Slay (Storm MC 4)

Her eyes softened. “I’d like that,” she whispered.

I kissed her, and then said, “I don’t think you have any idea how much being with you helps me.”

She smiled and held me tighter. “I think I might, Donovan, because it’s the same for me.”

Fuck.

My luck really had changed.

I bent to kiss her again. Quicker this time, because I had something else to say to her. “I’m taking you to meet my mother tomorrow.”

Fuck.

The smile that spread across her face lit my whole fucking world.

Chapter Thirty

Blade

I sat back and smiled while I watched my mother and Layla talk. We’d arrived at Mum’s house half an hour ago and she’d promptly monopolised Layla’s attention. I’d hardly gotten a word in. Hell, I wasn’t complaining, though. I fucking loved watching the two women in my life getting on this well.

“What are you grinning at?” Layla asked, a smile on her face.

“Was I?” I hadn’t realised I had been.

“Yeah, you were, baby.”

The affection in her voice fucking did things to me, and I felt the familiar tightening in my gut. Fuck, I wanted her, which was not exactly a good thing at this very moment, seeing as we were sitting in my mother’s lounge room and about to have lunch.

Layla didn’t miss it, and her smile turned into a grin. She placed her hand on my leg and squeezed it. “You were definitely grinning at something.”

I pushed her hand off my leg and sat up straighter. Changing the subject, I asked, “Do you need help getting lunch ready, Mum?”

She stood up and said, “No, it’s all ready. You two stay there while I get it out.” The look of pure happiness she gave me caused my heart to constrict. My mother had missed out on so much in her life. Seeing me happy with someone had been one of those things. To be able to give her that now made me even more determined to make this relationship with Layla work.

As she left us to go to get lunch, Layla leaned into me and said, “I like your Mum.”

I smiled at her. “I can tell.”

“Thank you,” she said softly.

I frowned. “What for, sweetheart?”

“For this . . . For letting me into your family. I know I’ve only just met your Mum today, but I can already tell she’s special and different to my family. And because I’ve never had that, it means even more to me. It’s the best gift you could ever give me.”

Fuck.

I curled my hand around her neck and pulled her to me. Pressing my lips to hers, I whispered, “I love you.” As the words left my lips, calmness descended on me.

Peace.

Fuck, that elusive fucking feeling I’d been searching years for.

It was right here.

It was Layla’s gift to me.

“I love you, too,” she said, and fuck if that didn’t hit me right in the chest.