Sky was already rushing off to point at the little wooden shed, which Fraser had constructed a few weeks ago. It readQuiet Corner, a place to hide away when the world felt a bit too noisy. For Sky, but for all of them, too. Inside, Eiley had already placed some of Sky’s favourite sensory toys, along with fairy lights, cushions, and, of course, books.
“Have a peek inside, little man,” Warren encouraged, urging them all through the open gate. “What about you, Brook? Like it?”
“Would’ve been nicer with a pool,” Brook said, and Eiley prodded him in mock scolding.
“What about your own bunk bed? Will that make up for it?” asked Warren.
Eiley frowned. That hadn’t been the agreement. She hadn’t wanted to overrun the entire farmhouse before Warren had even gotten to enjoy it. They were still at least attempting a steady pace, and she didn’t expect such big commitments yet.
“Warren, you can’t …”
“Can’t what? I didn’t build four bedrooms because I like having empty rooms, firecracker,” he retorted, resting his arm over her shoulder. “I want every corner of this house to brim with life. I told you that from the start.”
“I know, but …”
“But?” He raised an eyebrow, patient as ever as she tried to work through the knots of her own mind. Trying to rewire old pain was proving difficult. Easier, though, when he was here, which he always was: the first time a customer in the bookstore had been mean to her over the Christmas rush, and the first day that winter’s bleak weather had left her feeling foggy and blue; the first day she’d gotten overstimulated at the Christmas markets and accidentally snapped at him.They still argued now and again, but never with malice. One of them would laugh, usually him, then wrap his arms around her and remind her that he loved her, whispering that endearment,mo ghaol,in her ear. It was like they’d been together for years instead of months.
Like he’d always been part of the family.
Which meant that her current argument was absolutely fruitless, because of course the rooms were for the children. They always had been. She leaned into him, kissing him gently and wrinkling her nose when Saffron poked her in the eye. “Boop!” she said.
They laughed, Warren setting her down so she could toddle around the grass. Just turned two, she was growing too quickly for Eiley’s liking.
“Hold out your hand,” Warren ordered.
She did, watching him root through his pockets with suspicion. It wasn’t all that surprising when he produced a key, although it still left her chest soaring.
“Yours,” was all he said.
She was smart enough not to protest this time.
“Ready to see inside?”
“Yes!” Brook shouted, and dashed in without invitation. Sky and Saff followed, forever attached at the hip. Eiley hoped it never changed. Hoped that, when they were older, they’d be as close as she, Cam, and Fraser were.
“How long before something breaks, do you reckon?” asked Warren with a smirk.
Eiley tapped her chin, pretending to consider it. “I’ll give it five minutes, but that might be underestimating them.”
“Well, then, that gives me just enough time.”
She frowned. “For what?”
“This.” He tugged her close quickly, bodies colliding to push a breathless laugh from her as he pressed kisses into her neck. The jolt of lust hadn’t faded over their first winter together, neither of them still quite able to believe they could draw such pleasure from each other. “What do you think? Could it be half yours one day?”
Eiley ran a hand through his feather-soft dark hair. This was what home felt like: a place where her usual worries and stresses couldn’t reach. A person who would fend them off if they tried.
“As long as you’ll have me,” she whispered. “But as gorgeous as the house is, and as happy as I am for you, for us, it’s not why I’m still here. I fell in love with you when you lived in a van, and I’d love you as much now if that was still the case. You do know that, don’t you?”
“Aye, but it’s nice to have the reminder.” He kissed her nose, her lids, her jaw, until she giggled. Once, it was a sound that would have felt out of place coming from her. Now, it was as natural as breathing. “I told you I wanted to give you everything, and I promise I will.”
“You already have.”
“I’m only just getting started with all the ways I want to show you that I love you, Eiley Milligan.” Without warning, he ducked through her legs to heave her into a fireman’s lift, and she squealed as the blood rushed to her head. Another thing she was still getting used to: the way he could throw her around with so much ease, and yet only ever used his strength to make her happy.
Butterflies flooded her stomach when he slapped her arse affectionately, and heat thumped through her with every step he took down the garden path, her soft stomach knocking deliciously against his shoulder. She wasn’t sure she’d ever stop wanting him, even if she still complained to be put down.
“I’m carrying you through the threshold like a gentleman. Sweeping you off your feet. You shouldn’t have started reading your naughty books to me if you didn’t want me getting any ideas.”
