Page 116 of Lyrical

“No, um, we had a fight too. He’s with Cassie.”

“I’m sorry, baby.” He nuzzled against my neck, and I felt so incredibly safe with him next to me. “You should have told me. I can see now why you had the week you did. I couldn’t even be there for you.”

“Chase, it’s fine. You had work, and I’m a big girl. I’ve been taking care of myself for a long time now. If it were something critical, you would have been here.”

“Well, I’m here now, and I’m not going anywhere. Get used to me sticking around because I’m not leaving you alone. Not until I’m positive that you’re okay again.”

I sighed. “Chase, I’m perfectly fine. I can take care—”

“Dammit, Jillian. I know you’re fully capable, but I said I’m taking care of you, so fucking let me. Because you’re mine to take care of. My family.”

Family.

Chase stayed true to his word as if I’d ever doubted that for a second. It’d been about thirty-six hours since he’d come home, and I’d probably slept for thirty of them. I had no idea how sleep-deprived I was until I wasn’t. At first, I thought it was silly for him to take my bad dreams so seriously, but then I hadn’t seen myself the other day. Maybe I really had looked like some freaky shit.

He cooked for me, washed my hair in the shower, sat in the office while I made my one work call I couldn’t reschedule. And when I slept, he held me. Perry had taken care of me before, but it was different having a man do it, especially so completely. It felt strange. Until it didn’t.

All that time sleeping and not one nightmare.

Chase never asked for specifics about my fight with Daniel. Either he assumed it was due to my Cassie hatred or he felt I’d only discuss it if I was ready. And I didn’t think I’d ever be ready to hurt him like that. He’d bow out if he knew. Daniel was the only man Chase would never fight for me.

Perry went over plans with me that day after Mike left—several, in fact. I declined them all. They all involved setting Cassie up, tricking her like she’d done to me. Recording conversations, putting her in precarious situations to be caught by Daniel. All things to trigger a breakup. As much as I wanted to punish Cassie, I didn’t want my son to pay the price. He did love her, and he’d be devastated when it ended. If he found out I had anything to do with that ending, even with her deception revealed, it would tear him up even more. He needed to be the one to figure it out. I was past the point of being able to force the truth on him. I couldn’t stop his hurt from happening; I could only be there for him in the aftermath.

Perry told me not to make a rush decision. To take my time and see if anything changed.

Too late. I just made one.

In a little over two weeks, we’d have our anniversary of when we’d first met. It took me many months after that to accept what we had, for me to fall so irreparably in love with him that my world would forever be altered. We may not be married or engaged or share a child or have been together for a decade, but he meant everything to me. He was my family, and family is forever.

My choice was Chase.

I turned around to face him, and he fondled my still-damp hair. I was going to need new pillows after this. We’d taken a shower a few hours before, then went back to bed. He had to be going out of his skull just lying around with me all day while I slept.

“Glad to see you awake again. You look better.”

I smiled. “I feel better.”

“Can I make you something to eat?”

“No, thank you.” I slid my hand over his shoulder, down his arm, feeling his strength.

“Perry called to check in on you earlier.”

“Did you tell her I was being well-taken care of?”

“Of course, even if it had to be done while kicking and screaming.”

I burrowed into his chest. This whole time in bed we’d had shirts off but pajama pants on. In the shower he’d kept enough distance from me, seeming to ignore that erection he always carried around with him. He’d watched out for me like usual, unsure if I was safe or not. After falling asleep with him that first time, I’d been too out of it to think much about it. But now I felt brand new again. My mind was clear, and my body was craving him big time.

“I only kicked and screamed during my nightmare, Chase. I haven’t had any more.”

He kissed the top of my head. “I’ve noticed.”

“Because of you.” He clenched me tighter, hardness everywhere. “Can we take these off?” I asked, tugging at his pants, already shimmying out of mine. “I’m safe right now, and I just want to feel all your skin close to me.”

“Now you tell me. It would’ve been much easier washing you down if I didn’t have to do it with a cherry picker.”

I giggled. Yeah, I’d earned my right for that too, so suck it, Cassie.

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