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His brows rise, but he looks pained as he stares down at me. “Because I’m at a loss here.”
I rest my hand over his cold one, and instantly he captures it, threading his fingers through mine and holding tight as if I might run. The gesture makes me smile even though I’m suddenly so exhausted that I want to lie down. He’s in a panic. Not that I blame him. The scene that I stumbled into looked very cozy to someone on the outside.
“I saw the way you looked at her,” I tell him.
“How did I look at her?” His voice is a rasp, his gaze darting over my face in rampant curiosity.
“Like she was an insect.”
A short, humorless laugh leaves him. “Yeah, that about sums it up.”
With a quick tug, he hauls me into his arms and holds me tight as he burrows his nose into my hair.
“Christ. I saw you standing there, and I thought...” He snuggles in deeper, his lips pressing on the top of my head. “I love the way you smell.”
It’s a rather odd change of subject, but I don’t question it. I wrap my arms around his waist. Simply doing that settles the rampant jittering within my chest.
“You thought what?” I ask. “That I’d leave you?”
I can feel the tension gathering in his back.
“Maybe,” he mumbles into my hair. “I don’t know. I wasn’t thinking past the initial panic. Definitely thought there’d be yelling, maybe a wine bottle smashed over my head.”
I laugh against his shoulder where my face is currently being smushed. But I’m fine where I am, warm and secure.
“I trust you, Drew.” If he had been looking at his ex the way he looks at me, there would have been a fight. It would have destroyed me. But I didn’t doubt him for a minute, because I saw his distress and the way he angled away from the little witch.
Surprise ripples over him, and he pulls back a bit to meet my eyes. “Why’d you drive away like that then?”
I shrug. “I needed a moment. Otherwise, I might have smashed that little shit’s face in.”
He’s clearly struggling not to smile. Smart guy. “So no catfight jokes?”
“Not if you want to live.”
His eyes are clear and warm. “Do you know what I was thinking just before I saw you?”
“Do I want to know?” I say with a half frown.
He grins. “I was thinking that you were my home and my peace.”
“God, I sound positively provincial. Was I wearing an apron in this image?” I pretend to roll my eyes, but happiness fills me up.
“If I did picture that, it would be all you were wearing.” Pulling me back in, he wraps his arms around me until we’re pressed hip to hip. Close enough to feel the bulge growing behind his jeans. “I was also thinking that you make me hotter than anyone ever has.”
“Sweet talker.” But I kiss him. Because it’s impossible to be this close to him and not kiss him. Happiness swells within me. “Love you, Baylor.”
“Love you more, Jones.” He takes over the kiss, angling his head and delving in deeper, appreciating me with his mouth.
“Drew,” I say between hot, searching kisses.
“Mmm?” He suckles my upper lip before licking my bottom one.
“How did your talk go with your coach?” I have to ask. If I let him distract me, I’ll forget and it’s important.
Drew, however, stiffens and lets me go with a frown. “You knew he was coming over.”
I’m not going to apologize about it. He needs someone to talk to besides me.
