“I would love that.”
He placed his hand behind my head and brought me in for a kiss, our naked bodies pressed together. He was so hard.
I could faintly hear Sunny next door. Even though I was just beyond the wall, being holed up in Deacon’s apartment made me feel a world away.
Deacon lowered his hand, placing it behind my ass, his erection still hot against my leg. “I probably need to give Sunny back her mom soon, but I don’t want to let you leave this bed.”
“I do have to get going. Sharon has to head home.” I brushed my thumb across his gorgeous lips. “Will you come over today?”
“How about I go get us breakfast and bring it to your place?”
“I would love that. That’s nice of you.”
“Not really. I have an ulterior motive.”
“Yeah?”
“Feed my girl so she has energy when I have my way with her again later while Sunny’s napping.”
My girl. He had no clue what hearing that did to me. “Don’t worry. I’m nowhere near worn out.”
“Good, because I’m nowhere near done with you.”
CHAPTER 19
Deacon
SAY MY NAME
Three weeks since I’d decided to stay in New York, and there wasn’t a single moment I’d regretted my decision. I felt like the luckiest guy on Earth. I’d managed to keep my old job, despite fucking management over with my last-minute one-eighty. I got to keep my apartment because my landlord hadn’t given it to anyone else yet. But most of all, I’d managed to snag the girl of my dreams, somehow pushing aside my fears enough to allow myself to be with her.
Carys found a new sitter who watched Sunny for a few hours every weekend so the two of us could have a date. My alone time with her was precious.
Today was a day date, and it had been epic. We went to a diner for breakfast and talked in the window seat over waffles and endless cups of coffee. It was a rainy morning in New York City, so we were spending the last hour of our alone time at my apartment before she had to go back next door.
And I’d just returned from the bathroom to a sight better than anything my imagination could have conjured up.
Carys was stark naked in front of the full-length mirror in my bedroom. And she was dancing. Dancing so gracefully, like the ballerina she was. With her heels together, she lifted her arms above her head. Then she raised herself up on her toes as if they easily carried the weight of her body. She landed on her heels briefly before her right leg flew into the air. Then she spun. Naked fucking ballet starring Carys Kincaid was the best damn thing I’d seen all year—maybe in my entire life.
She jumped when she noticed me watching her in the mirror, placing her hand over her chest. “Oh my God. You scared me.”
“That was fucking amazing,” I said, entering the room.
“You came back faster than I thought you would. Otherwise I wouldn’t have—”
“I know. That’s what’s so amazing about it, getting to see you in your natural element.” I slid my hand down the smooth skin of her back. “You’re beautiful and brave. I wish I could’ve seen you dance on stage, but seeing you dance like this? Naked in my room? That’s the stuff dreams are made of.”
She got up on her tippy toes to kiss me. I loved that she wasn’t rushing to put clothes on, that she was comfortable baring herself in front of me.
“I would’ve loved to see you play football,” she said. “I know how painful it is for you to even think about those days, but I bet you were incredible in action.”
I sighed. “I wish I could go back to playing casually. Just because something stops your professional career doesn’t mean you can’t ever do it again—I get that. But every time I’ve considered returning to it for fun, I chicken out. I haven’t touched a football in years. On some level, though, I know figuring out a way to play would be good for me. It’d be therapeutic.” I brought her lips to mine. “Maybe someday I’ll get there. You motivate me.”
Carys grabbed my ass. “I can imagine how sexy you looked all suited up in that gear, too.”
I still had my old jersey tucked away in a box at the back of my closet. It was the one memento I’d kept and taken with me everywhere I moved. I walked over to my closet and located the box. When I took out the royal blue jersey, my heart raced. I hadn’t so much as touched the fabric since the day I’d put it away nearly a decade ago. Seeing my number and Mathers written across the back gave me chills.
Carys’s jaw dropped. “Oh my God. Is that—”