Destiny grinned as she rested her head back against the pillow.
“Okay, baby girl, I’m going to give you back to your daddy. But, I’ll see you soon. I love you. Be a good girl and let your mommy rest tonight.” Harmony’s hair fell over her shoulder as she gently kissed Delilah on the cheek before handing her to JJ.
My heart expanded painfully in my chest at the sweet, nurturing gesture.
Damn, this woman had me in all kinds of knots before seeing that. Before I kissed her. Before I knew that her body pressed against mine felt like my other half. Before I’d held her in my arms and felt like I’d found my soul’s missing puzzle piece.
As we both said our goodbyes to the new parents, my mind was reeling. When I’d broken up with Ali, I’d been determined to get over Harmony. That was over a year ago, and all I’d managed to do was fall even deeper.
Obviously, what I was doing wasn’t working. Part of what made me good at my job was the fact that I could quickly and effectively assess a situation and respond accordingly. I was adaptable. Guys that were too by the book and inflexible had a hard time resolving situations. Results were what mattered to me. I’d trained myself to never be more focused on the execution than the outcome in my professional life.
Maybe I’d been going about this the wrong way. Maybe trying to deny our obvious attraction, avoid our combustible chemistry, and suppress my feelings wasn’t the means to the end I needed.
It was time to change my tactic. No more of this tiptoeing around, hiding bullshit. I, we, needed to face this head on. That was the only way to move on and live the lives we were meant to lead.
Harmony and I had some serious unfinished business to take care of, and I was more than eager to get started.
Chapter 15
Harmony
“It’s hard to follow your heart when it’s more confused than your head.”
~ Loretta Reed
“Then she smiled!” I exclaimed as I petted Romeo’s head, that was lying on my lap. “I know it was probably just gas, but I don’t care. Coop was holding her, she started crying, I took her and she smiled. Those are the facts.”
I’d been talking nonstop since we left the hospital. There were two reasons for that. One, I was madly in love with Miss Delilah Rose and couldn’t seem to stop talking about her. And the second was pure nervous energy. After not one but two close encounters of the emotional kind, first with Hud today, and then becoming an aunt, I was a certified basket case.
“Oh and did I tell you that when I put my finger on her precious little feet, she curled her tiny, perfect toes around it. And when she cries, she makes a little boo-boo lip. It quivers and her eyes squint. It’s so sad, but also kind of the sweetest thing in the world. I know it’s probably too early to predict, but I think she’s going to be a good sleeper. It didn’t matter how many people were in the room, she slept right through the noise. She’s the prettiest baby in the world. Right?”
Hud’s chin dipped in a nod and he grinned but remained silent as he stared out the windshield. The moonlight accentuated his chiseled facial features and the sight left me momentarily speechless. My mama taught me that staring was rude, but there was no way I could tear my gaze away. I took the rare opportunity to study Hud from this close up. All my life he’d kept his distance from me…until he’d backed me up against the barn and kissed me senseless, that was.
My eyes scanned their way from his dark wavy hair down the strong line of his forehead. He was a real man’s man. Not like a lot of the pretty boys I usually dated. He wasn’t pretty. He was sexy. He had a strong jaw. Straight nose. Eyebrows that framed his face perfectly. But the real show-stopper was a toss-up between his amber-colored eyes surrounded by dark, thick lashes, and those full, plump lips that I now knew for a fact were so masterful at the art of kissing he could easily do a Ted Talk on the subject.
I got lost in the lines and curves of his features. He was so still, so motionless, it was like I was appreciating a piece of art, a perfectly sculpted marble statue. So when his eyes slanted towards mine, it startled me. Besides the surprise, his quick glance sent a zing shooting through me like a pinball hitting all of my erogenous zones.