His eyes primal.
“Hungry?” he growled.
My body was suddenly on fire, the ache between my legs now a rapid, beating pulse.
“Yes,” I replied. “Starving.” I took several steps closer, taking inventory of everything on the counter, trying to figure out what he was making. “You’re cooking?”
“For you.” He cracked a few eggs into a bowl. “I woke up, and you were gone. I came out to look for you and saw you on the patio, on the phone. Figured I’d make good use of my time since I was up.”
“I was talking to Gabby. You know … girl stuff.”
As I sat on one of the barstools, the placement gave me the perfect view of him.
The muscles that protruded from his shoulders, the definition in his chest, the way his abs were etched across his stomach. The line of hair that disappeared below his mesh shorts.
Good God.
I took a breath, trying to focus. “I didn’t think you knew how to make anything, aside from pancakes.”
He laughed. “Listen, I’m no Craig—or you—in the kitchen. There’re only a few meals I can conquer. Eggs, bacon, and biscuits happen to be one.”
“Biscuits?” I wiped the corners of my mouth. “I might have just drooled.”
“I just popped them in the oven.”
He came over to my side of the counter, bringing me a cup of coffee that he placed in front of me. As soon as his hands were free, he didn’t return to the eggs that needed whisking. He cupped my face and slowly kissed me.
Part of me had expected to wake up this morning, thinking last night had all been just a dream.
But his lips told me that wasn’t the case.
His eyes confirmed it.
He stayed close, holding me even tighter. “Everything all right with Gabby?”
I nodded. “Yep.”
He traced my bottom lip. “I can’t stop thinking about last night.” He closed the distance between us again. This time, his kiss was gradual, savoring. A brief swipe of his tongue followed before he pulled away. “I can’t stop thinking about you.”
His expression was raw.
Emotional but sensual at the same time.
“Sydney, if I’m being honest, I barely slept last night.”
“Same.” I swallowed. “My thoughts were … all over the place.”
He scanned my eyes, back and forth. “What happened between us, it wasn’t a mistake.” His thumbs pressed into the sides of my mouth. “It was perfect, and every word I said was the truth.” He paused. “I want you.”
My heart was bursting.
“I want you to know something, Ford.” I gripped the back of his hand, holding our fingers together. “No matter what happens between us, Everly will always have me.” I lifted my cell off the counter and pulled up a text box. “Do you see this?” I pointed the screen at him. “It’s a group text with the kids I used to nanny. Well, two of them—the youngest doesn’t have a cell yet, but she texts me from her brother’s phone.”
I returned my cell to the counter, my hand back on his.
“Even though I no longer work for their family, I will be in their lives forever. I love those kids. Nothing will ever change that.” I gazed into his eyes, trying to read them—something I’d never really been able to do with Ford. “Regardless of what happens between us, I will always be here for Everly. I know that’s one of the things that worries you, and I’m telling you, you don’t have to worry.”
His eyes closed for the briefest of seconds, like he was processing this news. “What about your job? Do you still want to be her nanny?”
“Of course.” I took a breath. “Absolutely.”
“You think you’ll be able to do both?” His hand lowered to my neck, tilting my face up a bit more to meet him. “Date me and nanny her?”
My stomach fluttered at the thought.
That was what I’d wanted since my interview.
What I’d thought about every night when I crawled into the other side of Gabby’s bed, trying to tire my mind enough to fall asleep, and now, as I slept above the garage.
It was what I thought of every morning on my way into Ford’s house.
“Yes.” I smiled. “There’s no question in my mind.” I wrapped my arms around his neck. “Being with you and caring for Everly are all I want. Choosing between you two was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done, but I knew that if things were meant to be, they would happen.” I locked my hands behind his neck. “Where you were filled with what-ifs. What if we don’t work out? What if she abandons Everly? What if a twenty-two-year-old can’t handle this type of life? Because, let’s face it, most probably can’t. I never considered any of that. I didn’t fear what would happen. I feared it would never happen.”
“Maybe I need to be more like you and less like me.”
“I think you’re good just the way you are.” I softened my voice, feeling the need to repeat, “I’m not going anywhere, Ford.” I ran my fingers across his lips—a move that had previously belonged solely to him. “I’ve wanted to say this for a long time, and I finally can.” My chest pounded as I took in his eyes. My whole body tingled. “I’m yours.”
He lifted me from the stool, holding me in his arms, and my legs wrapped around his waist. He held the back of my head, positioning our mouths only inches apart. “Say that again, Sydney.”
“I’m yours—”
He slammed our mouths together.
And in that moment, I knew something else to be true.
Ford Dalton was mine.