Page 61 of Stunner (Whiskey Dolls 3)

She rounded the counter, coming to join me in the kitchen. Placing her tiny, delicate hands on my shoulders, she slowly guided me around so we were standing face to face. “Owen,” she started softly, reaching up to cup my cheeks. “You sweet, stupid man.” My heart sank. Then she smiled. “I could never think less of you, you idiot. I knowexactlythe type of man you are. You’ve got the biggest heart of anyone I’ve ever met. You’re one of the best people I’ve ever known. You were a stupid kid who did a stupid thing, sure. But you were in pain. I get that. What happened back then doesn’t define who you are, and it certainly doesn’t make you a bad person.”

“But—”

She covered my mouth with her hand before I could get my objection out. “Stop. You’ve been holding on to this for so long, you’ve managed to twist it up in your head, making yourself a villain,” she stated plainly, putting words to exactly what I’d been feeling the entire time. “Because of that, you gave your loyalty to a man who never deserved it.” She let out a small chuckle. “If I’m being honest, Jackson taking the fall is probablytheonlything he’s ever done that I respect. Well, minus the banging-your-girlfriend part.”

I reached up and wrapped my fingers around her tiny wrist, pulling her hand from my mouth and my heart beat against my ribs so loud, it was a wonder she couldn’t hear it. The relief I felt just then was like a two-ton weight lifting off my chest. I could finally breathe fully. “Christ, baby. Do you have any idea how incredible you are?”

“I do, actually. But no more secrets,” she stated with authority. “I love you, and I want what we have to work. That means we trust each other, okay? No more hiding stuff because you’re worried how I’ll take it.”

“Deal.” That was definitely a promise I would have no problem keeping. “In that case, I have one last secret.”

She raised a brow. “Oh?”

“Yeah. My secret is, I’m glad I stayed loyal to Jackson as long as I did, because it eventually led me to you. I can’t regret something that brought you into my life.”

She leaned deeper into me, resting her forehead against my chest as she wrapped her arms around my waist and held on tight. “I love you,” she whispered, happiness radiating in those three words.

“Then move in with me.” I hadn’t meant to blurt it out like that, especially after deciding it was too soon, but I couldn’t bring myself to wish I could take the words back.

She tipped her head back, her eyes wide. “You want us to live together?”

I snaked my arms around her, holding her close so she couldn’t escape as I said, “I want you to move in with me. I love you, baby. It might seem fast to some people, but to me, this has been a year and a half in the making. I want to go to sleep beside you every night and wake up with you in my arms everymorning. I don’t care where that happens. If you move in here or I move into your place. I just want it to be ours.”

“Here,” she blurted quickly, then curled her lips between her teeth.

My chin jerked back in surprise. I’d been so sure I was going to have to convince her; her response left me momentarily speechless. “What?”

She smiled coyly. “If I have to choose, I choose here. I want all those things too, sleeping beside you and coming home from work to you. And I want that here. I love this place.”

“Then it’s settled,” I said softly, lowering my forehead to hers as I breathed in her sweet, calming scent. “We’ll live here.”

She pulled back, slapping her hands against my chest. “On one condition,” she added sternly.

The corner of my mouth trembled with a suppressed grin. “Yeah? And what’s that?”

“You havegotto start throwing your scrubs in the laundry hamper! I love you, Owen. But you’re a bit of a slob.”

“Deal.” If that was all it took to get her to agree to move in with me, I was more than happy to do it.

27

ASHER

It had been a week since I agreed to move in with Owen. It had taken a bit for us to find time in our busy schedules to make the move complete, but tomorrow was the big day. Only a few weeks after moving back in, I was repacking everything in my place, including the espresso machine I’d stolen from Jackson. And this time, I was leaving for good.

My real estate agent hadn’t exactly been happy to hear from me after I’d backed out on her the last time, but after a ton of reassuring and just a teensy bit of begging, she’d come back on board. My place was listed for sale, and I’d had a handful of showings already.

“Are you sure you don’t want to wait until I can come over and help you?” Owen asked as he dragged his razor across his cheek, slicing off that stubble I loved so damn much. Fortunately, it would be back in no time. “I won’t be long. I just need to reassure Ms. Fletcher that her cat, Sprinkles, isn’t dying. She brings the damn thing in at least once a week, convinced he’s at death’s door.”

I moved into him, grasping his shoulder and lifting up on my tiptoes to press a kiss to his baby-smooth cheek. “She’s justlonely. Her husband passed away a few years ago, and that cat’s all she has. She brings him in so she can have a bit of human interaction.”

He let out a heavy breath. “I know. And normally I’d be happy to spend time with her, but not when we’d initially had plans to stay in bed the first half of the day and fuck until neither of us could walk.” He looked at me through the glass on the mirror. “I was really looking forward to that.”

So was I. But we had all the time in the world. “It’s fine, honey. I just have a little bit left to pack up, that’s it. There’s no need to wait when I can get it done in the same amount of time it’ll take you to confirm Sprinkles is alive and well and give a sweet old woman a little attention.” Because that was exactly what he would do. My man had a good heart, and he cared about every living thing that came through his clinic doors, animal and human alike. “I’ll be back before you know it. I bet I beat you home. Then I promise, we’ll spent the rest of the day in bed, fucking each other stupid, and tomorrow is moving day.”

He grinned at me, his beautiful smile making my heart flutter. Sometimes when I looked at him, I couldn’t believe I was lucky enough to have landed such an amazing man.

“I love you, baby,” he said in that deep, growly voice I loved so much as he hooked me by the waist and lifted me onto my toes. He kissed me again, only he took it deeper, swiping his tongue into my mouth and setting my blood on fire. I wouldneverget tired of kissing this man.

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