Thirty-eight
Room six was her favorite in the whole lodge. Because of where it was located, there was a view of the lake and the mountains from the two wide windows that merged in the corner. The king-sized four-poster bed looked like an antique but actually came from Pottery Barn. Jillian had spent extra time on this room, imagining it for a couples’ weekend getaway or a honeymoon suite.
Standing in the doorway, Levi’s body pressed against her back, his arms wrapped around her waist, she fought the urge to cry again. The room was filled with flowers. Vases and vases of gorgeous blooms in a rainbow of colors covered every surface—along the mantel of the fireplace, on the small table by the window, and on both of the nightstands.
“Levi,” she said, because words escaped her. She had no vocabulary. Just feelings on top of feelings.
“Ollie said to give you flowers,” he whispered. “I want to give you everything.”
She turned in his arms, moving backward as he stepped into the room, closing the door behind them. This time, when he picked her up, she didn’t laugh. She wrapped her arms around his neck and fused her mouth to his with an urgency she’d never experienced in her life.
A low growl from the back of Levi’s throat let her know he was every bit as serious and focused as she was. They hadn’t been apart one full week, but it was enough to know that she never wanted to be without him again.
He set her next to the bed, his gaze full of a hunger she knew matched her own. The sky had grown darker, traces of the sun fading into the water. Enough natural light filled the room for them to see each other.
One of his hands curled around the back of her neck while the other cupped her cheek. He was moving too slow. Adrenaline coursed through her, making her feel like a sprinter off the starting block, just wanting togo. She reached out, grabbed the hem of his sweater. A smile spread over his lips as he stepped back, pulled the sweater and the T-shirt underneath over his head, whipped them away. Then he was back, standing so close they shared the same air.
“I missed you, Jilly.”
Her gaze locked on his chest, her hands traced over his skin, down the length of each muscled arm and back to the center, then down, her fingers dipping into the ridges of his well-toned stomach. He shuddered under her touch and caught both of her wrists.
“Your turn, Keller. My shirt, your shirt.”
She laughed even as her fingers went to the buttons on her dress shirt. One by one, she slipped them open, anticipation setting her skin on fire as Levi’s gaze grew darker and more intense.
Pulling the bottom of the blouse free, she tossed it in the same direction as his. He reached out, his calloused fingers tracing over her sensitive skin, along the swell of one breast, down and up over the other until he tugged at the strap of her bra.
“This, too,” he said, his voice low and raspy.
As she reached around to undo the clasp, Levi’s admirablebut not necessary patience finally snapped and he yanked her against him. Her arms immediately locked around his neck as he brought them both down to the bed.
He kissed her hard as his body pressed hers into the mattress, and it was like neither of them could see or feel anything but each other. The outside world ceased to exist. There was just them, their skin turning slick as they moved together, their breaths sawing in and out as they both whispered words of affection and love and passion. Their mouths met over and over again like a perfect song that had no ending.
When at last there was absolutely nothing between them, Levi stopped, his gaze finding hers. Both of their hearts pounded against each other.
“I love you, Jilly. My dreams have always been about my work. It wasn’t until I came home, until you, that I realized how big dreams could get. Now I dream of spending my life with you, waking up with you every single day, crawling into bed beside you every single night.” He smoothed her hair back from her face, pressed his lips to hers with a dreamy sort of tenderness. “I want to build a life and a home and a family with you. My dream is to make all of yours come true.”
She reached up, cupped his jaw, and pulled him down, stopping just before their lips touched. “You already did.”
Moonlight washed through the window, casting a glow that perfectly complemented the serenity Jilly felt. Levi had turned the gas fireplace on and the flames flickered in the hearth, adding a warmth that wrapped around them. Nestled in the crook of his arm, definitely her favorite place to be, she felt her brain finally stop buzzing with what-ifs and if-onlys. Instead, she listened tothe steady hum of their breathing, the little snaps of the fireplace, and their hearts calming. His fingers slid up her bare arm and down, a soothing motion that nearly put her to sleep.
“You awake?”
“Barely,” she murmured, turning to snuggle deeper into his embrace. She brushed her lips against his chest.
His fingers kept tracing that calming rhythm. “I talked to your mom and dad this week.”
Jilly lifted up on her elbow so she could see his face. “Levi Bright, did you ask for my hand in marriage like some 1950s hero in a romance book?”
He laughed. “No. Not quite.”
When she settled her hand on his chest, he covered it with his. “I have a pretty big loan for a food truck I’m not going to buy.”
She continued to stare.
“I have it on pretty good authority that you really like the house they’re selling,” he said, closing his fingers around hers.
Jilly’s thoughts scrambled like her pulse. “What?”
