Page 52 of No Ordinary Love

It used to be an old joke because we always made a mess of the bed.

He said what he always did, smiling because he was doing what I was; reclaiming us, bringing the past into the present, removing the taint that had set in when we were apart. "Fuck it. My dick is happy being inside of you and doesn't want to leave."

Thethree wordsalmost spilled out of me then, but I wasn't ready to say them, not yet.

He kissed me softly. "I'm gonna clean you up and make the bed, and then we're going to get some sleep."

"Yeah?"

"It's simple. All you need to do is stay. Let me do all the work." I knew he was talking about more than the state of my bed.

"Okay, Lucas. I'll stay…for now," I agreed, my heart galloping, my fear of getting hurt visceral.

He rewarded me with a big smack on my lips. "Thank you,Tesoro. I promise I'll work hard to changefor nowtoforever."

Chapter 18

Lucas

The one night with Amara had been a gift—and since then, she'd kept me at arm's length.

"I don't want to rush this,"she told me when I showed up like a puppy dog panting for scraps.

I understood. She was afraid. She didn't have faith in me, in us—and I had only myself to blame. If we'd been honest with each other, if I'd shared the pressures of being a Covington and she'd told me how she was really feeling, maybe we could have faced our struggles together. But I chose to keep my problems from her, and she didn't want to seem needy or demanding, so she kept hers from me.

The result was losing each other—and that loss cut deep, all the way to my soul. I knew it did for her, too.

I was a practical man. I didn't believe in soulmates and that shit—but if I did, I'd say that Amara was mine.

We had dinner together; she insisted on eating at her place. She wasn't ready to take our "nascent non-relationship" (her words) out into the world just yet.

I knew she wanted to set the pace, but I didn't get ahead in business by holding back. I had no idea how she'd respond, but I was going all in.

I was staking my claim, I thought as I parked just outside the College of Charleston campus. My pulse quickened as I stared through the windshield at the main building. This wasn't exactly my usual territory, but then again, nothing about my life had been typical lately. I was here because I needed to be—because it was time to stop hiding behind excuses and finally do something about the mess I'd made with Amara.

My conversation with Grandma had stuck with me. She'd made it clear that if I wanted Amara, I needed to fight for her. So, that's precisely what I intended to do.

I grabbed the picnic basket from the passenger seat—a little over the top, maybe, but I wasn't about to half-ass this—and made my way across campus.

As I approached the building where Amara's office was, nerves began to tighten in my chest—a feeling I wasn't used to.

I'd faced down boardrooms full of cutthroat executives and navigated high-stakes deals with barely a ghost of doubt, but this, well, this was different. This was personal. And it mattered more than any business deal ever had and ever could.

I spotted her through the glass doors, wrapping up a conversation with one of her students. She looked composed and focused, with a spark in her eyes that I'd missed so much. But there was also a weariness, a heaviness that I knew I was partly responsible for.

As she turned to head toward her office, I stepped inside, my heart beating like a drum in my chest. "Amara," I called out.

She stopped and turned to face me, her expression shifting from surprise to something more guarded. "Lucas, is something wrong?"

The fact that her mind went there made me realize how much work I still had to do.

"I brought lunch." I held up the picnic basket.

She blinked, clearly taken aback. "Lunch?"

"Yeah." I took a step closer. "You've got to eat, right?"

She hesitated.