“Thank you,” I murmur.
“For what?”
“Bringing my family here. Getting them the house. Taking them on the tour and entertaining them. You went above and beyond, and I appreciate it.”
“At the very least, you’re my girlfriend. Which means your family is important to me.”
“And at the most?”
“At the most, your family is my family, too.”
That makes my heart do a little thump and patter. “Oh.”
He scoops me up into his arms. “Come on. I have something for you.”
“Okay.”
I busy myself as he carries me inside with kissing him, wherever I can reach. Chin, jawline, earlobes, throat, shoulders, lips, nose. He grunts laughter as pepper kisses on him.
I hear water running, and then the sound becomes an echo as we enter the bathroom, and I realize he’s run a bath.
“I don’t have any, like, bubbles or anything. But I thought maybe you’d like a bath. Just, you know, sit and soak for a while.”
We have a bathtub at our house, obviously, but it’s a small, old one, and even I don’t fit in it very well.
This tub?
It’s a small swimming pool, and looks deep enough that, fully filled, the water would come to my chin.
“That sounds really nice.” I kiss his lips, this time. “Thank you. You’re so thoughtful.”
He sets me on my feet. “It’s been a whirlwind few days, and I figure you might like to relax a little.”
“It does sound amazing. Our bathtub at home is from, like 1956, and built for leprechaun children or something, so I don’t really take too many baths.”
He smiles at me. “Well, that’s a real-deal soaking tub, for actual full-size adult humans.” He backs away. “So, yeah. Enjoy your bath. If you need anything, just holler.”
I frown at him. “Wes.”
He pauses. “Yeah?”
“I think maybe I’d enjoy it more ifwetook a bath.”
He hesitates. “I meant it for you, though.”
“I know. But we’ve been so busy with my family that we haven’t gotten to spend any time together. We don’t have todoanything, just sit and talk.”
“I think I can handle that.”
I peel off my T-shirt. “I mean, I’m just saying we don’thaveto do anything. Not that I don’twantto do anything.”
He grins. “I know what you meant.” He smirks at me. “You just want to get me naked and take advantage of me.”
“Guilty as charged.”
“Then I suppose I can admit Iwashoping you’d invite me in with you.”
“But you weren’t going to invite yourself.”
