Page 39 of Carver
“I’m in awe of your courage.”
You can tell someone that you love them without using those words. That’s what Dom has always done. He didn’t know what love was at first. He didn’t even realize that he so fully wears his heart on his sleeve. He couldn’t say something to me until he meant it fully, but meaning it for him meant that it took a long time. He had to pick it apart, study it, look deep inside himself. He’d give me what he knew, in all his beautiful honesty. He’d tell me exactly how he felt.
I can hear theI love youin what he just said. We just made each other come, but I want to take him upstairs, to our bed, and love him fully. I want him inside of me. I want him to mark and memorize and relearn every single bit of my body. I want to beg him in silence and in whispers.
A tiny little squeal from upstairs shatters the moment.
I’m sitting on the table with no pants, my leggings ripped to shreds.
Dom reacts to that cry shockingly fast. He retrieves his t-shirt from the floor, tugs my sweater over my head, and helps me shrug on the oversized clothing. It billows around me like a dressbefore he even lifts me off the table. He already has his jeans in place before he takes my hand.
“Can I come with you?”
“Of course! This isourhouse.”
He blinks guiltily. “Do you think we woke her up?”
“Babies just sometimes wake up. She often makes little noises throughout the night. It wakes me up, but it doesn’t wake her up. She’s probably gone back to sleep already.”
We walk up the staircase together. Dom peeks around the screen, but I edge past.
Elowen is already asleep, if she ever woke fully. She doesn’t always cry out. Sometimes she’ll giggle and she’s not even awake. I don’t know if it’s a reflex, or if it’s dreams, but I hope they’re always good. I’m not one of those parents who can’t face the fact that their child won’t be a baby forever. I can’t wait for Elowen to get older. I want to know the person she’s going to become. I want to teach her, share in her day, find out more about what she loves and treasures. At the same time, I can see how people say they wish they could hold onto a moment forever.
This one.
With her face so peaceful, lashes resting on her sleep flushed full cheeks, little lips pursed like she truly is having sweet dreams because she knows just how much she’s loved, and even though she’s in a new place, she doesn’t doubt that she’s adored and above all, that we’ll always keep her safe.
I blow her a sleep kiss and step back around the screen. Our bedroom is on the other side, past the other set of wicker dividers.
Our bedroom.
I still can’t believe that I get to say that.
It’s Dom who leads the way. My eyes drop straight to his naked back, broad and rippling with muscle, and then lower, to his ass.
It looks good in those jeans.
Good being a word for all the other words my brain can’t even properly conjure right now. I feel like I’m back in that first moment of seeing him, where I went straight into brain mush territory because there was a full riot of utter chaos happening.
The ceiling is just tall enough where it dips down on the far end for the headboard, but the middle of the room is quite tall, and on the other side, a long dresser fits perfectly. There’s no mirror because it won’t fit, but beside a large chair tucked in the corner, there’s an arched gold mirror mounted to the wall.
Dom sits down on the end of the bed. He wraps his arm around my waist and buries his face there, tilting it to press his cheek flat against my belly. His breath is hot through his t-shirt. There aren’t many times in the past when I wore his clothing. It’s the small things that are so special.
“I wasn’t there for her birth, but I’m here for herbirthday. I was thinking we could rent something. A hall or maybe a room in an art gallery or something, and invite your family and the people from the club.”
I thread my fingers through his hair. “That’s—”
“A bad idea?” His brows crash over his nose as he looks up at me. His hopeful eagerness slays me. “I know we just met most of them, and it’s not like we’d have to invite anyone as a thank you for this. They don’t expect to be thanked. Dravin’s made that clear. It took quite a few times of him having to repeat it to get it through my head, but I think it’s finally there. It would just be something nice. But that’s… it’s… it would be a lot of people. We could just do something small. Just us, or with your family. Or both. I just want it to be perfect for you and Ellie.”
If I didn’t love Dominic with every bit of my being already, I would, just because of the way he’s looking at me right now. Like we’re the center of his whole world.
“I’d love to rent out a room and have everyone there. My family was a little bit worried when I first told them about the club, but not when I explained about Dravin and Kael and all the things the Satan’s Angels have done for Hart. Once they realized that it wasn’t just a bunch of thugs, they had zero reservations about letting us come here and make our own decisions as a family. It’s crazy how you can know someone for years and not get them, but feel totally entrenched into a tightknit community after just a few hours. It’s the people. It’s their stories and their hearts. That makes all the difference. That’s what life should be about. I want that for Ellie. Community. Family. People. Before anything else.”
Dom’s arm tightens around my middle. His hand splays over the small of my back. “You makemefeel like I’m the center of your everything. After just a few minutes, I was sogonefor you.”
“You’ve never told me that before. I thought I annoyed you.”
“Never. I was fighting myself, scared senseless, in utter disbelief that you’d even talk to me, but I was also doing the craziest happy dance. You know how much I love those popcorn ice cream treats?”
