“Aren’t you the observant one. I said I was busy.”
He looked around her. “Painting the living room?”
“I’m painting a wall. And if you don’t mind, I’d like to get back to it.”
“Are you painting because of me?”
“Of course not.”
He arched a brow.
She lifted her chin. “I’m giving the living room a pop of color.”
“Sure you are.”
“Is there something else you need, Barrett, or are we done now?”
“I could help you paint.”
“I don’t want your help.”
“Oh, come on. Painting is fun.”
Before she could shut the door in his face, he was inside.
“Barrett.” She followed him into the living room, where he was examining the wall color.
“This is . . . interesting. Purple? Really, Harmony?”
Okay, so it had been a rash decision. “It’s not purple. It’s called Plentiful Plum.”
“Looks purple to me.”
She was about to shred the rag in her hands. “Why are you here?”
He pulled his attention from the wall and onto her. “I want to talk to you.”
“I think we’ve said enough to each other.”
“No, we haven’t.” He took the paint rag from her hand and took her hands in his. “I haven’t told you how badly I messed everything up between us. I haven’t told you how I should have told your mother and your brother from the very beginning that you and I were seeing each other. That was my mistake. I should have put you first, because you’ve been the first thing I think about when I wake up in the morning, and the last thing I think about before I go to sleep at night. Your eyes are my sunset and your smile is my sun. You make my heart beat faster every time I lay eyes on you. Having you sleep next to me is like having the other half of me feel like a whole.
“I didn’t even know anything was missing in my life until you came into it. You’re in my heart, Harmony Evans. I’m in love with you and I’m so afraid of losing you that I can’t even take a deep breath. I don’t deserve your forgiveness for screwing this all up, but I hope like hell that you’ll offer it.”
Harmony’s breath held, her pulse raced and she wasn’t sure if she was breathing or not. As a declaration of love, it was one she’d spent her entire adult life dreaming about.
“You love me.”
“One hundred percent. Though I’ve done a shitty job showing it. I promise I’ll do better in the future if you’ll give me the chance. I’ve had a talk with Drake, apologized to him for not being straight with him from the start. He and I are good now. I apologized to your mother as well, because I should have talked to her, too. You were the last person I came to because you’re the most important person in my life, Harmony. You’re the woman I love, the one I want to spend my life with. You’re my future.”
Tears pricked her eyes. “Dammit, Barrett. I’m painting my wall.”
His lips curved. “I can see that. Do you need to finish it?”
“You don’t understand. It’s my way of getting over you.”
He looked over at the wall, then back at her, giving her a look of utter sympathy. “It’s a pretty awful color.”
“I know.” She let out a sob and fell against him. He wrapped his arms around her and held her tight, and God she needed that.
When she pulled back she lifted her gaze to his. “I love you, Barrett.”
He brushed her tears away with his fingers. “Forgive me?”
“Yes.”
He kissed her, and her world spun right on its axis again. Having his lips on hers had always made everything right.
He swept her into his arms and carried her upstairs to her bedroom.
“I need to make love to you,” he said, lifting her tank top and bra off and flicking his tongue over her nipples.
She threaded her fingers into his hair. “Yes.”
He pushed her down on the bed and pulled off her shorts and underwear. “And I need to tell you that you’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever known.”
He always made her feel beautiful, and when he touched her body with his hands and his mouth, cupping her sex and making her ready for him, she felt worshipped.
He stripped, spread her legs and entered her, his amazing body rising above hers. She snaked her hands down the corded muscle of his arms, reveling in this man who was hers, who would always be hers, as he lifted and drove into her, taking her into a spiraling orgasm that made her cry out his name. And when he went with her, she wrapped her legs tightly around him and claimed him as he shuddered within her.
After, they lay together, entwined together. She rested her head against his chest and let her fingers travel over his expansive chest.
“What now?” she asked.
“Before I royally fucked everything up, I was going to ask if you’d be interested in moving into my house.”
She splayed her hand over his chest. “I don’t know. I really like my town house, especially with the new purple wall in the living room.”
He raised his head. “Really?”