Page 97 of To Catch a Firefly

“You’re breathtaking,” he says, looking up at my face, his eyes skipping over my features. “Handsome. Sexy. You have a strong jaw and a good nose.” He reaches up, and his finger runs down the latter. “You may not say a lot, but your eyes have always told me everything I needed to know.”

His hand settles on my chest, palm warm over the swift beat of my heart.

“I want you all the time, El. You make my dick hard just standing there. But… More than that, I wantyou. Do you understand?”

I nod. I do. Because it’s the same way I feel about Lucky.

“Beautiful,” I tell him, cupping his cheek.

His eyes feather closed, breath leaving him on a sigh. “Yours,” he adds.

Mine.

When Lucky steps back, he tugs his shirt on. We lie side by side on the bed, the room lit by the overhead light. Our heads rest close, hands linked together between us.

“Luck,” I say softly.

“Mm?”

I roll over what I need to say. The news we learned right before he showed up. “My dad died.”

He jolts slightly, looking at me with wide eyes. “What?”

“Cancer,” I explain. “Service…is Tuesday.”

He opens and closes his mouth a couple times. “I’m so sorry, El.”

I shrug a little.

“Are you going to go?” he asks.

I shrug again.I don’t know.

He rolls my hand between his own. “Would you tell me about him?”

“Nothing…to say,” I reply.

He doesn’t push it, and I’m grateful.

“Your job?” I ask.

Lucky nods, seemingly understanding the question. “Won’t change. I was already working remotely ninety-five percent of the time. If there’s a meeting or event I need to attend in New York, I will. But otherwise, my planes will leave from and return to Nebraska.”

I nod, still trying to come to terms with that fact. Lucky will behere. With me. He’ll live here, and he’ll always come home.

“You okay?” he asks softly, fingers trailing over mine.

Another nod. I clear my throat. “Dani?”

“He understood,” Lucky says. “I think he was a little bummed I won’t be in the city with him anymore, but we’ll still be partners, and we’ll see each other all the time. He’s happy for us.” He pauses before adding, “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you ahead of time.I think that was a mistake. I just… I thought it was going to be a nice surprise.”

I bring his hand up to my mouth, kissing his knuckles. “Doesn’t matter now. Costa Rica?”

“You want to hear more?” he asks.

“Always.”

He smiles at that, hooking his leg over mine as he talks. “We spent our last day on a whale-watching vessel. There was a big group of us. Tourists, too.”

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