I grinned at him as the security guard checked my booking on his clipboard before waving us through. “I did. I thought you might like it.”
Cody stared up at the hotel perched on the edge of the lake. It almost seemed like something from a fairy tale. When he spoke again, his voice was low and so fucking hoarse. “Jude. I don’t know what to say.”
We turned into the parking area, the amazing views disappearing as we moved underground. Cody circled the car park, pulling into a space on the second floor, and I finally found the words to reply to him. “I don’t know what to say, either, but I’m so fucking glad we’re here together.”
I felt the mattress dip, and the solid warmth next to me disappeared. Rubbing at my eyes, I tried to work out where I was.
Then it came back to me.
We’d left the curtains open last night, and through the large window, the sky was beginning to lighten above the lake, painting the mountains in shades of orange and gold.
I yawned, rolling over onto my side, and took a moment to admire the sight of Cody’s broad back, swirling ink decorating his skin, and then down to that sexy ass encased in tight black boxer briefs.Gorgeous. “What time is it?”
“Too early. I couldn’t sleep.” Cody glanced at me before turning back towards the window. “I didn’t mean to wake you.”
“You didn’t.” I climbed out of bed and joined him at the window. “Hey. Do you reckon we could both fit on this window seat?
He shrugged. “We can try. C’mere.”
Seating himself sideways along the window, he rested his back against the wall and patted the space he’d made between his legs. I arranged myself in front of him, my back leaning against his chest, and stared out of the window at the lightening sky. The lake was completely still, and unlike the turquoise of yesterday when we’d arrived, it was like a mirror reflecting the mountains and sky.
“This is amazing.”
“Yeah.” His arm came around my waist, and he pressed a kiss to the spot just below my ear that always sent a shiver down my spine. “I used to get up early to watch the sunrise when I was a kid.” His voice was quiet, distant. “Not because I wanted to, but because I had to get myself ready for school. My mother was usually passed out, and there was no one else to make sure I got up.”
“Fuck, Cody,” I breathed. “I wish… I’m sorry you didn’t have anyone there for you. No child should have to deal with that.”
He sighed. “Yeah. She—she was a junkie. I never knew who my dad was, either. I was alone a lot.”
My chest ached for the lonely little boy who had become this beautiful, complicated man, dealing with things I could barely even comprehend, from such a young age. Threading my fingers between his, I turned my head to kiss him softly. “You’re not alone anymore. You have me now.”
His arm tightened around me, his breaths coming out unevenly as he struggled to regain his composure. Fuck. I wanted to give him everything. To make sure he was never lonely again.
Eventually, he cleared his throat. “It wasn’t all bad. It got me into hockey.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah. I started hanging out at my local rink after school. It was just somewhere to go, where I could sit and watch the ice and imagine I was one of those people out there, skating without a care in the world. I started spending most days there, and no one ever tried to kick me out. I guess a couple of the skaters noticed I’d been hanging out there a lot, and they hooked me up with some equipment and taught me the basics. Then I started practising on my own, and it turned out I was good at it.”
“Better than good. I’m glad you had that.”
“Me too.” His lips skimmed over my shoulder.
“Does—does it hurt to watch the sunrise? Fuck. That’s probably a stupid question. I just. I just don’t want anything to hurt you, not if I can help it.”
“Jude,” he rasped, burying his head in my shoulder. “What did I do to deserve you?”
“There’s no deserving about it. You’re incredible.”
When his head rose, he sighed. “No. It doesn’t hurt. It’s—I dunno. Maybe it should because it reminds me of my fucked-up childhood, but sunrises were always something just for me. Something I knew would happen every day. Something I could count on. I knew no matter how bad my day was, the next morning, the sun would rise.” His voice cracked. “This is the first time I’ve ever watched one with someone else.”
There was no possible way I could speak around the huge lump in my throat. I squeezed his hand, and he kissed the side of my head, and we watched the sun’s rays bathe more and more of the mountains in gold, until there was full daylight outside.
“Tell me about when you were a kid,” Cody said eventually. “I want to know what a normal childhood looked like.”
“You do? It’s not very interesting.”
“Yeah, I do. Tell me.”
