Page 43 of Beauty and the Cop
My heart aches at the look in his eyes. I've never seen him so vulnerable before, like I have the power to break him. To me, he always seems larger than life. His confidence and strength are a shield against all the brutal shit Chicago throws at him. Butright now, he looks…human. He's just a man, putting his whole heart on the line for me, desperately hoping I don't shatter it into pieces.
I cup his cheek, brushing my fingers beneath his eye and along the sharp slant of his cheekbone. "Remember the night you told me about your challenge coins?" I ask him.
He nods against my hand.
"I knew then I'd fallen in love with you."
The breath shudders from his lungs. A slow, easy smile spreads across his face. He flops back beside me, pulling me up against his chest. "Well, damn, Dimples. Why the hell didn't you say something?"
I snuggle against him. "Fear. Doubt. I don't know. It seemed safer to keep it to myself than risk our friendship."
He doesn't say anything for a moment, then, "Yeah, I get that, baby. I really fucking do." He presses a kiss to the top of my head. "Is this worth it to you?"
"Without a doubt." I close my eyes, smiling as the last twelve hours run through my mind. I can't think of anything more worth it than this—than Noah and the soft feeling bubbling through me. It's peace, contentment, and the delicious ache of fulfillment. It's perfect.
"Same here, Dimples," he whispers to me. "Same here."
I snuggle up against him, letting him hold me.
"I hope you know you're never getting me out of your bed again," he murmurs a moment later, his lips against my shoulder.
I peek up at him. "It is pretty comfy."
"It is, but that's not what I'm talking about, baby." He tips my head back until our eyes meet. "I'm talking about the fact that I'm not sleeping across the street from you ever again."
"Are you…?" I bite my lip, trying not to get ahead of myself here.
"No," he says, rolling me beneath him. "I'm not asking, Dimples. I'm telling you that we're moving in together."
"You don't think it's too soon?"
"Do you?"
No. I want to wake up to him every day forever.
"I don't know," I whisper. "I've never done this before."
"Me either." He rests his forehead against mine. "But we're going to do it together, Elsie. Just you and me. We get to make our own timelines and rules here. What do you want? Tell me, and it's yours."
I see the look in his eyes and realize that he means it. Whatever I want, he'll give it to me.
"You, Noah," I say, wrapping myself around him like a Koala. "All I want is you. I don't care if it's too soon. I want to wake up to you forever."
His lips brush mine, his kiss sweet. "Wish granted, Dimples. I'm not going anywhere."
And he doesn't.
Within a week, most of his stuff is mixed up with my stuff all over the house. And a week after that, a 'For Sale' sign goes up in his front yard.
To no one's surprise, our first purchase together after his house sells is curtains.
Our second is a pregnancy test.
Epilogue
Noah
Eight Years Later
