Page 74 of Make Your Save

“What are you doing?”

He smiles at me, his lips finding mine before he starts to walk toward the bathroom door. “Taking you to the bath,” he says softly, his eyes slowly searching my expression. “I want to wash you and clean you up and then bring you back here so I can hold you while you fall asleep beside me one last time.” He pauses, his throat bobbing as he swallows, and my chest constricts. “Is that okay?”

I don’t dare trust myself to speak. I swallow back my emotions, pulling my bottom lip between my teeth as I incline my head forward. “I can’t think of a better way to spend my last night in Aston.”

Sadness passes through his expression. “Good.”

He carries me into the bathroom, kind and gentle as he sets me down and draws a bath. After the tub is filled, he helps me in, before easing in behind me. There’s nothing sexual about it, but the intimacy is unlike anything I’ve experienced before. He washes my body, cleaning every inch before washing and conditioning my hair for me.

He makes good on his promise and carries me back to his room afterward, tossing me one of his t-shirts to sleep in before pulling me into his arms. My back is pressed against his chest and his face is in my hair, breathing me in.

Rowan may not think he’s relationship material, but I’ve never met a man as kind and as doting as him. He’sa safe place to lay your head at night, a comforting shoulder when the world feels heavy. He’s everything someone would want in a potential partner.

And whoever ends up capturing his heart will be the luckiest woman in the world.

CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

HADLEY

Standing at the threshold, I stare into Rowan’s living room, my eyes scanning over all of the things Lucy has acquired the past few months. Past that, I can see into the dining room and kitchen where I’ve spent so much of my time since moving in to help Rowan.

Absent-mindedly, I slide my right thumb and forefinger over the ring on my left hand, spinning it around as emotion washes over me. I forgot to take it back off last night after Rowan told me to put it on. It’s not mine...not to keep, at least.

Just like he was never mine to keep.

At the end of the day, it was all a means to an end. Every moment was fake and simply to ensure Lucy got to live with her father.

Walking over to the sink, I find a few dirty dishes and rinse them off before setting them in the dishwasher. Rowan is going to be busy the next few weeks with juggling a baby and the playoffs.

I already feel guilty enough for leaving him to figure out what he’s going to do without me. The least I can do is put a few dishes into the dishwasher.

“You didn’t have to do that.”

The sound of his voice slides across my eardrums like silk and I suck in a deep breath, pushing my emotions back down as I slowly turn around to face him. “I know, but it needs to be done.”

Rowan’s eyes slowly search my face, his expression unreadable as he adjusts Lucy in his arms. “Thank you, Hadley,” he says softly, his throat bobbing as he swallows roughly.

I force a smile onto my lips and it feels unnatural. It feels wrong in a moment like this. “It was just a few dishes. No big deal at all.”

He tips his chin, the movement drawn out before his eyes survey the kitchen, coming to a stop on the clock on the stove. “Are you ready to go? If we want to get you to the airport on time, we should probably go now.” His gaze slides back to mine. “Do you have all of your things?”

Everything except for my heart . . .

“I think so,” I tell him, my voice quieter than I mean for it to be. “I left both of my suitcases by the door to the garage.”

“Can you take Luce and I’ll get them into the trunk?” he asks me, closing the space between us with his long strides before stopping in front of me. “If you want to meet me out there, we can hit the road then.”

My hands brush against his and a shock of electricitytravels along the nerve endings in my skin. I ignore the shiver it sends down my spine and pull Lucy against my chest as I tilt my head to look at him. “Don’t worry, I’ll be out of your hair soon enough.” I half laugh, winking at him as I feel a twinge of pain deep inside my chest.

He blows out a breath as he stares down at me for a beat. “You were never in my hair, Hadley.”

“Yeah, well, you know what I mean,” I retort, forcing that plastic smile across my lips again. “Are you sure it’s okay if some of my things are still here?”

I told Rowan I could get a storage unit to keep the things I’m not taking with me to California, but he insisted it was senseless. No one else is going to be using the guest room that I’ve been occupying, so he was adamant that my belongings stay here until I figure out what I’m doing when my next travel assignment is up.

“Yes.”

He’s been quiet all morning and I hate it. None of this is easy for me and I know he’s not particularly happy about me leaving right before playoffs start. We both knew it was going to end up working out this way timewise, but now he’s stuck having to make other arrangements and I’m sure that’s where his frustration is stemming from.

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