Page 85 of Atlas & Miles
When we had to break apart to catch our breath, Miles kept his hands on me, his thumbs caressing my tear-stained cheeks. His own eyes were red and glistening, but his wide smile healed something in me only he could’ve mended. He was here. He washere. And given that kiss, he wanted to stay.
But I’d gotten into trouble with assumptions before, so as much as I hated the distance, I took a step back. His hands didn’t leave my head, though—he just moved with me.
“I love you, Daddy.”
I melted, swearing those were the best four words in the English language. “I love you, too, my sweet baby boy.”
Fresh tears leaked from his eyes at the endearment, but his smile never faltered. And I knew then that everything was going to be okay.
“What are you doing here?”
He did drop his hands then, but he wrapped them around my waist like I knew he liked to do and pulled me a little closer. “I was trying to come up with some big, romantic speech the whole way here, but I could only come up with this: I love you, Daddy, and I want to move here to be with you for the rest of our lives. If you’ll have me.”
I laughed through a sob as I wrapped my arms around him and pulled him into a hug, my head resting against his chest. “I would love that, my sweet boy, more than anything.” I leaned back to catch his gaze. “But are you sure?”
He nodded down at me, that gorgeous smile still on his handsome face, and his beauty hit me square in the chest. This man was so incredible, and he was mine. Wholly. Completely. Finally. “Yes, Daddy. Because I get it now. All my life, I thought I wanted someone to choose me, that I needed someone else’s love to heal my broken pieces. That’s why when you left, I thought you weren’t choosing me, that I wasn’t good enough for you to stay.”
My eyes welled with tears as he kept going.
“But I wasn’t broken; I never have been. I’m amazing just as I am. It turns out, I didn’t need someone to save me, to fix me, to convince me I was worthy of love. I just needed to choose myself—to love myself—all along.”
A choked sob flew out of my throat, and Miles pressed a kiss to my forehead before he stepped back to catch my gaze again.
“I did everything I stayed in Gomillion to do, and now I’m ready to move on with my life. Move forward. With you.” He grinned. “I want to build a life with you, Atlas. I mean, I got on a plane for the first time in my life just to come see you. If that’s not love, I don’t know what is.”
I laughed again. “You’ve got me there.” He chuckled at that, the adoration in his eyes palpable. “I love you, Miles. I can’t believe you’re here.”
“I am, Daddy. And I’m not leaving. You know, except to pack up both of our homes and move everything out here.”
Love flowed between us as we simply stared into each other’s eyes for a few long moments, the world around us falling away. My boy, my Miles, was in my arms again, and the time was finallyright.
God, I felt like I was soaring.
When Miles leaned in once more, the kiss was softer, sweeter, and it spoke of forever promises and hopes and dreams of a beautiful life with this man. As our lips explored each other, I could see our life unfolding before my eyes, of breakfasts by the light of the sun streaming in through our floor-to-ceiling windows, of evenings spent in each other’s arms, of scenes as Daddy and boy and nights as two people making love and all the perfect, mundane, exciting, and boring moments in between.
I knew Miles thought of me as his sunshine, but in truth, he was the one who brightened my life. His grumpy demeanor had gotten past my defenses, fostering an inescapable, irresistible attraction I couldn’t ignore.
And now, I didn’t have to.
Thank fuck.
He broke the kiss, grinning down at me. “I don’t know about you, Daddy, but I’d like to get out of here. I heard Chase said you could head out—maybe you could show me around my new home?”
Butterflies swarmed in my belly, and I couldn’t help but let out a squeal. “Oh, fuck yes! Let’s get out of here.”
***
We fell into our apartment—ourapartment; fuck, that felt amazing to say—tripping over ourselves in our rush to get naked. Our clothes trailed behind us as we made our way to the largest bedroom, where a luxurious king-sized bed with high-thread-count sheets and a clean and cozy duvet waited for us to get them dirty.
“Atlas,” Miles breathed, his mouth an inch from mine as he unbuttoned his jeans and shoved them over his hips. I unclipped my wrap skirt and let it fall in a half-moon pile behind me,my blouse already somewhere in the massive living room. “Our place isnice.”
I snickered, peeling my lacy briefs off and letting them fall to the floor. I pressed my lips to his before pulling back to talk. “It is, baby. Would you like to stop what we’re doing for a tour?”
“Fuck no.” Miles grabbed my neck again, his hands just under my jaw, and pulled me into yet another fiery kiss that was over much too soon. I would never tire of kissing this man. “Later. After I fuck you senseless.”
I shivered at his words, pulling away only to take his hand and drag him toward the bed. He came willingly, letting me retain my bossy bottom status, giving me control. I was the Daddy, after all. “Yes. Do that.”
I fell back, the duvet fluttering up around me as I landed in the middle of the bed.
