Page 64 of Finding New Dreams

I hummed deep in my throat. “Then I need something from you.”

Was it my imagination or did she sway closer to me? Her gaze fell to my mouth. “Yeah?”

“I need…” I smiled and pulled back a few inches. “Your fingerprint. For my tree.”

“Oh!” Rose clapped her hands to her pink cheeks. Damn, she was adorable. “Of course! Any preference on color?”

I chuckled to myself as she spun around and danced her fingers over the paints as if deciding. “Whatever color you want. As long as I have a Rose leaf for my tree of courage.” While she carefully added a teal leaf to my painting, I asked, “Just out of curiosity, why did you ask me to put one on yours?”

She peeled her finger off the canvas and took a moment to admire her work before facing me again. “This might sound silly to someone like you since you live life whatever way you want. And that’s great,” she added quickly. “But you gave me the courage to go for something I really wanted but wouldn’t normally let myself have.”

“And what’s that?”

She smiled. “A fantasy. Something that usually lives in my dreams, my art, or my books. Like an amazing kiss from a sexy stranger. And ArtsyHotGuy3234, a guy who flirts up a storm of butterflies in my stomach—something I didn’t think was possible after years of dating. So I asked you to be that guy again even though I have no idea where we go from there.”

I wanted to drop to my knees in front of her and tell her how much I wanted to make all of her fantasies come true. Anything she asked, she could have.

But she wanted to go slow. For now. And I could give that to her. Hell, I could go so slow, it’d be like torture. Sweet, sweet torture. Then I wouldn’t be alone in my agony.

“What’s that wicked smile for?” she asked, tapping my lips with her finger. But she pulled it away before I could press my lips to it. Smart girl.

“I’m just looking forward to all the talking we’ll be doing.” With a ridiculous amount of effort to not touch her, I sidestepped her to grab my painting. “I’ll make sure to have my phone on me at all times. Day and night. You should too.” I shot her another smirk over my shoulder before carrying the painting into the studio.

ArtsyHotGuy3234 was going in for the win. She wanted a storm of butterflies? I’d give her a hurricane of them.

16

ROSE

True to his word, ArtsyHotGuy3234 messaged me that very night.

Just a few words. But enough to put a smile on my face as I fell asleep.

ArtsyHotGuy3234: You looked beautiful tonight. Sweet dreams.

And the messages continued every day. Back and forth until it felt as though we were compiling a screenplay.

He attended pet yoga with me and a couple of borrowed cats from Furry Family. He’d been surprisingly good and kept up with the class easily—when his fluffy companion wasn’t flopped over his arm, leg, or back.

After that, he’d messaged:

ArtsyHotGuy3234: Ever thought of couple’s yoga?

RoseWithLove: If you’re asking if you and Chester should become full-time yoga partners, the answer is yes.

ArtsyHotGuy3234: LOL. As much as I love cleaning a pound of fur off my clothes, I meant you and me. What do you say we make a human pretzel together?

Thankfully, I was in the privacy of my apartment because my face burned hotter than my tea kettle. But I couldn’t resist replying.

RoseWithLove: I know I’m flexible enough for that…but are you?

ArtsyHotGuy3234: Only one way to find out…

I couldn’t think of anything to say so I drank my tea and read one of the new books I’d gotten from the Twisted Oak. Owen kept a decent romance section there. But I couldn’t focus on the story when I had one waiting right there on my phone.

RoseWithLove: Did you ever finish that book you borrowed from me?

ArtsyHotGuy3234: I did. And it was quite the finish ;) I was a little sweaty by the end.

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