Page 79 of Cherry Picking
His breath hitches, and he squeezes my fingers.
“What do you want?”
I kiss up the prominent vein in his neck up to his jaw. “You want the cheesy answer or the honest one?”
“I don’t think there’s a difference with you.”
He turns his head, and our mouths brush. There’s no pressure, just skin on skin as we stare into each other’s eyes.
“Forever,” I whisper. “I meant it when I said you were it for me.”
“What if that scares me?”
I frown and pull back, but the earnestness in his expression keeps me close.
“What if I can never give as much of myself to you as you give to me?”
His fingers hold mine in a death grip, but I free a hand to grasp his face in it.
“It’s not a competition. This isn’t hockey. There are no scores. No W. Give me love and honesty, and we can fill in the rest.”
Riley’s hand comes up to the back of my neck, drawing me close and kissing me with all the determination of a player who’s been riding the bench all season itching for action.
I step around the stool he’s been sitting on and lower my weight to his lap while keeping us connected. His hands linger on my hips, and my arms around his neck tighten.
Without the urgency from before, I can focus on the feel of his lips moving against mine, the broad sweeps of his tongue that I meet with fervor, the warmth of our bodies that whispershomein a heavy sigh.
“I love you, Riley,” I gasp when we separate. “I fucking love you.”
That’s what it comes down to.
Love.
Fighting for it.
Proving that we’re worth that fight.
“What can you tell me about my brother?”
Parker plops beside me on the couch where I’m scrolling through holiday programming while Riley and his dad work on a nearly ten foot Christmas tree in the backyard. I offered to help but was informed it was a father-son bonding experience while Riley mouthed “Save yourself” behind his back.
“Other than that he’s a kick-ass hockey player afraid of a little tinsel?”
Parker snorts and peers around me to the back door.
“Usually Riley doesn’t get home until Christmas Eve, so Mom and Dad always wait to put the tree up and decorate so we can do it as a family. It’s a force of habit by now. Apparently we’ve had that tree since Riley was a kid, so no indoor present opening for us.”
The deadpan look this kid gives me nearly has me toppling over with laughter.
“I know loads about his hockey scores and his childhood, but as a person, I don’t know much about my brother.” Parker shrugs, and I pull out my phone.
“What do you want to know?”
“Huh?”
I chuckle as I add everyone but Riley to a group chat. “I’ve only been around two years, so I figure we could use some backup. What I don’t know, I can pass on to the guys and get for you.”
Parker’s face lights up, and it’s a look I’ve seen enough time on my sister’s face that I know exactly what I’m in for.
