Page 46 of Born To Be My Baby

She closed her eyes again and sighed. "It's stupid, isn't it? Acting like we've never been together. My God, we made love all the time back in the day. You know me biblically more than any other living person on this planet."

He chuckled. "It's not stupid. We're testing the waters again. But you tell me what you want to do."

She turned her head without lifting it from the sofa. "I'd like to sleep in your bed." Her heartbeat sped, and she swallowed the fear that crawled up her throat. It was a big step. An admission without so much giving permission. She wanted to lay with him and feel secure again. Being near him healed her heart in places, not in all of them, but in some of them. Wasn't that what healing was? A slow mending of something broken?

He grinned. "Okay. But I'm going to stay out here for a little while and write down some of these words spinning around in my brain."

"Okay." She stood slowly, got her balance, and moved toward the bedroom. "’Night, Sean," she said softly.

He grinned. "’Night, Baby."

Her heart felt lighter as she made her way to the bedroom. He called her baby again, just as he used to back in the day. She touched the light switch and glanced around. Yeah, it was pretty plain, but she didn't mind. It made her feel somewhat happy, and excited that he didn't have another woman in here designing for him. He probably didn't have anyone in his life for a long time. That was kind of sad, but it also made her happy. She hadn't had anyone to speak of in her life, either. Brody had been around at first. But, she knew in her heart she'd never have romantic feelings for him. He was a good friend, a great producer, and a true gentleman. They had that conversation early in their friendship. At the time, she'd said her heart was still broken into a million pieces and she didn't want him to get the wrong idea. She didn't want to use him and she didn't think trying to replace Sean with someone else was fair.

She blew out a deep breath, stepped deeper into the bedroom, to her suitcase. Moving clothing around until she found her shorts and T-shirt, which were her pajamas. Digging her toiletry bag from inside the zippered section, she turned to the bathroom and prepared for bed.

Her hair was much shorter these days than it had been when she and Sean first dated. But it was manageable for her without the ponytails she'd relied on in college. And, she always had to be properly coifed for television, which sometimes seemed to be a full-time job. Maybe one day she'd cut her hair short. She'd always wanted a pixie cut, but her network contract prohibited it.

Sliding between the sheets of Sean's big bed, she reached over and turned the switch on the lamp, then snuggled into her pillow. Sean's scent filled her nostrils, and she inhaled deeply. She closed her eyes and imprinted his scent into her memory. He smelled the same as she always remembered.

She closed her eyes and pulled his pillow close, wrapping her arms around it. She had this short amount of time before she met with the network on Monday to remember the days of old and to figure out what she'd do next, if she needed to figure out what next would be. She'd let her agent go several years ago, believing she didn't need one at this point in her life. Maybe that had been a mistake. One other thing that could bite her in the ass moving forward. But, again, there was little she could do about it now.

She was proud of herself for not having been worried about that over the last couple of days, but she had enough other things to worry about, so she shouldn't have been so surprised. Nothing was more important than Mina. Nothing. She inhaled deeply one more time, let out a deep sigh, and let sleep take her.

The bed dipped, movement behind her startled her, and she jumped. Immediately sorry she did. Sean whispered, "Shh, shh, shh, it's okay honey, I'm sorry."

He tucked in behind her, gently wrapped himself around her body. He nuzzled the crook of her neck and inhaled. She'd always enjoyed when he took in her aroma. A soft smile lifted her lips.

She'd done the same thing, hadn't she? When she'd climbed into bed, she enjoyed his scent still trapped in the sheets.

"You smell good," he whispered.

She sighed, "Thank you, so do you."

His arms wrapped tightly around her. “Night, Baby,” he whispered near her ear. She smiled and closed her eyes, and let sleep take her once more.

36

Sean woke alone in his bed. He rubbed his eyes, reached over and felt the side of the bed where Gloria had been. It had already cooled.

He inhaled deeply and let it out in a whoosh. He slowly rolled to the side, pleased the soreness wasn't as bad as it had been yesterday. Progress. He scraped his hands through his hair as he stumbled to the bathroom. A quick look in the mirror had him wincing slightly. He rubbed his hands through his hair to tame the sleep rumpled locks. He needed a haircut, but he was also thinking about growing it out a bit. On the road it was difficult to find the time and a good stylist to cut their hair. Jami had grown his out for that reason. And the women swooned over it.

He went in search of Gloria and found her sitting outside on the deck, the sun was shining and her hair gleamed. She had a cup of coffee in her hand, and she stared out at the landscaping.

He grinned and prepared a cup of coffee for himself, then grabbed the pot and sauntered to the door. Sliding it open, she turned and smiled.

He held up the pot. "Do you need a refill?"

She smiled, "Thank you, yes."

He poured coffee into her cup, the aroma wafting up to his nostrils.

It was humid at this time of the morning, it would be a stifling day today. The weather on his phone predicted it would be in the high nineties.

He carried the coffee pot back inside. As he stepped out onto the deck, the warmth on his bare feet confirmed it would be a hot one. He sat on the love seat next to her.

Her legs were propped up on the metal coffee table and he mimicked her style. He wore a pair of shorts and so did she. He stared at the contrast in the coloring of their legs. His only looked darker because he had dark hair on his. Hers were smooth and shone in the sunshine. Her skin was olive in tone and she tanned easily. She still had fantastic legs.

He reached over and touched her thigh and ran his hand up and down. Her skin was soft, and smooth. He'd always remembered the way her skin felt against his. The memories of her legs wrapped around his waist as he was inside of her came to the forefront of his mind. Those were the best times for sure.

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