When he suggested us living together, that felt as crazy as getting married, but now I couldn’t imagine being there without him.
It’s not only my home anymore, it’s his too. I need to make sure he knows that. And that a house isn’t the only thing that’s his. I am too, and I have been for a while now.
Don’t overthink.
I’ve been chanting it the whole way home, but the closer we get, the more my mind races. I need to talk to him. Lay it all out.
I’m practically buzzing when he finally pulls into the driveway, and I throw my door open a little too forcefully, but this is eating away at me. I have to know. Have to face it all head-on.
I want it to be real.
The signs say yes, but what if I’m misreading them?
I’ve written a lot of romance, but my real-life experience is limited. Mostly because I was looking for that book boyfriendguy. And after a few months when none of my actual boyfriends came close to that, I dumped them.
I started to wonder if maybe the book boyfriend I was looking for was truly a work of fiction. But Justin is a living, breathing embodiment of one.
The question is… is he mine?
“Are you okay?” Justin asks once we’ve made it through the door of the apartment.
I spin to look at him, shaking with nervous energy and anticipation.
“Um, yes…”
“That sounded more like a question. What’s going on?”
My eyes dart around. I don’t want to have this conversation in the entryway.
I gesture toward the hallway.
“Come with me.”
We end up standing just inside my bedroom, staring at each other.
“Darlin’, what’s wrong?”
My eyes slip closed, emotion rustling through me. “It kills me when you call me that.”
His hand skims my cheek and my eyes flash open.
“Why?”
“Because I never want you to call anyone but me that ever again.”
He bites his lip, then smiles. “Want me to put it in the contract?”
“Fuck the contract.”
His brows shoot up. “What?”
“That was for a fake marriage, but now… maybe the marriage part is only legal, but there’s something real between us. Right?” My cheeks heat, but I don’t break our gaze.
A smile of pure happiness grows on his face as joy shimmers in his eyes.
“Darlin’, why do you sound like you’re questioning that?This thing between us has never been fake. There’s nothing more real than my feelings for you.”
I inhale sharply at that. Those words are more than I hoped for.
