Page 39 of What About Now

“Great.” He bends and lifts me over his shoulder, and I shriek with laughter.

“What are you doing?” I smack his ass.

“That won’t entice me to put you down, wife. You should know by now that I love it when your hands are on me.”

“Maddox!” I cackle with laughter.

He carries me into the bedroom, dropping me on the mattress with a bounce, before turning on the bedside lamp. “There she is,” he says quietly. He bends over, bracing his body with one hand on the bed while the other cradles my cheek. “I love that smile.” He leans in and kisses me.

One more kiss and he’s standing back to his full height. “You want the bathroom first?” he asks.

I’m breathless, just as I am after every touch of his lips to mine. Something tells me that I’ll never get used to the affection this man gives so freely. “No. You go ahead.”

He winks and grabs clothes to change into before disappearing into the bathroom. I sit up on the bed and plug in my phone to charge. When he opens the bathroom door, he tosses a shirt at me.

“What’s this?”

“My shirt.”

“And why are you tossing it at my head?” I ask, pulling the shirt to my chest. I can smell him, and it takes extreme effort not to bring it to my face to sniff it, but I know he’s watching me.

“I thought you might want to sleep in it.” He shrugs.

My heart gallops in my chest. I always sleep in pajamas that keep my top and bottom half covered, at least I have since Maddox moved in. I want more with him. I want to know what it’s like to have his hands roam over my body, and if I’m being honest, there’s a giddiness inside me thinking about sleeping in his shirt.

I feel like a teenager, and I hear Susan’s voice in my head telling me to allow myself to feel what I feel, and experience the parts of life that I missed out on. So, I stand and offer my husband a smile.

“Thank you.” I don’t stick around to see the look on his face, but I can imagine he’s smiling just as I am as I slip into the bathroom and close the door behind me. I lift the shirt to my face and sniff. His masculine woodsy scent invades my senses and my entire body lights up.

I quickly change and go through my nightly routine, and before I can second-guess myself, I flip off the light and open the door. Maddox is in bed, his back resting against pillows that are stacked up against the headboard.

“Fuck.”

I bite the inside of my cheek to keep from smiling. I take slow, steady steps toward the bed, and he lifts the covers, inviting me in.

“Come on over here, Brogan.”

I grin, but do as he asks, and settle into his side, resting my head against his bare chest. “What are we watching?”

He huffs out a laugh. “Do you really think I can focus on anything but you right now?”

I lift my head to peer up at him. “Do you want me to go change?”

“No.” He wraps his arms a little tighter around me. Keeping me close. “No, I don’t want you to change.”

“So, no movie. I guess we could talk.”

“Talk,” he chokes out. “Yeah, we can do that.”

I start to move away and his arms tighten again. “I’m going to turn out the light.” He reluctantly lets me go as I slide across the mattress to turn off the lamp and move back to the middle of the bed. He’s now lying on his side, so I do the same facing him. We have nothing but the moonlight filtering into the room, but I can still make out his features.

“Do you want kids?” he asks.

“Starting with the heavy hitters, huh?” I tease.

“Blame my mom.”

I chuckle softly, before taking a deep breath and answering him honestly. “I never thought I’d find a man I could trust enough to be vulnerable with to get to that point. However, I love kids, and I’d love to be a mom. Watching Briar with the girls—yes. One day. What about you?”

---