His shoulders tensed at my question. He turned off the burner, moved the pan to the other side of the stove, and turned to stare at me. “What?”
It felt as though I was pinned into place by his dark gaze, making me nervous. “I really appreciate you letting me crash here last night.”
“Crash?” he echoed softly as he stalked toward me. “What the hell do you think is going on between us?”
Taking a small step back, I shrugged. “I don’t know. I’ve never done the morning after thing before.”
“You need to get something straight in your pretty head, angel eyes.” He reached out to grab my hand and tugged me close. “This is forever.”
9
Saint
Just the thought of Angelique walking out of my life had my throat closing up with panic. I wasn’t used to feeling any sort of weakness, and it made me a little gruffer than I’d intended.
I fisted a hand in the hair at the back of her head and used a firm grip on her hip to plaster her body to mine. Using gentle force, I pulled her head back so I could cover her mouth with my own. Just before I lost all control and took her to the floor, I pulled back and stared into her lust-fogged eyes. “Do you understand me?” She nodded, but I still caught the hint of doubt clouding her gaze. I knew she’d been on the end of plenty of broken promises, and though I wanted her acceptance immediately, I reminded myself that talk was cheap. I would have to prove to her that I would always be by her side.
Sighing, I kissed her again, just to reassure myself that she was real, in my arms, and protected from the evils of the world. Namely, that motherfucking brother of hers. The thought tarnished the moment, and I reluctantly released Angelique’s lips. I had a lot of shit to accomplish, and if I didn’t stop, we’d spend the rest of the day fucking on every surface of our home.
I didn’t want the situation with her brother hanging over our heads, especially once we had a family. And I intended to put a baby in my woman as soon as humanly possible. I groaned and pushed the image of her round and swollen with our child out of my head. It was yet another path that would lead me away from what needed to be done.
“Let me finish making you breakfast, then we can talk about what comes next.”
Angelique’s eye brightened, and she peered around me to look eagerly at the stove. “You were making me breakfast?” I could see the hope that sprung into her eyes. Obviously, if I was cooking for her in the morning, I’d intended for her to stay.
I gave her a quick kiss, then turned her toward the island and gently patted her on the ass. “Go sit, angel eyes. Do you want some juice?”
She nodded as she practically skipped over to take a seat. “Yes, please.” The smile she gave me when I placed the glass in front of her was breathtaking. I wanted to see it every day for the rest of my life, and I had every intention of making sure that happened. I was a man who went after, and got, what I wanted. Keeping Angelique safe and by my side was no exception.
I asked her about the foods she liked and if she was allergic to anything, so I’d know what to cook for her and also to simply get to know her. Once I’d finished making us omelets, I set hers in front of her and sat across from her to dig into mine, which was easily twice the size of hers.
Angelique giggled, and a smile automatically curved my lips. “Something funny, angel eyes?”
She pointed at my eggs and laughed a little harder. “It’s just...everything about you is big. Even your breakfast.”
I smirked and winked. “As I recall, you were pretty happy with my size this morning.” Her eyes heated while she blushed to a deep crimson. I chuckled and pointed at her breakfast. “Eat, baby. We have a ton of shit to do today.”
She shoveled a few bites into her mouth, moaning with each one and making me hard as fuck. Thankfully, she distracted me after a few minutes. “We have stuff to do? Like what?” she asked as she glanced at me with curiosity.
“First, we’re going to go grab your shit and bring it home. I’ll send movers over to get the big things tomorrow. Once you’re settled, I need to run a couple of errands. I won’t be long, but it will give you a chance to take a nap. You’re going to need your strength for what I have planned for you tonight.”
“Home?” Angelique’s soft echo and brow furrowed with confusion, twisted my heart.