Page 108 of Out of the Cold

“I want to live with you, too. Desperately.” She hesitated. “But I think, at least for a little while, I’d like to have my own apartment. I’ve only lived alone for a few months out of my whole life. Half of that was here, and this isn’t even my own place.”

She held her breath, remembering his reaction the last time they talked about moving.

“I understand,” he said, smiling.

“You do, really?”

“I do. I think it’s perfect.” His hands skimmed up her thighs and curved around her hips. “I can’t wait to cook you dinner and ravish you there.”

“It’s going to be completely mine, and I’m going to take care of everything. I’ll fix it up, and sign up for rental insurance, and figure out what internet to get.”

“I’m losing you to rental insurance?”

She smiled and wrapped her arms around his neck. “Pretty much.”

“I guess I can learn to live with that. And whenever you’re ready, we’ll find a place together.”

“I would love that. I almost can’t wait.”

“But you should,” he said, kissing her tenderly on the mouth. “You don’t want to miss anything.”

“Speaking of which,” she said, kissing the smooth part of his neck she loved so much, “what do you think about spending a few more weeks here? It would be like before, but even better.”

“You read my mind,” he said, his mouth meeting hers in a kiss that drove away all thought. ?

Epilogue

Early January, oneyear later

“I did it!” Lucy shouted, sliding to a stop at the bottom of the bunny slope.

“Well done,” Gabriel said, smiling at her victory.

It was her fifth time down the slope, but the first without falling. Several times in the last hour, he’d suggested they head home, but she wasn’t having it. It was her first lesson, and she was determined to make it down at least once without a tumble.

He should have known it would be like this. She was always pushing herself, always digging deeper. It was one of the things he loved about her.

---