Page 77 of Meet Me in the Blue

“I know it won’t be easy, and our parents will most likely freak out. But it’s not their life. It’s ours.” I dusted my thumbs across his cheeks as his tears spilled over. I was scared too. Hemlock Harbor, my practice, my family, leaving them indefinitely would be the hardest thing I’d ever do. This choice wasn’t without sacrifice. But he was worth it. Without Luka, this place could never truly be home. “We can do this. We can make it work, as long as we do it together.”

Luka crushed our mouths together, the kiss frantic at first, slowed into something soul deep. His breath was mine, and as he breathed me in, we silently agreed to new beginnings, to new roots, and to the rest of our lives.

LUKA

THE EARLY MORNING LIGHTseeped through the parted blinds as my eyes opened to the sound of my alarm. Half-asleep, I smacked my phone on the bedside table and groaned when it fell to the floor. Trying not to fall off the mattress, I bent down and switched off the alarm. Too tired to move, I dangled there, on the side of the bed, my fingers brushing the carpet, somewhere between sleep and reality. In the back of my mind, there was a responsible voice telling me to get up and get ready for the day, but then Rook’s strong arm wound around my waist and pulled me back into the bed and against his chest. His morning erection in a semi-salute, buried itself between my ass cheeks, and despite the hour, I had no intention of moving a muscle. It wasn’t a tough decision. Sexy naked cuddles, or be on time to work? Sexy cuddles for the win.

Rook’s warm lips found the curve of my collarbone as his fingers dusted across the planes of my stomach. “What time is it?”

“Six-thirty.”

He hummed something I couldn’t decipher, his lips on the side of my neck as he gave my cock two lazy strokes. I rolled onto my other side, facing him, and laughed at the sleepy smile on his lips.

“Good morning,” I said as he nuzzled his nose right below my ear and offered me a mumbledgood morningof his own.

I tried not to think about the interview I had today, or the decisions we’d made over the past week. I made an effort to live in this moment with my boyfriend and his hands on my waist and his mouth on my skin. Hadn’t I always wished for days like this, days where I could wake up next to Rook, and he was mine and we loved each other irrevocably? It was all surreal, moving in with him, having him like this, and sometimes I worried I’d fuck it all up again and it would all be gone.

“Hey.” Rook pushed a strand of my hair from my forehead. “Where did you go just now?”

“What?” I shook my head as he stared at me, inching his hand up my stomach to my chest. “Sorry, I’m still waking up.”

“Are you nervous about today?”

No.

Yes.

I didn’t know how to answer him, but I gave him a half-truth anyway.

“A little.”

I wasn’t anxious about the interview. I was anxious about saying yes to the job offer. Anxious about telling our families, and uprooting our lives, and having it blow up in my face.

“There’s no way they wouldn’t hire you. Dale said it’s a sure thing,” he said, his optimism contagious. “This is good, Luka. It’s going to be good.”

He pushed me onto my back, his body blanketing mine, his heat taking away some of the vestiges of uncertainty. With the weight of his kiss on my lips, it was hard to think about what ifs, and I allowed myself a reprieve as his cock rutted against mine. How many mornings had we missed over the years, how many moments had I squandered and wasted on worry and doubt? I had what I wanted, right here, everything else could wait.

“Look at me,” he whispered, knowing that I needed that anchor. I held his gaze, his rich, amber eyes had become my entire world as the friction of our bodies pulled me under, dragging me into that place between heaven and earth. “Love you.”

Those two words were sure and steady, and I fell in love with him all over again.

We became a tangle of limbs and sweat, panting lips, and pre-come. We edged each other, taking it slow, and forgot about the clock, forgot about Vancouver and choices and everything waiting for us outside of this room. Hip to hip, with hearts pounding, and messy kisses, we relinquished control, the heat of our climax coating our chests and stomachs as we both trembled in each other’s arms.

“I’m scared,” I said, breaking the heady silence, the thought slipping from my lips before I could stop it.

“Me too.” He grazed a sweet kiss across my cheek. “But I think being scared means we’ll be careful. One day at a time, right? We’ll make it work.”

We’ll make it work.

That sentence became a mantra, running through my head while we got ready for the day, and drove into town together. Our morning sexcapades had us running later than usual, but we managed to still squeeze in our daily breakfast date at The Early Bird. The familiar scent of bacon and spice greeted us as we walked in and took a seat. A sort of melancholic twist warmed my belly as I stared at the two bear statues by the front door, and thecome back soonsign that hung crooked no matter how hard the owner tried to fix it. All the humming chatter and laughter crowded inside my chest, and I fought back the narrowing ache in my throat.

“Let me guess.” Charles smiled at us as he pulled a pad and pen from his apron pocket. “Two orders of pumpkin pancakes.”

“Please… and two coffees,” Rook added.

“With cream and sugar,” he said as he wrote down our order on the pad like he didn’t have it memorized. “Coming right up.”

“Thank you,” I said, and the older man smiled at me through his thick white beard.

---