Page 25 of Lyrical

He took both my hands in his. I checked the time; we had to physically separate soon. “No, I don’t think it’s wrong. It hasn’t even been a week yet. You’re a wonderful mother, Jillian. You’re handling this in a way that makes you comfortable, and I’m good with that. Daniel needs to get to know me better before I’m sharing your bed all night.”

“That was exactly what I needed to hear, Chase. I love you so much,” I said quietly. I wanted to add “Never leave me,” but that sounded too needy. But he was so supportive and understanding; I just couldn’t imagine not having him in my life forever.

A knock on the door startled me, and I yelped. Chase tugged a strand of my hair, chuckling. “You have no idea how much I love you back. I’m counting down the days until we can move on with our lives and have it all. Together.”

He went for the door, and a jolt of sensation sizzled through me. His words had power. I wasn’t sure exactly what he meant by “move on,” but as long as it was together, I was a happy woman.

His unconditional support, his strength to put my needs first, his unwavering commitment to our relationship. He thought I had no idea how much he loved me back.

I hadsomeidea.

Ileaped out of bed and directly to my mirror, hauling up my pajama top. They felt better. I just had to see if they looked like it.

Holding the sides of my breasts, I shifted in both directions, hoping to get the all-clear. Maybe a touch of redness remained but no prickly marks. Thank fuck I was back to normal.

I sent off a quick text to Chase:Anytime you’re free to come over, I’d love to see you. You don’t need to wait for the party to start.

His reply was almost instantaneous:A private pre-party invitation?

As private as they come. Daniel’s still in Chicago.

I’ll be there soon, Wild Horses.

My cheeks were practically splitting, and my step had that extra spring to it as I went into the bathroom. My morning started on a high note, and I had every intention of it ending at a sharp-pitched G. I was ready to shatter some crystal.

I warmed up the shower and did another check in the mirror as I brushed my teeth. God, I’d been so worried that I was going to waste most of the day sitting in a waiting room. I poked them a few times. Yep, still doing okay.

I ran down my to-do list as I stood under the water. The basement needed to be tidied up, but otherwise, the house was clean. I’d already done the grocery shopping the other day, and anything I forgot, Perry and Stephen could pick up. I was counting on them to come early to help out, but hopefully not earlier than Chase.

I felt tingles, and it was for all the right reasons that time. We could use a few hours of uninterrupted alone time at the house, and I could relax since we’d have a warning. I’d asked Daniel to let me know when he was on his way. Unlike his father, he’d actually do it.

The call had come in around 10 p.m. the night before. Daniel decided to stay overnight and wanted to make sure I still didn’t need the car. No problem; I preferred him driving on Saturday morning versus Friday night, anyway. He’d sounded wired, hopped up since he felt the interview had gone flawlessly. He was just about to grab a late dinner, so he couldn’t chat long, but we made plans to talk when he got home. We’d have some time with just the two of us after the party ended. Perfect.

I started to hum as I sudsed my hair, shaking my hips. Before long, I was in full-on song mode. “I’m a few years older than you….” I’d found myself belting out Stevie quite often these days. Ever since Chase asked me to sing for him during our first time playingBunked.He’d told me it was for extra points, but little did I know that night how big I’d actually win.

After I’d finished, with the last of my conditioner squeaked out, I slid open the shower door, reaching for a towel and catching a glimpse of my body sideways in the mirror. Hmm…. Was my butt falling? I’d been lucky so far, but that was sure to be the next thing to go. I squeezed it. Lifted it. Dropped it back down. Couldn’t make a definite conclusion, so I just wrapped the towel around me and stopped thinking about it.

I continued singing as I dug through my makeup bag. I got a decent amount of sleep the night before, so I didn’t need the industrial stuff. I pulled out my light concealer, dabbing it under my eyes, following up with mascara. I dried my hair a bit and checked myself out. Not too bad. I’d take it.

I left for the bedroom to collect my clothes, tossing my towel on the chair. Ugh. Stupid full-length mirror. I did another sideways glance, then a full back one, trying to twist my head all the way around like frickin’ Linda Blair. I did feel a little possessed at the moment. Something kept forcing me to look at my ass when I just wanted to ignore it. Dammit. I lost the fight.

I snatched a pencil out of my dresser drawer and placed it under my butt cheek. I let go and it dropped. Okay, positive sign. I’d heard about the pencil test years before: gravity was still your friend if you could place a pencil lengthwise under your boobs and butt and it didn’t get stuck. I’d given up on my chest long ago; I could put a two-by-four under there and it’d stay put.

Just for good measure, I tried the other side, wedging it as high as I could up my thigh. I pushed it in good, opened my hand, and—

“What are you doing?”

The pencil bounced to the ground and I screamed, “Chase!”

I snatched the towel and covered myself. Silly, considering he’d probably seen me naked more times than not, but he’d scared me senseless. My face started to boil.Holy shit. He did not just see me shoving a pencil under my ass.

He picked it off the floor and twirled it in his fingers, head tilted just so, half his face scrunched up enough to show me he was both curious and amused. I wanted to crawl under the bed.

“Do you want this back?”

“No.”

“I can get you a pen instead… magic marker?”

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