Page 114 of Scent of Home

We continue talking and chatting. At some point, Finn and Locke end up slow dancing. Looking at them together, I wonder who is healing who.

They are healing parts of me I didn’t know were broken. Apparently, I’ve been lonely and depressed. I’ve been sad.

Shane shifts, and I sit up, laughing when Bray grabs me and pulls me back down onto his chest.

“Stay here. You’re my cuddle bunny.”

I roll my eyes and try to fight my way free. Only to be stopped when Locke steps in front of me. He’s just standing there, staring at me.

“Dance with me?”

How can I say no?

He pulls me into his arms and starts slowly revolving on the spot while the others watch on.

“This place is incredible,” Locke whispers, his cheek pressed to mine.

“Almost like home?” I murmur back.

Locke stumbles a step. “I’ve never had one of those.”

My heart clenches. “You’ll always have a home here, Locke. Wherever I’m staying will always be a safe place for you.”

Locke draws me closer. “Erin.” There is so much despair in his voice, so much pain.

“Have faith, Locke. Just live here, in this moment, with us. We’re all doing what we can to learn how to survive this journey together. Don’t think about tomorrow, not yet. Just dance with me. Feel me here with you. Because I have never felt this way before, and I never want to lose a moment of this night.”

Locke sighs and presses a kiss to the corner of my mouth. I turn into him and our lips cling together.

“I know you bonded me. I felt it when I came out of the heat. Erin, I could feel you inside me.”

“Are you upset?”

“Never. You’re everything to me,” Locke whispers and buries his face in my neck, while his hands roam up and down my back.

This entire night is magic.

But then Shane turns off the lights, and I look up out of the skylight at the stars.

“Dancing under the stars with only the candlelight to shine our way,” Locke sings in my ear.

“Don’t ask me to sing back. I sound like a dying cat.”

Locke explodes with laughter.

I grin back at him, watching his mirth. “I’m serious. This is a dangerous situation. I will kill music for you.”

“Yeah, I’m with her,” Shane grumbles. “I write, I don’t sing.”

“Shit out of luck with us. I’ve heard Finn sing,” Bray says lazily and snuggles deeper into Shane’s lap, while Finn strokes the back of his thighs.

“All right, get up!” Shane says, and smacks Bray’s ass hard enough to startle me.

“Why?”

“I want to show you guys something.”

Bray is yawning and grumbling, but it cuts off when we get outside. Shane leads us out from under the porch and then unfolds a blanket that I didn’t see he even had.

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