Page 38 of Wrapped Around My Heart
It really shouldn’t surprise me when she does none of that. Yet my breath still catches as she gets up from her seat and closes the small distance between us. My hand lands on her hip when she steps up beside me and I lean back in my chair to look up at her. Ari doesn’t hesitate as she places a hand on my shoulder for balance before swinging a leg over mine. She sits on my lap, facing me.
When she gently cups my cheeks in the palms of her hands, all the tension that had been building up seeps from my body.
“Dean, we might not have planned this, but I am so damn happy that it’s you who’s figuring this all out with me. You’re one of my best frie?—”
“I swear if you call me a friend when the reason we are here right now is because I’m addicted to seeing your face when you come, I will take you upstairs and fuck that word out of your mouth.” The words leave my mouth without a second thought.
There’s no way in hell that I will let her think we are justfriends.
Her thighs attempt to squeeze together around me as she squirms in my lap. A beautiful flush spreads across her cheeks and down her neck. If I weren’t this close to her, I might havemissed how my words affect her since she sounds completely unbothered when she answers.
“Okay, you have a point there. We’re notjustfriends. But I do think it’s an important layer to us that we are.”
One of her wild red curls slips from the messy bun. I reach up to tuck it behind her ear before it can block her eye. My fingers linger at her jaw before trailing down her neck. Goose bumps erupt across her freckled, pale skin, making me smile wider at the reaction.
“You’re right, Freckles. It is an important part of us, but there’s also so much more to us. We’ve been skirting around what we are for years, stealing moments when I crave hours. I’m done trying to act like I’m not completely infatuated with you. Done trying to ignore just how deeply I crave your presence. So as long as you know that we are so much more than just that one layer…” I slip my hand to the back of her neck and carefully guide her forward until our lips are barely an inch apart. “And that you understand I’m not going to stop until I have each and every piece of you. Because you already consume all of me, Arianna. This baby is just a surprise bonus to add to the mix.”
Her emerald eyes widen with every word I declare and there’s no hiding the emotions running through her mind as she stares down at me. Surprise swirls with relief. Panic clashes with happiness. Wariness molds to excitement. Ari doesn’t flinch from me, doesn’t try to hide the real and raw effect that my words have on her. And it only makes me more confident about everything I’m feeling, even if she’s not ready to say it out loud yet.
When she opens her mouth to respond, I shake my head. Rubbing my thumb up and down her neck as I hold her in place, I smile softly.
“I’ve known how I feel about you for a while now. I’m not telling you any of this to rush you into being on the same page asme. I have no problem waiting for you to catch up, and I’m not going to change my mind.”
Instead of letting her fumble for something to say, I press my lips to hers.
She melts into me immediately, and I know she’s pouring her feelings into the kiss—even if she doesn’t understand them yet.
CHAPTER 15
Arianna
“Don’t laugh at me!”I half-heartedly snap into the speaker of my phone, which only makes Vivian laugh harder.
“Why wouldn’t you buy new pants?” She giggles and I roll my eyes.
I knew I’d gain weight. It’s expected when one is growing an entire human. Sure, there’s a small bump where the baby sits, but it’s barely noticeable to anyone who doesn’t look at my body every day and it’s easy to hide with loose-fitting shirts or sundresses.
What I wasn’t expecting, though, was for the weight to go straight to my ass, thighs, and tits.
“Because I’m only nine weeks! I didn’t think I’d need them yet. Besides, they technically fit. They just wouldn’t button closed, so for now, the hair tie I looped through is working just fine.” I huff. Buying new pants sounds like something for the second trimester, not this early on. “Plus, I only wear pants when going to hockey games, and I haven’t been to one since finding out about the baby. So I didn’t know they’d bethissnug.”
“Oh, babe. I’m sorry.” Viv tries to stifle her laugh.
“Yeah, and you’re not even here to go shopping with me.” I pout while pulling up to a parking space in front of the buildingwhere most of the Bobcats players—including my brother—Dean, Dom, and Lilly all live.
“Dude, I would kill for an actual mall.” My friend sighs heavily before grumbling, “Not that I’d have anywhere to put shit if I bought it.”
“Wait, you still haven’t emptied out your car?” I ask while putting my car in park so I can scowl, even though she can’t see me.
“Nope,” she says with extra emphasis on the P. “Dylan says he’s not a fan of the house we’re in, so there’s no point in getting unpacked if he’s gonna find us a better place. And like, I get it. I do. But I’m also tired of hauling aroundeverythingI own everywhere I go.”
“Viv…” I start before biting my tongue and try to figure out how to tell her that everything about that is screaming red flag.
“It’s fine. I’m just ready to feel like I have a home, not a crashing pad,” she says before I get my thoughts together. “He wants to find a place that’s right for us to settle into.”
“Have you tried looking for anything?” I ask, ready to pull up listings on my own phone for her.
“Yeah. Most of what I find is in town that would add like thirty minutes to his already long commute or it’s in the city. And Dylan’s holding out on that option because he doesn’t want to be that close to work.”
