“Chloe Amelia, if your father heard you talking about older boys…” her mom, Charlie, warned.
Her daughter gave an exasperated sigh before she leaned closer to her mom with a mischievous grin crossing her lips. “You think that would stop me? After all, I am your daughter.”
