Page 29 of Adrian

This man doesn’t just kiss. He claims my mouth as though it’s his to do whatever he wants with whenever he wants, and to be honest, I’m okay with that.

When he finally eases back and lowers his forehead against mine, he’s grinning.

“What?”

“You’re here.”

“Yeah. Where else would I be? I don’t have any clothes or shoes. I hope you don’t mind, I looked through your drawers to find some socks. My feet were cold. I mean, I didn’t look through your drawers. That came out wrong. I mean, I opened two of them until I saw socks. I didn’t mean to snoop.” I’m rambling.

He’s grinning. “It’s fine, Blair. I don’t have any secrets from you. I want you to move in here, baby. Today. Make this your home, too. You’re welcome to open every drawer and cabinet. Move shit if you don’t like where it is.”

I blink several times. “You’re serious.”

“Yep.” He kisses me again. “Are you going to marry me this morning?”

I bite my lip, partly to keep from laughing or smiling too broadly.

“And before you ask, I’m serious about that, too.”

“What time is it?”

“Eight.”

“Oh. Wow. Do you always get up before the crack of dawn and chop down trees? If so, next time wake me up before you go outside dressed as a lumberjack so I can fill my cup of coffee and sit on the porch swing and watch.” I grin.

He laughs. “Lumberjack, huh?”

I shrug. “That was the visual.”

“And we didn’t chop down the tree. It fell over in the night. I’m just fucking glad it didn’t hit anyone’s home.”

“Me, too, considering I’ve already abandoned a collapsed house. Surely the universe wouldn’t do that to me twice in one night.”

“Seems unlikely.” Fuck, his smile is bright. “You didn’t answer my question.”

I inhale deeply and nod toward the counter. “There were texts.”

He lifts a brow. “What did they say?”

“My mother was about to send my father to look for me. They assumed I died when they couldn’t see my location anymore. I should have considered that they might freak out sooner than I expected when they could no longer ping my coordinates. I sent one response, letting her know I’m fine. Hopefully that will hold them off for… Well, I don’t know how long.”

“We thinking hours or days?”

“I don’t know.” I chew on my bottom lip. “But seriously, you can’t marry me just to make my life easier.”

“Can I marry you because I think you’re the perfect match for me?”

“I suppose, but how can you be sure? Maybe I bite my toenails in bed or something.”

“Oh, princess. I’ve got to see this. If you’re that good of a contortionist, our sex life is going to be amazing.”

I giggle. How does this man make me laugh so often? My life is usually so fucking serious. I don’t know when I last laughed this much.

“What were you planning to do when they showed up if you had not met me?” His brows furrow.

My shoulders slump. “Tell them to fuck off. I’m an adult. I can quit my job, move out of New York, and live in the mountains if I want.”

“And do you think they would have simply let you be?”