I groaned.
“That is so wrong.”
I pushed him gently until he rolled grudgingly off of me.
“Where's that towel?” I asked, glancing around.
“In the laundry hamper,” he supplied, lying back with a sigh.
He remained where he was, watching me move around the room and then wipe myself off when I found the damp towel.
When I approached, he took it and wiped himself down before handing it back.
“Why do I feel like you don't want me to come with you?” he asked, watching as I pulled on my boxers.
I paused and glanced at him with a regretful smile.
“I don't know how it's going to go,” I said. “I feel like we're just going to be shouting at each other for hours.”
“You never shout,” Ryan argued. “Neither does Melissa.”
“Arguing, then,” I said, shrugging. “Either way, I don't think it's going to pleasant and I think I should buck up and do it alone. Like a man.”
Ryan rolled his eyes.
“You're still a man, even if you need someone to have your back.”
“I know,” I said, “but it's my marriage. I've already dragged you into it. I don't want you to have to deal with this part of it too.”
His gaze softened.
“I get it, just...”
“Just what?”
He swallowed.
“Just, don't change your mind about us.”
Us.That had such a nice ring to it.
I pulled my shirt over my head and then climbed back into his bed on all fours to press another kiss to his mouth which was still soft and full from all my kisses before.
“That's not going to happen,” I promised.
I wished I could find words for the way that I felt. The way that the world seemed more promising and good than it had before. For the excitement that went through me when he looked at me and the way my chest felt lighter. The way I felt loved when our eyes met—like I wasn't one person anymore, but someone else's other half.
I wasn't a very poetic man though. I had opted out of writing my own vows the first time around and this time, the feelings bombarding me were too overwhelming to even try to categorize.
So, I looked him in the eyes, pressed another lingering kiss to his lips and hoped that he couldfeelit. When I pulled back, his gaze told me that he did.
TWELVE
Ryan
This afternoon felt like a dream that probably never really happened.
My house was empty. My bed was empty. If not for the spot on my lip where Kamran had accidentally bit down a little too hard, I don't know if I would have believed it had happened at all.
