“It was the catalyst I needed. I packed my things and shipped them to Florida. When I landed here, I had a momentary freak out. I realized that I uprooted my entire life, and there was nothing guaranteed on the other end. After a week here, I was in doubt about my spur-of-the-moment decision, so I...you’re going to laugh.”
I lean forward, cupping my head in my palm. “I won’t. Promise.”
“I asked for a sign. I wanted something concrete to know that this was where I was supposed to be, and I hadn’t lost my damn mind.”
“Did you get it? Your sign, I mean?”
His face changes, but his hand continues stroking along my arm. “That night, I went to an underground club that my friend told me about, and my life changed forever.”
“Wicked Chucks.”
“I saw you at the bar with Stefani. Wearing that silly pink wig.”
I huff with fake annoyance. “I like my wig.”
“I like you better without it. You looked in my direction, and I felt everything I’d never felt with Charlotte. That I’d never felt with anyone. Fucking terrified me. I was always so sure of myself with women, but I couldn’t get up the nerve to speak to you.”
“I’m hardly intimidating, Owen!” Although the butterflies in my stomach are swarming after hearing his story.
“You absolutely are, in the best way. You radiate this energy, and I knew that if you didn’t feel it too—if you were married or uninterested—that I wouldn’t know how to handle it. So, I snuck upstairs for a better view of you. Thankfully, I unwittingly sat in your balcony.”
I can’t stop the smile crossing my face. “I’m so glad you did. Look at us now.”
“I want to see you tonight, Tally. I need to see you tonight.”
My mind is a jumble of thoughts and emotions. I want nothing more than to spend time with Owen, but I also have a ton of packing to do and a short time to get it finished. “Don’t you have some important dinner function?”
“Yes, with you, if you’ll have dinner with me.”
“I know you’re busy, Owen.”
“Never too busy for you. Better yet, why don’t you just come home?”
“Home?”
“I bought that condo for us. It has the bedroom for the baby, and we can’t forget the rooftop garden for Hecate.” He pulls me forward, between his legs, his hands wrapped around the back of my thighs. “I want us back. I miss us.”
“I don’t think there’s room for me in your life,” I grumble. Yes, I’m being difficult. Sue me, I’m hormonal.
“Bullshit, Tally. I will make room.” His fingers press into my skin, inching me ever closer. “Are you showing?”
I smirk, sending him a wink. “You can’t tell, can you?”
“You’re wearing scrubs. You could hide a soccer ball under there.”
“Hardly.”
“Didn’t answer my question.”
I’m not ready to admit how much my body has changed, even if it’s only obvious when I’m naked and analyzing myself in the mirror. “A little.”
His fingers slide around my hips and under my scrub top, tickling my skin. “I want to see.”
I stay his hands. “No. I’m insecure enough, after comparing my body to Charlotte’s.”
Owen’s eyes narrow. “Why the hell would you ever—don’t do that. I tell you I fell for you the minute I saw you, and that’s your response? Unacceptable.”
“We can wait until later.”