Lacey bites her lip, her face full of lust, her fingers curling against his. “Come back,” she whispers.
The needy tone in her voice makes him smile. Because he’s there as well. Ready, willing, and able to haul her against his chest and kiss her until her knees give out.
He crosses the room and pauses in the doorway, listening to Sal and Lacey talk. The sound of Lacey, laughing, happy and alive, has his heart clenching. A contentedness stirring deep in his soul.
Today, lines were crossed, boundaries blurred, declarations made.
There are still things to figure out, like how to tell Sal, but for now, Seth doesn’t want to worry about any of that. He’s got Lacey, and that’s all that matters.
Now he just better not fuck it up. Like everything else in his life.
The next week has Lacey and Seth falling into a rhythm: eating cereal in bed, naps at noon, bad horror movies at night, kissing each other like idiots. Sometimes she’ll find herself staring at Seth in half-curiosity and half-wonder. She heard him loud and clear, but it still doesn’t seem real. The look in his eyes was fierce. Raw and undeniable. He knew what he wanted, and he wanted her.
It terrifies and thrills her all at once. There are so many what-ifs scattered between them, and still, they’re doing it. Doing them. It feels normal, natural, like they’ve already been together for such a long time, and maybe they have been, just without a label to define them.
Seth fits in her space.
Like today.
They lie on Lacey’s bed. Seth, propped up by a pillow, holds a dirty and tattered book between his calloused fingertips. His tan feet dangle over the edge of the bed, his brow furrowed in concentration. She can’t tear her eyes from Seth. A hot, handsome man who reads. There’s nothing sexier.
But what isn’t sexy is what they’ve been doing. Nothing. And that includes the sexy. Seth’s been busy fussing over her, changing her bandages, making sure she’s okay, instead of making sure she’s naked.
Not to mention Lacey’s bored. Anxious. She can’t take much more of this sitting around and resting schtick. Not working means her mind wanders to the night of the mugging. She can’t get the image of the mugger, smirking, tearing the locket from her throat.
She has to do something. Can’t stay cooped up another minute.
She sighs long and loud. Peeks over at Seth through her lashes to see if he’s heard her.
Nothing.
She wiggles over to him, sticking her phone under her pillow. So far all she’s heard from Prentiss about her time off was a curt text that said, “One week, Sutton.”
Prick.
Rolling onto her side, she lays her head on Seth’s pillow and stretches her arms up and in front of his book.
Finally, he tosses an arm over her waist, trapping her to him. Still staring at his book, he says, “Somethin’ you wanna tell me, princess?”
“I’m bored.”
Not having it, he flips a page. “And?”
“Ugh, you’re heartless.” Lacey glares at the smirk on his face, then asks, “What’re you reading?”
“A book about the history of country music.” Seth closes it, sweeps a broad palm down the dusty cover in an almost tender manner. He chuckles wryly. “You look surprised.”
“No,” she says, her eyes widening. Leaning up on her shoulder, she presses a hand against his chest, not wanting him to be insulted. “I never pegged you for a reader.” She flushes. “I’m sorry, that’s an asshole thing to say. I just ... I didn’t know that,” she finishes lamely.
He gives her a no-hard-feelings grin. “Yeah,” he says, lighting up. “I love all that shit. The old west. Cowboys. History. Anytime we’re on tour, I try to hit up a museum. Drag Luke or Sal along if I can.”
“That’s cool,” she says, flopping onto her back to smile softly at the ceiling. She likes learning the little things about Seth. She turns her head to glance at him. “You know ... we have museums in LA too.”
“Nice try.” He leans over to kiss her. “But no.”
She scowls. “I bet you’ve never been this still in your life.”
She feels an arrow of guilt that Seth’s still there. He needs to be on the road with Luke, but when she thinks about him leaving, it’s like someone cut out her heart and flung it into the sun.