Page 74 of Operation Sunshine
Still holding him.
Still seeing him.
As Franco drifted in the quiet aftermath, lulled by the steady beat of Ben’s heart under his ear, one thought settled into him, not for the first time, but now with bone-deep certainty.
He’d fallen in love with Ben and there was no taking it back.
The morning light came through Ben’s kitchen window, washing over Franco in a way that made him pause. He wasn’t used to mornings like this, gentle and unhurried, without alarms or obligations screaming at him. Ben moved around the kitchen, flipping eggs, humming under his breath, and Franco leaned against the counter, his arms crossed, drinking in the quiet.
“I’ll grab the coffee.” Ben reached past him for the French press. Franco caught his hand for a second, a lingering brush, and a shiver ran down his spine. Not lust this time.
More like belonging.
“You look good in a kitchen,” he told Ben.
“Huh.” Ben snorted. “The kitchen in my flat in Melbourne was hardly ever used. I ate out all the time, even breakfast. I don’t think I cooked a single meal in it.” Then he grinned. “You’re more at home in a kitchen than I ever was.”
“Never like this,” Franco admitted.
Ben frowned. “Like what?”
He smiled. “It’s like I said the other morning. Never… with someone I wanted to wake up next to.”
Ben’s hand stilled on the coffee pot, and it was as if the words hung in the air, palpable. Franco met his gaze, and for a heartbeat, neither of them moved, lapsing into silence, broken only by the hiss of the stove, the clink of utensils, and the soft hum of morning.
Ben set the coffee down and brushed his thumb over Franco’s wrist. “I like this,” he admitted. “When it’s the two of us. No deadlines, no games, just mornings like this.”
Franco’s chest tightened, the familiar fear creeping back, but he forced himself to breathe. “Me too,” he said in a low voice. He wanted to say more, to tell Ben he didn’t think he’d ever wanted this feeling to last before, but that with Ben…
Words failed him.
Ben’s fingers threaded through his, steadying him. The fear of falling, of getting hurt, still lingered, but the need to escape was tempered by a stronger emotion.
Hewantedthis.
They moved through the kitchen in tandem, cooking, laughing, stealing small kisses between tasks. It was domestic, ordinary, and yet somehow, it felt extraordinary.
Franco caught himself thinking maybe mornings like this could last. Maybe the walls he’d built around his heart weren’t permanent after all. That maybe, with Ben, he could learn to let go a little.
The thought didn’t terrify him as much as he expected. If anything, it made him ache in the best possible way.
If this is what falling in love feels like, then I don’t want it to stop.
Chapter Twenty-One
Franco watched as Ben got dressed. “Something I said?” The bed already felt empty, and Ben had only been out of it for less than ten minutes.
Ben gave him an apologetic glance. “I’m sorry, but I need to go home. If I walk into the restaurant one more time in the same suit I left in the previous night, not to mention the same shirt, tongues will definitely wag.”
Franco snickered. “You mean they aren’t already? Want me to come with you?”
Ben laughed. “We also need a night apart to prove we can actually survive.” He leaned over to kiss Franco on the lips. “Stay in bed. That’s how I’ll picture you when I’m alone in my flat—already missing you.” He picked his messenger bag up and slung it over his shoulder.
“No going home and firing up the laptop, okay?” Franco admonished.
He chuckled. “I promise. I intend to grab a quick shower, then slip between the sheets that probably still smell of you from twonights ago.” Another soft kiss. “So I’ll pull them around me and fall asleep with the smell of you in my nostrils.”
Warmth stole through Franco. “The things you say…”
