Falling for the Groomsman (Wedding Dare #1)(45)
Author: Diane Alberts

She blinked up at him. “There is?”

“You’re moving.”

Her smile faded. “I know. But we can—”

“Shh.” He placed his finger on her mouth and smiled down at her. “There’s a lot of things we can do, but there’s only one thing I want to do, and it’s not open for discussion. I’m moving to Maine with you as soon as I can possibly manage it—just like I’d planned to move to Denver.”

Her eyes went wide. “What? No. You can’t. You just took that job, and Kady is out here. Your parents—no one else is on the East Coast.”

“But you’ll be there.”

She bit her lip. “Tyler…”

His heart twisted. Did she not want him there? Was he moving too fast? Probably, but he didn’t care. He’d spent the last eight years missing out on time he could have spent with her by his side—he didn’t want to spend another second in that state ever again.

But if she wasn’t ready…

“Why are you hesitant? Is it because you think it’s too much to ask of me?” he asked, his voice cracking despite his best attempt to keep it even. “Or I can’t because you don’t want me to be with you? Which is it?”

“I want to be with you. I do.” She cradled his face in her hands and kissed him before pulling back from him. “But you just got that job, which you took after you gave up your other new job to be with me. It’s absolutely asking too much of you.”

“Exactly. I took the job to be with you,” he said. “If you’re not there? Well, it loses its appeal.” He met her eyes again. “I already politely declined the job in Denver, after explaining the situation. Turns out they have a sister hospital out in Maine, and they’re looking for a new ER doctor, too.”

She blinked up at him. “And they want you?”

“Of course they do,” he said, grinning. “Why wouldn’t they? I’m an excellent catch.”

She laughed and swatted at him. “I know that.”

“But the question is…do you want me? Because, Red? I know I should have said this years ago, and I’m an idiot for not doing it already, but I love you.” He kissed her gently, making sure not to press too close. There was too much left unsaid. “I love you, and I don’t want to make the same mistakes I’ve made in the past. I know you’ll need time to trust me before you could maybe love me, too, but I’m willing to wait. I’ll wait forever if I have to. I swear it.”

She wrapped her arms around his neck and smiled at him. “You don’t have to wait. I already love you, you silly man.”

He froze. “You do?”

“I do, and I have since Mexico. I just didn’t know it.”

He didn’t move. Didn’t blink. Barely dared to breathe, in case he woke up and found out this was all a dream or some shit like that. “So can I move to Maine with you?”

She let out a happy laugh and nodded. “Yes. If you really want to, then oh my God, yes.” She leaned in and tried to kiss him, but he pressed his fingers to her lips again. She sighed in exasperation, but the happiness in her eyes told him she wasn’t that annoyed. “What now?”

“I’ll move there with you on one condition.”

Her brow furrowed. “Okay?”

“We live apart from each other.” He smoothed her hair back. “You need to try out that independence thing for a little while first, and I refuse to mess that up. When we’re both ready, we’ll move in together. Deal?”

She nodded and smiled up at him, tears swimming in her eyes. “Deal.”

This time when she kissed him, he didn’t stop her. Her mouth melded to his perfectly, and she pressed the entire length of her body against his. He groaned and walked her backward to the bed. When the back of her knees hit the mattress, he pushed her back on it. He landed on top of her, pulling back far enough that he could look into her eyes, but not so far that he had to let go.

He couldn’t. Not now. Not ever.

“I love you,” he murmured.

She smiled up at him and brushed his hair off his forehead. “I love you, too.”

His heart soared, and he closed his mouth over hers, keeping the kiss gentle and sweet. He was going to take his time showing her just how much she meant to him.

And for once? They were in a f**king bed.

He kept kissing her, his tongue moving across hers, and stripped her skirt off, followed by the rest of her clothes. Once she was naked, he stood and divested himself of all of his own clothing, too. She leaned up on her elbows and watched, her eyes smoky hot. The sight of her lying sideways on the bed, her bare feet on the floor and her naked body all there for him to see, made him fall to his knees between her legs.

“Jesus, woman.” He trailed his hands up her thighs, inching toward her clit. “You know, this is the first time I’ll be making love to you on a bed.”

Her head dropped back and she let out a shuddering breath. “It won’t be the last.”

“Thank God for that,” he murmured. “You look wet for me, babe. Are you ready?”

“Yes.” She moved restlessly. “I need you so bad.”

“Hmm.” He slid his fingers in between her legs, brushing against her slit. “I’m not sure you’re ready for me to take you yet.”

She whimpered. “Please.”

He bit down on the spot right above her knee. She moaned and pressed closer, so he did it again, an inch higher. When she whimpered and buried her fingers in his hair, urging him higher, he moved up her thigh until he was just close enough to touch. But he didn’t.

“Say it again.”

“I need you,” she panted, her br**sts moving with each breath. “So bad.”

“Not that.” He ran his finger up her thigh, climbing higher until he reached her clit. He moved his finger over her, making a small circle over the distended bud. “Tell me what I want to hear.” He slid his finger lower, plunging into her depths. “Tell me you love me.”

“I…” She licked her lips. “I love you.”

He thrust his finger inside her in one fluid motion, his thumb pressing against her clit. He watched her the whole time, studying the way her body took his finger in. She squirmed beneath him, needing more. He pressed a kiss to her thigh, right next to her core, and wiggled his fingers deep within her.

She cried out and arched her hips, rolling them in a circular motion. He pulled his finger out, added another one, and thrust his hand again. She dug her nails into his scalp, calling out his name, and he bit her soft thigh. She cried out again, rambling on and on about needing him.