Page 69 of Silent Count
I turn my head to find his lips, and we kiss softly, slowly. My hands rest on his arms, and I’m not sure I’ve ever felt so close to him. We didn’t just fuck; we made love.
As we stand there, kissing, he pulls out of my body. The water starts to run colder, and he leans back and breaks the kiss. “We’d better finish up before we turn to ice cubes.”
I step under the spray and make quick work of washing my body—again—rinsing off his cum that’s dripping down my legs while he washes his hair. When I’m done, I move so he can finish, and then I step out of the shower, grabbing my towel off the bar. He comes out while I’m wrapping my towel around me, and I knot it on top of my head.
I bend down to grab my clothes, and he reaches for me.
“Let’s leave the clothes. We can clean up later.”
“Okay, but let me get you a towel. We forgot to grab one for you before we came in here.” I stand and go out of the bathroom and grab him a towel from the hall closet.
He’s standing in front of the mirror when I return, running his hands through his hair. If I had washed my hair, it would have been a whole process, but for him, a simple finger-combing works just fine. And literally everything he does looks sexy, including this.
I hand him the towel, and he wraps it around his waist and doesn’t bother drying his body. Then he takes my hand in his and we walk to my bedroom. It’s not too late yet, but I get the feeling he’s just ready to be in bed.
We separate, and he walks to the other side of the bed. Together, we pull the sheet and comforter back. I untie my towel and climb in at the same time he does. I lie on my side, facing him. Once I get comfortable, he faces me, too, one of his arms tucked under the pillow.
His hand touches my face as we look into each other’s eyes. “Chelsea, I …” He pauses and sucks in a deep breath. “I just need you to know that I’m really invested in this. Us.” He exhales.
I’m not sure that’s what I expected him to say, but I’m glad he did. We haven’t really defined our relationship; we have just been living in the moment—or at least I thought so. But I think this weekend apart had us both thinking about more than what might happen tomorrow.
“I feel the same.” I’m not really sure how to articulate it without getting into my past—that I might not be the best at knowing what to do about all these feelings or what we should do from here.
“Good. I’m relieved.” He chuckles as his hand moves down my arm, and he takes my hand in his. “I just feel like it’s really important for me to lay it out there because I don’t ever want you to doubt that you’re a priority for me. I know I have a lot going on this year with the draft, and you have to figure out where you’re going to law school, but I want us to be there for each other. I guess I just wanted you to know that, and I want to see where your head is.”
I’m starting to wonder if this is why he was quiet on our way home.
“Yes, we both have a lot going on, and I do feel invested in us. It’s definitely not something I expected, but I’m happy I have you in my life. I don’t know that I can even imagine life without you now, honestly.”
“Really?” he asks, eyebrows raised, looking hopeful.
I’m not sure Bo Callaway has ever had to feel like the world wasn’t his, so I’m sure this is a foreign feeling to him, just like it is for me to open up to someone. Yet I still don’t think I’m ready to tell him all of it.
“Really.” I let go of his hand and trace his face with my finger.
He really is the most beautiful man I’ve ever seen, and I can’t believe he’s mine.
He sits up and rests his weight on his elbow and forearm. “Can I tell you something else without you getting freaked out?”
Oh shit.
“Yeah, of course.” I swallow.
He tucks a loose piece of hair behind my ear. “I’m in love with you, Chelsea. Like, crazy in love with you. I don’t expect you to say anything back. I just need you to know that’s where I am.”
I’m not sure if I feel elated or terrified. Maybe a little of both. But I know I don’t want to lose this man because I love him too. So, despite my fears about losing myself to someone else, I let go.
“I love you too.”
CHAPTER
SEVENTEEN
CHELSEA
It’sBo’s birthday this weekend, and since he has a game, we’re celebrating early. I have a little get-together planned with our friends later, but I wanted to do something for him alone first. And today is their only day off practice this week, so I took the opportunity to do something special with him off campus.
“You’re really not telling me where we’re going?” Bo looks over at me, smirking.
