Page 186 of That Rush

“Taking you inside.”

“I don’t remember approving that decision.”

“Do you want me to put you down?”

“No.”

I kiss her as I carry her through the door.

She loves me. She chooses me. For tonight, that’s more than enough.

After tonight, we need to talk about what forever means.

Chapter 26

Paige

Aiden carries me through the kitchen as though lifting a grown woman in hiking boots is a perfectly reasonable way to end a conversation about love.

I kiss him until he nearly walks us into the hallway wall.

“Careful,” I whisper against his mouth.

“I know where I’m going.”

“You just hit the baseboard.”

“I adjusted.”

His hand tightens beneath my thigh, and I laugh before kissing him again. The sudden joy of it startles me. I love this man. I said it, he said it, and the truth follows us down the dark hallway with my legs locked around his waist.

He nudges his bedroom door open, steps inside, and kicks it closed behind us. Only then does he lower me to the floor.

My boots touch the hardwood, but he keeps one arm around me. His other hand slides along my jaw as his gaze moves over my face.

“You’re quiet.”

“I’m thinking.”

“That rarely ends well for me.”

“Your survival rate remains impressive.”

His mouth curves, but the question stays in his eyes. I could kiss it away. He wants me enough that he would let me, and I want him enough to forget every unfinished conversation until morning.

That is why I place my palm against his chest.

“Wait.”

Aiden stops immediately. His hand leaves my waist, giving me space without stepping so far away that it feels like retreat.

“What do you need?”

The question loosens the tension building beneath my ribs.

“I need you to understand why I’m here.”

“Because I carried you.”