Page 132 of When Love Takes Root

“I hate you.”

“No, you don’t.”

“No.” I looked at him, then looked away because he was still watching me like I’d been placed in his room to test my whole testimony. “I really don’t.” I touched the note on the nightstand. “You moved me.”

“I did.”

“You carried me?”

“Yes, baby.”

The name crossed the room slower than his voice did.

Baby.

One word, soft and sure, and my whole face went hot. I looked down at the comforter because there was no dignified way to respond to a man calling me that before sunrise.

His smile stayed private, like he’d seen the blush and decided to keep it safe instead of teasing it to death.

“You carried me,” I repeated, mostly because my brain had gone useless.

His eyes moved over my face, then softened. “Yes. You were asleep, and your neck was bent like you were trying to wake up with a lawsuit.”

I laughed despite myself. “And you slept over there?”

“Yes.”

“You didn’t have to do that.”

“I did.” He sat up, forearms resting on his thighs, hair falling forward as he looked at me. “You fell asleep on me, Celeste. Not with me. There’s a difference.” Josiah rested his elbows on his knees. “I didn’t want you waking up with your neck hurting. And I didn’t want you waking up wondering whether I took more than you gave.”

My fingers tightened around the comforter.

“I asked if I could move you. You were half-asleep, but you answered me.”

“What did I say?”

He smiled. “You said, ‘Fine, but don’t be bossy about it.’”

I closed my eyes. “That sounds like me.”

“Then I asked again after I got you to the bed, just to make sure you knew where you were.”

“And?”

“You said, ‘Josiah, I know your voice.’”

My chest went still. I didn’t remember saying it, but some part of me did.

I looked down at the note because looking at him felt like standing too close to a flame I wanted to trust. “I heard you.”

His expression changed. “Heard me?”

“Last night. On the couch.” I swallowed. “When you thought I was asleep.”

His face went serious.

I looked back at him. “I heard you talking over me.”