I wasn’t into labels,but I knew I was happy spending as much time with Carter as possible. In and out of the sheets. On my drive back to his place, I caught myself smirking.
I was okay to admit to myself that holding his hand as we walked into the clinic had felt right. I was even more okay to admit that when I’d kissed him, just a small press of my lips against his in the doorway of the staff room, I’d found it surprisingly hard to pull away and leave it at that.
When I had pulled away, albeit reluctantly, I’d brushed my thumb across his bottom lip. It was then that his new boss had appeared in the corridor. My attention had been drawn immediately to him. My grip had flexed instinctively on Carter’s waist and caused a small noise to escape from his lips.
I’d focused back on Carter immediately, wondering how he would handle the situation. I’d been relieved that his eyes were on me, and while his cheeks had flushed, the emotion playing on his features wasn’t fear or anxiety. Instead, confidence was evident. It was there in the sparkle in his eyes, the slight curve of his mouth.
I’d grinned, pressed my lips to his once more, and then pulled away saying, “I’ll see you at noon. Be good.” I’d winked before turning and heading down the corridor, directly toward Scott. I’d sought out his eyes, willing him to say something that would give me a reason to punch him. He’d remained silent, his jaw clenched and his eyes straight ahead after a brief flick to mine.
“Morning,” I’d offered with a smirk on my face.
He’d cleared his throat but didn’t say anything. A slight bob of his head the only acknowledgment I received.My grin had grown wider, and before I turned the corner, which would lead me to the reception, I cast a glance over my shoulder to see Carter watching me, and Scott gone. I’d thrown Carter a wink before I’d headed out, thoroughly pleased with how that had gone down.
A few minutes later I pulled up at Carter’s. I had a heap of tasks to get through, but I also wanted to make sure I left myself enough time to sort lunch and do a bit of research. I needed to offer Carter some solutions. He was a smart guy, fuck, a helluva lot smarter than me, and I was sure he’d thought about employee rights and laws, but I hoped if I had some insight then I’d be able to give him the boost in courage needed to see this through.
I just hoped I could understand the thing. Only time would tell.
Meanwhile, I got my ass into gear and continued in one of the spare bedrooms. One of the walls had needed ripping out and drywalling. The others had been in pretty good shape, better than I hoped, which would save Carter a bit of cash.
I paused at the thought, screwdriver in hand. Fuck. Since we were together—yeah, we hadn’t used a term, but as far as I was concerned he was mine—how the fuck did everything work? I groaned, hating the spike in my adrenaline. It was the key reason I’d tried to keep my distance by not wanting to start anything. I scoffed.Look at how well that worked out, asshole.
I cracked my neck, urging rational thought to my brain. I detested having to take money from him to fix up his house, but then, as I glanced around the room and considered everything that needed to be done, the reality was it wasn’t as simple as a paint job or even fitting a kitchen. It was months’ worth of work. We’d agreed on the price, and I had no choice but to follow through. While I’d love nothing more than to be able to step up and be all chivalrous and shit, I had rent and bills to pay. Life would be easier once I finally sold my old place, which was almost complete. In the meantime, not wanting to accept payment was something that I’d have to get over.
An irritating voice in my head whispered the possibility of everything going haywire, but I refused to think of that as an option. Admittedly we’d had just a weekend together, but we’d had a couple of months of spending time with each other virtually every day. There were many things I was sure of in my life and my growing feelings for Carter were just a few among them.
Chapter Twelve
CARTER
I’d walkedpast Scott twice so far this morning, and I didn’t even receive a sneer. I took that as a win, but it did little to ease the tension sitting in my gut or in my shoulders. I wondered whether Tanner would be up to giving me a massage when I got home. I smirked at the thought as I stirred sugar into my coffee.
“It’s all the talk, you know.”
I turned and looked at Lauren.
“You and the hottie.” She headed to the fridge, pulled out some creamer, and then made her way over to me.
I kept my face neutral. “Hottie?” I asked and blew on my coffee.
“No pleading ignorance. Spill.” She turned squinty eyes at me, ones I assumed were meant to be intimidating.
My lips curved and formed into a wide smile. It was impossible not to when I thought about my weekend. “That would be Tanner.”
Her eyes widened, and a dirty grin appeared on her face. “You sly dog. The guy who’s doing up your place?”
I nodded. “One and the same.”
“And now doing you apparently!” She laughed loudly, and I snorted hard.
I took a quick glance at the clock. I still had five minutes before my next appointment. So far I’d had no cancellations either, so I assumed it was all good. I took a seat while Lauren made herself a drink.
“So handholding and sweet kisses.” A light sigh escaped her lips. “When did this all happen? ’Cause, I gotta say, I’m pissed you didn’t tell me, and damn, you said he was good-looking, but, Carter, you’ve been holding out on me. He’s smoking, and… did you see his muscles?”
I grinned and nodded again. I’d spent countless hours licking every single inch of his body over the weekend and knew every muscle the man possessed. I’d become pretty fond of one in particular, the one that made me chant and scream his name. I closed my eyes at the thought, willing myself to behave and not react. “I didn’t realize you’d seen him this morning,” I countered, needing to brush aside any talk of Tanner’s delectable body. “Where were you?”
“Oh, I was there. I had just pulled up when you headed inside. I may have rushed and got my jacket caught in the car door.” She laughed. “But heck, I needed to see what was going on. In all the time we’ve known each other, I’ve never known you to date. It’s just so amazing.” She reached out her hand and squeezed mine as she sat.
Warmth settled over me like a welcome blanket. While Lauren could be a bit full-on at times, her heart was always in the right place. “Hell, you’re excited. I’m freakin’ ecstatic,” I admitted. She was the closest friend I’d had since moving, so while I still kept many cards close to my chest, there were some areas in my life I willingly gushed over. Tanner was one of those.
