Page 95 of 2204 Hunter Lane
“What’re you doin’ there, darlin’?”
“I just… I need to make sure this is real.”
I chuckled. “Real as rain, sweetheart.”
Bambi hugged me closer, burying her face against me as she drifted off to sleep. “Please don’t hate me anymore.”
For a couple of minutes, I laid still, staring outside her window as the moonlight illuminated her skin. She was a fucking treasure, something I lost for so long when I didn’t realize I had it.
How long had she wanted me? How long had I wanted her? None of that… none of that mattered, not in this moment because we had each other. And for the first time since we met, there was nothing getting in between that.
All of the poor decisions I’d made in my life, I never bat an eyelash towards. Nothing concerned me after my mom passed away; nothing fazed me or shook me or rattled me. But her, this girl holding on to me like I was her knight and shining armour… I couldn’t fuck it up no more. I didn’t want to.
I blamed life for constantly shitting on my head, taking things away and burying me until I broke. Bambi was one of those things; the nuisances I’d rang true for so long, another piece of the problem brought onto me by the gods above.
But she wasn’t the problem at all. I was. And I’d been so blind to see that, when she was trying to show it to me this whole time.
For once, I stared at the sleeping girl in my arms and I didn’t blame life.
For once, I thanked it.
Chapter Thirty-Six
Marley
When I was younger, my dad used to say that we should always hang on to the things we fight for even if they’re out of reach.
Mind you, he said it from a business perspective; that if you dig your claws into an outstanding offer, to see it through no matter the obstacles.
But in my case, waking up in the arms of someone you fought with and fought for, that advice remained steadfast.
My entire room was in boxes; all the clothes I’d bought over the past six months, food stored in a cooler, everything I’d taken with me from my past life, to the new.
I averted my eyes to the wall clock that read: 11:32am, but time was sprinting by every second I remained locked in Hunter’s grasp.
All the memories from earlier this morning vibrated in my brain, filling me with butterflies and pleasure. The way he touched me, held me,handledme… God, it was like nothing I’d ever experienced.
Before Todd, I’d only slept with a handful of people. Two of which were unmemorable drunken hookups and the rest were toxic flings.
Todd never went down on me unless he got something in return, and even that was a stretch. I’d utilized my vibrator more than we’d have actual sex and that was saying something. Why I ever fell for that man was above my comprehension, but we all make mistakes, don’t we?
Besides, that mistake led me here, to this moment, with Hunter Lane.
Throughout all the volatility that we’d endured, I never expected this moment. His strong arm securing me against his core, his head atop of mine, the soft breathing that came with every rise and fall of his chest.
I was so sure New York was the right decision for me after my brother told me he was expecting a baby girl. Every night I contemplated going back, since he practically shunned my parents just as they shunned me and we were siblings again.
I missed him, I missed him so freaking much. Seeing my baby niece grow up would be a dream, as well as pursuing my potential, considering I’d proven myself in a rural town was exceptional experience on my resume. And yet…
Yet I was holding on to the man who held on just as tight. And right here, right now… this is where I wanted to be.
I craned my neck upwards to examine his sleeping features. I’d never seen him like this; peaceful, quiet, serene in his own head without the damage and defeat he’d masked throughout his day to day.
Unconsciously, I ran my finger down his cheek and grazed the stubble along his jaw, blushing at the touch of him so close to me.
He stirred, flexing his arm while slowly opening his eyes. Those crystal diamonds were soft, calm like waves and inscrutable. His eyelashes fluttered as he blinked a couple of times before leaning down to press a gentle kiss on my lips.
“G’mornin’, sweetheart.”
