Page 92 of Love Notes & Lifelines
“Good morning,” I say on a heavy exhale into the crook of her neck.
“Ah, good morning?”
Chuckling, I shake my head because something tells me waking up with Stella always makes for a good morning.
“You should get going,” I tell her, but I don’t miss the worry lines that appear around her eyes. “You don’t want to be late, and I don’t want you driving home in the middle of the night.”
“Home,” she mutters to herself.
But against my better judgment, this is beginning to feel like home. And I have to remember that there’s still a threat against our happiness. Danica hasn’t filed paperwork, as far as I understand, but she’s right about getting everything except the girls. If I hadn’t been so shocked by my sudden parenthood at my initial meeting with Harold Sterling, I would have known that.
I roll over her and she gasps, even though I place most of my weight on my forearms. “I’ll make some coffee to take with you.”
“Thank you,” she says, turning her face and covering her mouth with the back of her hand. Does she think something like morning breath would keep her from me? Truthfully, if it were anyone else, it probably would, but I let her know where I stand by holding her hands in mine and kissing her, gently at first, then rougher as need consumes me.
I pull back before we get carried away though. As much as I need to have my dick inside her again, there’s something about Saturdays that’s sacred to her, and I won’t have her miss it because of me.
A whisper of doubt settles in my heart. What is she hiding that she thinks is so terrible I won’t be able to handle it? Who is hurting her and why won’t she confide in me?
It’s the unknown that kills me, but my gut says not to push her anymore on this for now. If I’ve learned anything about Stella Jane, it’s that she’ll never hurt me or the girls. Is that trust? I don’t have a fucking clue.
“Okay,” she says with a shaky exhale that makes me wish we had all day to explore one another.
Soon. We’ll find that time soon.
Ruby’s babble sounds through the monitor, urging me out of bed. “Get ready,” I tell her. “I’ve got the girls and the coffee. Plus Tabby will be here this morning too.” I cringe. “She’s baking again.”
Stella laughs, and it eases some of the anxiety swirling in my gut.
“Her pickle cupcakes were not that bad.”
I stop with one leg in my pants. “You’re joking,” I deadpan. “Pickle cupcakes? I almost threw up in my mouth.”
“Fine, they weren’t great, but the lavender mousse was okay.”
“Your taste buds are broken.”
She climbs out of bed, patting my chest on the way by, and I finally accept how much her touch affects me. The ring of green no longer stains her finger, but I swear it’s all I see on her hand, and it immediately sours my mood. What the hell would be in that ring that would cause it to stain like that?
“They weren’t that bad, and I’m sure they’re better than her fish-oil-infused coffee cake.”
I hold up a hand. “Please stop. I have a weak stomach.” But my gaze lingers on her ring finger and an idea forms in my mind—a really good fucking idea. Unfortunately, there’s only one guy I trust with this and he’s three hours away in Raleigh. It lookslike Stella isn’t the only one traveling today. “Go get ready. The girls and I have some errands to run.”
“Yeah?” She hesitates. “Are you sure you’re up to taking them out? Should I pack their stuff before I go?”
“Get ready, Stella. I have to learn sometime.”
She’s not convinced, so I finish dressing, kiss the side of her head, and exit the room. If I can’t erase the stain from my mind, at least I can cover it up.
“There arejewelers closer to Sailport Bay, you know,” Tabby says from the back seat where she’s perched between the girls.
“Not for what I need,” I say.
Leo glances at me from the passenger seat but I avoid him by glancing in the rearview mirror. Tabby has made faces, read books, sang, and played videos for the girls the entire drive.
Insecurity floods me.
“Why didn’t she give them to you?”
