Page 83 of Matthew
“I haven’t had that in a long time,” he added, his voice low, almost shy. “But you make it feel easy.”
Heat curled through her, quiet and steady. She set Sammy’s bowl down, washed her hands, and then turned toward him, wiping her hands on a dish towel.
“You always say the right thing,” she said softly.
“Truth is, I never talked this way before you.”
Her chest tightened at the quiet vulnerability in his voice. He wasn’t just saying it. He meant it.
The coffeepot burbled behind her, a reminder that time hadn’t stopped even if it felt that way in the space between them. She stepped closer, curling her fingers lightly around his shirt.
“You’re not the only one,” she said softly, slipping her arms around his waist. “Whatever this is, it’s changing me too. For the better.”
His arms came around her, no hesitation, no need for words. It was the kind of hold that told her she wasn’t imagining any of it. One hand rested at the small of her back while his other one slowly brushed along her spine.
Callie let herself sink into him, her cheek pressed against his chest, heart beating a little too fast.
“I never thought anything this incredible could ever exist for me,” she whispered. “But it’s real. With you, it’s real.”
He pulled back to meet her gaze, his warm and steady. “You needed someone who saw the real you.”
Her heart squeezed.
Then he leaned in and kissed her, gently, slowly, surely. A kiss that told her this was the beginning of something lasting.
When they finally parted, she rested her forehead against his for a breath, smiling against the tangle of nerves and sweetness still humming beneath her skin.
“Okay,” she said softly, nudging his chest. “If we don’t get moving, I’ll be late for work, and my boss is a bitch.”
Matthew grinned. “Don’t talk that way about my woman.”
“Am I your woman?” she asked, heart leaping in her chest.
“I hope so,” he replied, his gaze searching hers. “You tell me.”
Something fluttered in her chest, strong and sure. “Oh, yeah. I’m most definitely your woman.”
She cupped his face and pulled his mouth to hers, confirming her words with a kiss thorough enough to leave no room for doubt.
The second their lips parted, his phone buzzed in his pocket.
Matthew exhaled a groan, his forehead resting against hers. “If that’s Carter, he has the worst timing.”
Callie gave him a soft smile. “Answer it. It might be something.”
He pressed a kiss to her temple before digging out his phone. She watched his face as he glanced at the screen and saw his mood shift.
“It’s Mac.”
Her spine straightened. “Bad news?”
Matthew didn’t answer right away. He swiped to accept and said, “Walker.”
Chapter Seventeen
Matthew stepped back as he answered the call, his posture shifting from warm and relaxed to sharply alert. The kind of shift that made her stomach twist a little.
She couldn’t hear Mac’s voice on the other end, but she watched Matthew’s expression tighten by degrees.
