Page 68 of Perfect Imperfections

“You can’t beat death, Sullivan.”

“I can damn well try.”

His voice cracked, breaking her heart. This man, this wonderful, loving man, cared so much about everyone around him. She held tight, knowing that as much as he cared about the people surrounding him, she cared for him more. Damn it all, she was seriously afraid if she looked deep inside, she’d have to admit she loved him. And how could she not? Sullivan was kind and smart, a wonderful father and brother, handsome as anything and a verified sex god in the bedroom. But best of all? He accepted her as she was. How could she not love a man like that?

“Do you need anything? Can I help?”

She had no idea what to do to make him feel better, but if there was anything, anything at all, she’d gladly do it.

He turned in her arms, his hands coming up to cup her face. Bright green eyes, filled with pain and longing, stared at her. His thumb brushed against her lower lip, and she placed a soft kiss on the digit.

“Can you stay? Tonight, after Charlotte goes to bed?”

He was asking her to stay over? They’d never spent an entire night together. She wanted to, badly, but she’d always been conscious of his daughter and the responsibility that lay within the dynamic of a single father. She never wanted to push any boundaries. But here he was, asking her to stay, needing her. How could she deny him? Simple answer. She couldn’t.

“Yes. Of course, I’ll stay.”

His face broke into a beautiful smile, cheek dent and all. It made her heart soar to see the look of devastation replaced with one of joy. She’d done that. She put the happiness there, and that made her feel ten feet tall.

Still cupping her face, he dipped his head, covering her mouth with his lips in a searing, bone-melting kiss that had her forgetting everything, including her own name as he plundered her mouth like a pirate seeking buried treasure.

“Ellie! I’m thirsty.”

They broke apart with a laugh.

“Your daughter has some timing.”

“She does, at that.”

Smiling up at him, she placed a hand over his on her cheek. “Are you okay?”

His grin faded but didn’t disappear entirely. “I will be. Holding you tonight will help.”

Yup. She loved him. Dammit. When had that happened? And what the hell was she going to do about it? He didn’t want anything long term. They’d both agreed. What was she going to do? For now, she had a glass of milk to get. Then she would finish a puzzle and comfort the man she’d fallen for. Everything else could wait until later.

CHAPTER 24

Sullivan watched Ellie walk back to the living room with a glass of cold milk in her hand for his daughter. The dark cloud that settled over him the minute he got the message from Dr. Brinks had broken with a simple touch. Ellie’s touch. Her compassion broke through the failure filling him at being unable to save Mrs. Wilkins. Like the sun shining through the gloom of a stormy day.

How had this woman come to understand him so well in such a short time? How did she know what he needed and give it so freely? And when was the last time Sullivan let himself lean on another person? He couldn’t even remember. Ever since his parents had died, he’d had to be the strong one, the one in charge. First, he’d needed to look after Gavin and make sure his brother finished school, then he’d taken care of Claire and later Charlotte. He’d been taking care of the people he loved for a long time.

But who takes care of me?

Ridiculous. He was a grown ass man. He didn’t need looking after. But he had to admit, seeing the care and worry in Ellie’s soft brown gaze glancing over him…damn, it hit a part of him he thought long buried.

Making his way back into the living room, he saw Ellie and Charlotte crouched over the coffee table, completely engrossed in the puzzle they were putting together. His heart clenched, and he rubbed at the unfamiliar pain. It hurt to look at the two of them, sitting together, smiling. But a good kind of hurt. The kind that let you know you had something special and if it was ever taken away, your life would never be the same. A thankful and cautionary warning to appreciate the moment and the people in it.

Sullivan hadn’t been very good at appreciating things lately. He’d been too worried about making sure everything was going right, everyone was taken care of. But, as evidenced by Mrs. Wilkins’s recent downturn, life rarely went smoothly no matter how hard one tried to keep it all together. Sometimes things broke, fell apart.

Like the elephant puzzle his daughter and girlfriend were currently giggling over as Charlotte tried to fit a piece into the wrong spot. The potential of something whole and beautiful was there, but you had to find the right pieces and place them in their proper spot. Fit the jagged and hollow edges together just so. It was the only way to make the picture complete. He gazed down at the two. One who’d been the center of his world since the moment he laid eyes on her and the other who he’d only recently come to know, but in that time had wrapped herself so tightly into his life he couldn’t imagine it without her.

“Daddy, come help,” Charlotte demanded, breaking him out of his profound musings.

“I’m coming, Angel.”

He sat. Ellie’s hand immediately came out to squeeze his in a reassuring gesture. Lifting their joined hands, he placed a firm kiss against the back of her knuckles, hoping she felt how much he appreciated and cared for her. And if she didn’t, he planned on showing her later that night.

They sat on the living room floor eating brownies and putting together the puzzle, staying up an hour past Charlotte’s bedtime to finish it. Normally Sullivan was very strict about his daughter’s routine, but since tomorrow was Saturday and there was no school or work, he could be flexible.

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