“I need to tell your dad that you’re here.” It’s not a threat, but there’s no way in hell I can’t reach out to Rome to tell him that his two little princesses broke free of the castle again.
“Dad will be chill with it,” Dora spits out.
Georgie and I both glance at her.
“What?” Dora shakes her head. “I can call him Dad if I want.”
“It’s Daddy to you,” Roman says.
We all turn our attention to the open door of the apartment and my brother standing there.
“Why did I not hear the elevator?” I perk a brow.
“It’s broken.” Roman grins. “I took the stairs. Did it in record time, Matthew. I took a half of a second off your time.”
He waves his fancy ass watch in the air like it matters who can take the three flights of stairs faster.
For the record, I can, and I’ll prove it later tonight with the stopwatch on my phone.
“What about you two?” I point at each of my nieces. “How did you get here?”
“We took the ellie’s gator before it broke,” Georgie says. “Dora broke it. She pressed a lot of buttons right before we jumped off.”
“Didn’t,” Dora screams at her.
“Did so.” Georgie’s hands drop to her hips.
“We’re going home.” Roman reaches for his daughters’ hands. “Uncle Matt seems busy.”
There’s that twin intuition at work. It’s that or the bite marks on my neck that Faith planted there.
I nod.
“Can we come back soon?” Dora pleads. “Please say yes, Uncle Matty.”
I kneel to kiss each girl on the forehead. “Yes. Very soon.”
When I stand, my brother has his gaze set on my face. “You look happy, Matthew. It’s a good look for you.”
I lean forward to kiss his forehead too. “It’s a good feeling, Rome. It’s a damn good feeling.”
Chapter Forty-Three
Faith
“I bet you’re an amazing uncle.” I wiggle my eyebrows at Matthew. “You let them do naughty things, don’t you?”
“Naughty things?” His gaze runs over my bare legs. “Says the woman who just did a naughty thing to me.”
I run a finger over my bottom lip. “You liked it.”
“How could I not?” He laughs. “That stud in your tongue is fucking amazing, Faith. When I feel that on my dick, it’s…”
“Hot as fuck?” I whisper.
“Hotter than that,” he counters.
“I was worried that they’d barge into the bedroom and find me there,” I confess.
Earlier, when I’d heard Roman and his daughters in the foyer of Matthew’s apartment, I panicked.
I dressed quickly, yanking on my clothing but not bothering with my bra.
I hid that behind my back, but by the time I was at the bedroom door again trying to hear what was going on, it was silent.
That’s when Matthew came back to bed.
He undressed me again, held me, and before we drifted back to sleep yet again, he took me slowly.
For the first time in my life, I made love.
“They were looking for popcorn and cartoons.” He laughs. “I keep a supply of movie snacks on hand for them.”
“Because they stop by often?” I ask with a smile.
“All the time.” He runs a hand over my shin.
We’re on his couch with my legs in his lap.
I was studying until the mounting pressure to kiss him took over. We did that for a solid twenty minutes before I fell back on my ass in a fit of giggles because he decided tickling me would bring a smile to my face.
That’s when I tugged his sweatpants down and took him in my mouth.
“You like being an uncle, don’t you?”
“Love it,” he answers without reservation. “I adore those little ladies.”
“That means you’ll make a great dad yourself one day.”
He laughs. “I’ve got my hands full with those two, and soon I’ll have a nephew to spoil. That’s more than enough for me.”
I smile, wondering if he wants kids one day.
I do. It’s always been something I’ve thought about.
“Three kids?” I sigh. “That’s my ultimate dream.”
“I saved a piece of that lavender cake for our late night snack.” He slides himself free of my legs and moves to stand. “How fucking lucky am I? I get to feed cake to a beautiful woman.”
I follow him with my gaze as he walks toward the kitchen.
I’m the lucky one. In a city the size of New York, I somehow found the man of my dreams in the apartment across the hall from mine.
“I’m working a six day stretch now.” Matthew tugs a polo shirt over his head. “Donovan, my boss, is headed to Boston for a conference, so duties are divided between the other vet, Carolyn, and me.”
I’m disappointed that his schedule is so jam-packed, but in a way, it’s a blessing in disguise. It’s crunch time for me. I need to buckle down and finish a few assignments and with Matthew focused on work, I’ll have a lot more free time.
I’ll spend a good portion of that daydreaming about him, but I’ll still fit in time for schoolwork.