Page 33 of Starry Night Kisses

“Don’t worry about it,” I offer quietly, leaning my head against the cool glass.

“Are you okay?” he sounds worried. It’s a far cry from how we’ve spent the last twenty-four hours, but now that we’ve returned to the real world, all the problems we still have to face are racing toward us at the speed of light.

“If I’m being honest, I’m a little worried now that we’re back.” I shift back toward him, picking at my nails as I avoid his eyes.

“What are you worried about, baby?” He covers my hands with his, allowing no room to object as he intertwines our fingers again.

Taking a deep breath, I decide to voice my concerns instead of sitting on them. Besides, I already told Eric once I didn’t want to come second to a job again. “Your job is demanding. You’re always gone, and while I love to travel, don’t get me wrong, I just can’t imagine going back and forth to New York that much. When are we ever going to have time to see each other?”

He pulls my hand over to kiss my knuckles. “You don’t have to worry about that, Evelyn. I won’t be traveling any longer.”

Surprise hits me like a freight train. “What do you mean?”

That damn sexy grin spreads across his face as he leans an elbow on the center console and kisses myhand again. “I told my company I needed to scale back—no more travel, unless we’re on vacation. I need to be stationary here in Chicago and can’t be on call like I have been.”

“Eric, you love your job. Please tell me you didn’t do that for me. The last thing I need is for you to wake up one day and resent me.”

“Baby, stop. I told them I found the woman I plan on starting a family with, whether that means us and the dogs, or kids, if you decide you want to adopt. That means more to me than any job,” he explains.

Tears prick my eyes, my sinuses burning as I try to hold them at bay. I’m overcome with gratitude, and then I remember he asked for time off before he returned for that dinner where we ran into each other at the restaurant. “You told them that? But you put in for time off before you even came back to Chicago.”

Eric releases a booming laugh that fills the cab as he pulls into my parking lot. “Honestly, I told my boss I’d met my future wife as soon as I returned to the table the night we sexted.”

A laugh bubbles up in my throat, and as soon as the truck is parked, I undo my seatbelt and launch myself across the truck to embrace him. “I love you. Thank you.”

“I love you, too. There’s no need to thank me.”

“No, seriously, Eric. You’re incredible, and I’m so lucky you love me.” My tears flow freely, prompting Bagel to whine from the backseat because my pup is always in tune with my emotions. His cries cause Archer to start chiming in,and Eric and I laugh as our hounds start their tune of sympathy.

“Knock that off, you rascals.” He turns and scratches Archer’s head before scooping Bagel from the back and pulling him into his lap. “What do you think, kiddo? You want to keep living here with your fancy elevators and no yard? Or do you wanna come out to the burbs and stretch your legs?”

Bagel gives him a “Whoo! Whoo!” before jumping up to lick his face.

“You want us to move in with you?” I have to admit, even though we’ve already saidI love you,I wasn’t expecting him to want us to move in so quickly.

“I told you, Evelyn, there doesn’t need to be a time limit on it. If you’d rather stay in your own place, I respect that. But, eventually, it just makes sense for you to move in. Doesn’t it? There’s lots of space, a huge yard, and enough rooms for you to set up an office if you want.”

“You’ve really thought this through, haven’t you?” My heart skips a beat, warming with his intentions.

I don’t know how I managed to get so lucky. Even if he did stalk me. Even if he’sobsessedwith me. Doesn’t every woman want that? Doesn’t every womandeservethat?

“I told you, I’ve been waiting for you for a long time, Evelyn. I’m all in. I don’t need time to decide that.” He reaches over and cups my cheek in his palm.

I tilt my head into it. “Promise me this is real? That I won’t wake up tomorrow to find it was all a dream.”

Eric places Bagel next to Archer and pushes his seat back before pulling me into his lap. “I promise you, Evelyn soon-to-be Adams, that while I will spend the rest of our lives making your world as dreamlike as possible, it will all be real.”

“You are my dream, though.” I lean my forehead against his. “You crashed into my world like a supernova. Just promise me your love won’t fade.”

He kisses the tip of my nose before pressing his lips against mine in a short but firm kiss. “I promise, baby. I will love you until the stars abandon the sky in search of other galaxies, and even then, I’ll find a way for us to follow them.”

I release a shuddered laugh and pull back to wipe my tears. “Okay, you have to stop reading the romance novels.”

“Never.” He leans forward, kissing the hollow of my throat where my North Star pendant rests. “Besides, Archer is partial to the smutty audiobooks.”

“Oh, yeah?” I peer behind the seat at the giant German shepherd, who cocks his head at me. “Well, we can’t stop listening tothose, now can we?”

“Whoo! Whoo! Whoo!”

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