Sweet Sinful Nights

“Good,” the guy grumbled. He had a baby face and looked young enough to be carded if he were at Edge. Brent continued along the block, and turned around again at the corner. As he returned, the Buick was no longer idling at the curb. The guy had pulled out into traffic, and was driving away.

Probably just some neighborhood guy. But Brent didn’t like the idea of anyone hanging out outside Shannon’s building for too long. Except for him. Call him a hypocrite, but he knew his own motives. Trusted his own motives.

Then he stopped thinking about anyone but Shannon when her number flashed across his screen.

At last.

He answered in a nanosecond.

“Hey, babe. I’m at your building. Hanging out outside. Looking like a stalker, or maybe like a caged lion in a zoo pacing back and forth. You want to put me out of my misery and make me just look like a man who’s waiting for his woman so he can tell her how much he loves her?”

She laughed, and he savored that sound, the sweetness of it, the way it threaded through him. He wanted to bottle it up and keep it close to him forever. “I can definitely make you look that way. And I got your message. My phone died after my flight, so I didn’t pick it up till a few minutes ago. But I’m glad you’re there because I’m on my way to see a stalking lion who I love, too.”

*

After she hung up, she listened to his voice message one more time on speakerphone as she drove. “My phone is in the dishwasher, so I’m calling from a friend’s phone,” he’d said. “I just want to say I love you madly. And I’m on my way over to your house because I’m not walking away. I’d never walk away, and I did a bad job saying that last night, so I’m trying again right now, and I want you to know that I’ve meant everything I’ve said to you in the last few weeks. I will do whatever it takes for you.”

Best. Message. Ever.

As she neared her street, she made one more call to a friend of his, the guy who ran the Luxe. He agreed to help with her project, and so she had everyone lined up. She ended the call as she turned onto her street, the kernel of hope expanding inside her, blooming into something bigger, something full of possibilities. She kept her eyes on the road, but peered up ahead, so damn eager to see him. She spotted him, outside her building, his tall strong frame coming into view. He was pacing as promised, aviator shades on, brown hair glinting in the late sun, and that grin she adored flashing at her. Her heart was fighting its way out of her chest, racing to him, knowing they’d somehow fix the mess they’d made.

Because he was waiting for her.

It was that simple.

She yanked the wheel in a sharp right, the tires squealing as she pulled along the curb and cut the engine. In seconds, she was out of her car, and rushing over to him. He held a bouquet of sunflowers in his hand, and the sight of them made her breath catch.

“Hi,” she said, as he took off his shades and met her gaze.

“Hi.”

Then he wrapped his arms around her, and she did the same, grasping his waist. The flowers pressed against her back. His sunglasses clattered to the sidewalk. “I’m sorry I left last night.”

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner,” she said.

“I’m sorry I wasn’t there for you when it happened.”

“I’m sorry you had to find out like that.”

He lifted her chin with his fingers, raising her face. “I guess we’re both sorry.”

She flashed a rueful smile. “We say that a lot don’t we?”

He nodded, but kept his arms around her. She was glad he didn’t want to let go. She wanted him to hold her.

“Maybe because we fight a lot,” he said softly. “Maybe that’s just too hard a habit for us to break.”

“I think it might be. I just want us to keep coming back together.”

He sighed into her hair, and tugged her close again. “Me, too.”

“I’m glad you didn’t walk away,” she said, looping her hands tighter around his strong waist.

“I came back. I told you I would. I meant it, Shan. I’m not ever walking away from you. As long as you’ll have me, I will always be here.”

She wrenched back to look him in the eyes again. “You,” she said, as she ran her hands along his shirt, “are all I want. When you left, all I wanted was to see you again. For you to come back. To open the door and find you. And here you are.”