Page 91 of Tell Me Again

“You okay?” I ask quietly, and he nods and looks up at me.

“Very.”

I’m grinning like a fool now, and I bend down to kiss him again, lightly and briefly this time. Around us, the dining room seems to return to its normal level of loud as people go back to eating and drinking and whatever else they’re doing. And it’s just him and me again.

“God, thank you for coming back,” I say, shuddering as I tighten my arms around him yet again. I don’t want to let him go, but I probably do actually need to get back to work pretty soon, before everyone starts to get antsy without their endless refills of coffee.

“I didn’t want to leave. And I came back as soon as I could. I hope... I hope you got my note and the flowers?” There’s an uncertainty to his voice, and it rattles me a little as I remember how I’ve been feeling all day—my heart hoping beyond hope, but not really knowing for sure whether he’d be back like he said.

So I nod, needing to reassure him, and I brush a soft kiss on his cheek. It’s slightly rough with stubble. Fucking sexy. I’m gonna have to tell him that later.

“I did. And I... loved the note and the flowers. And I love you,” I murmur into his ear.

He lets out another sharp breath. “I love you too. Always,” he says. His hands slide down my chest and then around to the small of my back, and he sighs, his head settling on my shoulder.

“Coop!” It’s Mel’s voice calling, and when I straighten up a bit, she’s peeking her head out from the kitchen.

“Yeah, yeah, sorry, um, coming!”

Josh lets go of me and backs up a step. He looks a little flustered, but he quickly recovers and nods toward the same open seat at the counter. “I’ll just—can I sit here? I don’t need... Um, you guys look really busy, so I’ll just hang out here, if that’s okay? I don’t need food or anything.”

“Of course, yeah. I’ve got about an hour left of my shift, and Mel’s probably going to shut down the kitchen in about a half hour anyway. You want coffee, at least?”

He smiles, and it fucking takes my breath away. “That’d be great.”

My heart feels like it’s going to burst as he steps back up to me for one more kiss. It’s just as warm and hopeful and full of love as every other one of his kisses. Then, he’s taking his seat at the counter, and I steady myself with a couple of deep breaths before hurrying off back to the kitchen, the packed dining room still as loud and boisterous as it has been all night.

Coffee. I need to finish refilling everyone’s coffee. And get those orders of cobbler and cheesecake in. And...

Fuck. He came back. He fucking came back.

I push open the kitchen door and glance back over my shoulder, and he’s sitting there watching me with a soft smile and this expression that’s just... everything. I smile back, reach up and turn my baseball cap back around, and then head into the kitchen.

Chapter Thirty-Four

Josh

It’s still pouring rain when we leave the diner just after ten thirty. I follow Coop back to his house, and when we get there, we hop over the huge puddles of water in his driveway and then hurry inside, trying not to get too wet.

“Shit, it’s fucking freezing in here,” he complains as he shuts the door behind us.

It is pretty cold, but not as cold as outside, and there’s something warm about being here with him right now anyway. Something warm and just so... right. My heart flutters as I glance toward the kitchen, where the roses I’d bought him sit on the table, arranged neatly in a glass vase. And I turn back toward him, grinning, as I copy him in slipping off my coat and shoes. He also takes off his baseball cap and hangs it on a hook by the door.

“I turned off the heater earlier, like you asked,” I say. Then, before I can add anything else, his arms are around me and his lips crush against mine.

“Mmm, yeah . . . Thank you . . . for that,” he manages between kisses.

“Guess we’ll have to keep each other warm?” I mumble as his hands settle at my waist and he starts to walk us toward the bedroom.

He laughs into the kiss, and I feel all his joy as he stops us, just at the beginning of the hallway. His hands inch under my shirt, and he deepens the kiss, his tongue darting into my mouth. Then he grins and pulls away. “Fuck, you taste like peaches again. That cobbler, is it good?”

I wish I could answer to tell him yes, but his hands are too distracting, running along my stomach and then around to my back. He presses both hands into me, bringing our hips together, and there’s a jolt of heat straight to my groin as he captures my lips again. God, it’s good. I think I’m moaning, and my hands slip down to grip his ass, pulling him even closer. He’s hard. I’m hard. Shit, I want him. Now.

Some delicious thrill runs through me as his hand dips down between us. “Slow down now,” he rasps, even as he strokes me through my jeans. “We’re in no hurry. We’ve got... forever.”

“Ahh, god, yeah, but—”

“Mmm, fuck, you’re hot.”

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