“What’s this?”
His smile is soft and earnest. “We haven’t had a first date yet.”
My heart stutters and everything else falls away as I stare at him. He didn’t leave to be alone. He left to do something special for us.
Falling for my teammate wasn’t part of the plan, and it might complicate everything, but I don’t care. He’s mine, and he’s utterly perfect.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
BRIAN
Ryan drops his stuff,walks directly to me, and throws himself into my arms.
It hits me all over again. He’s mine. I’m his safe place. The last two-and-a-half years of friendship have built this—an immovable, unshakable foundation for a beautifully profound relationship.
“I missed you,” he whispers.
“It’s only been an hour and a half,” I say, though I make no move to let him go.
“It felt like longer. Not being able to touch you when I needed your comfort made today feel agonizingly long.”
“You’ve got me now,” I whisper. “And always.”
He lifts his head, his grip on me loosening. “Were you planning this?”
“I had two options—go out or stay in—but, yes, I was planning this. Whether it’s in public or the quiet of our space, we deserve a first date that celebrates us.”
“I love you.”
His rushed, forceful words knock the wind out of me. Like when he told me he wanted me, I can’t move for a second. My body goes slack and it’s hard to breathe.
“You don’t have to say it back, but I couldn’t?—”
I rest my hand on the side of his neck and look into his eyes. “If you think I don’t feel the same…” I shake my head, then slant my mouth over his.
He kisses me back, a rough moan rumbling in his throat.
I break our kiss slowly, but he tries to stop me, his tongue chasing after mine as I pull away.
Resting my head against his, I run my hands down his back, staring into his rich brown eyes. “I love you too. I’ve spent the better part of the last year wishing you’d feel the same but never quite believing it could happen.”
“Of course it happened. No one has ever loved me like you do. It was impossible not to fall for you in return. I’m going to love you more than anyone else ever has or ever could.”
We kiss again, and my soul aches with need, my body thrumming with desire, but I’m determined to make it through our date first. Again, breaking apart is slow and reluctant, but we do it, and I lead Ryan over to the coffee table.
“One rule. No talking about what happened today. Not yet. I want to focus on us first.”
He kisses my neck, sending chills through me. “I can do that.”
He opens the wine while I dish up some food, and I see a glimpse of what our future could look like. What the offseason could hold. Long weekends spent enjoying good food and each other’s company. Traveling. Lying in a sun-soaked bedroom, lost in our love.Love.
How did I possibly get this lucky? That the man I fell for fell in love with me too?
Ryan hands me a glass of white wine, then touches his glass to mine. “To us.”
“To us,” I echo, my heart content and filled with love.
Ryan holdsout a forkful of the chocolate tart I got us for dessert, and the sensual act of him feeding me makes warmth blossom in my stomach.
