Page 131 of Ella Gets the D
Complete.
“Excuse me? Sorry to bother you, but I’m looking for a recently single woman.” A grin stretches across my face as I turn to the deep voice, which is strolling slowly up the sidewalk.
Julian’s dimples wink in a smile. His hands are behind his back in a black leather bomber jacket with a matching hoodie. A thin gold chain peeks above his white undershirt. My gaze moves from his fresh fade and down the broad thighs wrapped in dark denim over black and white high tops.
I restrain the urge to maul him and his fine ass and walk down the steps to reach him. “I might know a person. Is she important?”
“Very. She fell into my life unexpectedly.” He grins to himself. “More like my bed, but that’s semantics. I thought she would rob me blind, but she turned out to be the best thing that ever happened to me.”
Moonlight conceals my blush. “She sounds pretty special.” I bite my lip. “I’m sure she thinks the same of the man who’s looking for her.”
“I sure fucking hope so.”
I giggle.
We reach the last few steps and stand toe to toe. “Hi,” he says through a ripple of cedar and sandalwood.
“Hi. So, what are your intentions with this woman?”
Tender eyes capture mine with a longing we can put away with his passport. “I want to be her anchor, to laugh through the storms, dance in the rain, and take new adventures together. I want to love her and her kids for the rest of my life and”—he pulls a hand from behind his back—“I want to give her this.”
I snort through tears at the bag of tacos. He never misses a word I say or the chance to feed my bottomless stomach. “I missed you, and I love you so much.”
“I love you too, sweetheart.”
We lean forward, and I grab the bag and take off in a sprint to a trail of his laughter. “Oh, how I missed you!” I wave the brown paper sack holding my al pastor tacos in my hand.
“That’s cold as shit!”
I squeal at the heavy footsteps behind me and cut behind a black Jeep to run across the street. There’s no way I can outrun him, and he proves that when he wraps an arm around my waist, lifts me off the ground in the middle of the street, and spins me in a circle.
My head falls back in a howl when he pins me to his front and tickles me over my windbreaker. “My tacos!” I cry through a cackle at the bag on the ground.
“Nah, don’t sniff me after you threw my ass to the side for some food.” His nose nudges up my chin as a smile curves his mouth.
We stare at each other as our breaths come in unison, our gazes roaming over each other in slow appraisal.
“No more waiting,” I whisper.
“No more waiting.”
We inch closer.
“Kiss her already!” I startle at Haile, who’s hanging halfway out the door with the biggest grin.
“Gross.” Duke takes one look, shakes his head, and walks back inside. Jackson stands next to his sister for a beat before he follows him in, but not before I catch his smile.
“It appears all systems are go,” I chuckle.
Julian shifts me in his arms with a smirk. “Well, in that case.” He leans down and presses his lips to mine in a slow, drugging kiss.
“Woo!”
“Haile, come on in this house and leave the grown folks to their business.” Erica’s voice does a lap around the street before we’re left in silence.
I give myself over to the passion flowing between us. In the middle of the road. For all to see.
Epilogue
