“Holy shit,” he said breathily. “Is this…” He swallowed hard, his eyes flashing to mine. “Is this for me?”
I bobbed my head once.
“I didn’t know. How didn’t I know you had tattoos?”
“I never get photographed with my shirt off. I got that one just last year, and this and the others have always been hidden beneath clothes.”
Nate’s brows almost touched his hairline. “And it was for me?”
I understood his confusion. Back then, we weren’t in touch. “You, a memory of you, was worth marking my skin for,” I answered honestly.
Emotion shimmered in his eyes. “It’s beautiful.” When he leaned down and kissed my tattoo, my heart went wild in my chest. When he lifted back up, he smiled at me, all sweet and gentle. “I think there’s only one way to show you how seeing this, knowing it’s for me, makes me feel.” The huskiness in his voice took an all-time depth. I turned, snagging him with an arm and tugging him close.
Nate then proceeded to blow my mind, and I held on to every second of these moments I could, knowing they couldn’t last forever.
When I’d been scouted for college, my life had changed, incredibly so, but this, what we were doing, how we were connecting, fuck if I didn’t see a whole new possible future laid out before me.
So much for living in the present.
* * *
The nerves swarmingme felt different from when I’d collected Nate from the airport. They were less intense, but sweat still covered my palms as we entered Black Mountain. While I’d never visited the house I’d bought for my gran and sister, I’d seen the photos and knew the small area well enough that in probably less than a minute, I’d be seeing my family.
“You okay?” Nate hadn’t let go of my hand the whole drive from Brisbane airport. He accepted my palm with a smile after we’d left the parking lot and had offered the physical comfort the entire journey.
“Yeah,” I answered, fully aware our joined hands were hot and damp. Like the good guy he was, though, he didn’t mention it.
“I know I should have perhaps asked earlier,” he said, drawing my attention away from the gum trees. The familiarity of them made me smile. “But how do you want to play this, with me, with your family?” Nate clamped his mouth shut, and I thought he had more to say. But that one question alone was one hell of a start.
The truth was, I’d considered this periodically on our flight and the drive home. Refusing him in any way would be a shit of a move, but that didn’t prevent the lump from forming in my throat.
“Hey.” The squeeze of my hand pulled my attention to Nate. “We can do whatever you want, okay?”
I cut a glance to him. Nothing but sincerity filled his expression before he flicked his focus back to the road. Nate was too fucking good for me. It hadn’t just been the last week I’d figured that out, but his understanding cemented that knowledge.
Before I could answer and unjumble my brain, Nate said, “We’re here.”
The Park brake wasn’t even engaged before the fly-screen door was opening. Nate’s words floated over me, my ability to hear hampered by the heavy thud of my pulse.
Gran stood in the doorway, her gaze unyielding. My breath caught as I took in the wrinkles around her eyes, her laughter lines deep around her mouth. And then I was out of the car and in her arms. The strength of her hug drew my smile. Despite her years and the time I’d wasted keeping my distance, she could still make me feel safe and loved just by the magic of her hugs.
“Boy,” she said close to my ear, “never again, you hear.”
I nodded against her neck, stooped over but not willing to break the connection just yet.
“You think about keeping your distance again, you’ll find me on your doorstep or in the middle of a blasted ball game, getting ready to tan your hide and drag your butt back home. Got it?”
I snorted out a laugh, basking in the warmth of her tone and the fresh squeeze she gave me before she eased away. I peered down at her. She looked healthy and strong, much more than I’d expected. While we’d spoken on video calls, even more so over the past five months, I hadn’t quite believed she was getting better from her fall and her dizzy spells.
“You look good, Gran.”
She quirked her brow at me. “Of course I do. You’re lucky you’ve got my genes so you don’t look like you’ve been beaten with the ugly stick.”
“Gee, Gran, say it how it is.”
Nate’s warm voice at my side startled me, and goose bumps broke out on my flesh. Just hours ago before we left for the airport, his voice had sounded so much gruffer when I’d sucked him off. I cleared my throat, trying to shake the visual before looking at him.
“Come here and give me a hug. You get an extra brownie tonight since you brought the wanderer home.”
