Page 117 of Hitting the Gap

He tossed his phone on the nightstand. He didn’t have much choice but to give her time. But when her time was up, she better be ready to talk. Because he sure as hell would have something to say if she thought she was the only one who got a say in this relationship.

Chapter 26

Bailey glanced at the clock on the stove for the tenth time. God shouldn’t he be home by now. She’d checked the airline four times and the plane had landed on time. She fidgeted with the belt of her robe. This better work because it was the only grand display she could think of. Maybe it was stupid, and she should come up with something else.

She heard the lock snick open on the front door. Gonzo was home. No time to rethink the plan.

She pulled the belt of her robe open and allowed the fabric to drop to the floor just as Gonzo rounded the corner.

“Holy shit.” He stopped dead in his tracks.

She fought the urge to shift nervously. Bailey squared her shoulders and lifted her head higher.

“Ugh.” Gonzo swallowed loudly. “Jesus.” He rubbed his hand over his face and cleared his throat. “What’s going on?” He quickly looked around the room, then his eyes honed back in on her.

She bit back a smirk. It was hard not to feel powerful when she’d rendered him practically speechless.

“Welcome home,” she said.

“Umm…thanks.” He flicked a look at her face, then his eyes trailed down her body. “I’m sorry. I have no idea what’s going on here, and I can’t form a coherent thought when you’re standing here looking like that.”

“This is my way of saying I trust you.” She flipped her hair off her shoulder. “I trust us.”

She took a step toward him, and he backed up slightly. Bailey bit back a grin. “You scared of me, Gonz?”

“What? No. I’m just trying to figure out what the hell is happening and my brain is seriously not firing. I can’t believe I’m asking this, but can you put your robe back on so the blood can fire back into my brain?”

“What, you can’t think when I’m naked?”

“Oh, I can think.” His eyes darkened as his gaze slowly trailed down her body. “I can think about all the ways I want to fuck you, but I’m pretty sure, given how we left things, this whole naked thing means something else, and I’m not quite seeing it.”

She scooped up her robe and draped it over her shoulders.

Gonzo let out a loud breath. “Bay.”

She held up her hand. “Let me go first. I had thought being naked would be pretty clear, but I can see how you might have interpreted it differently.” Having her robe back on should have made her feel safer, more comfortable, but strangely, it didn’t. She missed the confidence she’d felt when Gonzo had been mesmerized. “Do you want to sit?” She gestured toward the sofa.

“Yeah.” He followed her to the living room and sat down beside her. He bent his knee and turned so he was facing her. “Go ahead.”

She took a deep breath. “I’ve been doing a lot of thinking since you’ve been away.”

“Me too.”

“I got scared. The idea of starting over again, giving up my job again to follow you terrified me. All of my insecurities flooded back and I couldn’t think straight.”

“Okay. Are you thinking clearer now?”

“Gonzo, I stood naked in your kitchen.”

“So that’s a no?”

Bailey laughed. She could see why he’d think that. “No, that’s a yes. I’m thinking clearer. I realized I trust you. You’ve had my back my entire life. You’ve stood up for me. Championed me. Believed in me when no one else did. How could I not trust you’d have my back no matter where we were?”

He reached for her hand. “I would never hurt you, Bailey.”

“I know that. I got scared and for a minute I let myself forget what kind of man you are. I know you aren’t anything like Brad. If things didn’t work out for us, it wouldn’t be because some other woman caught your eye.”

“That is not something you ever have to worry about.”

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