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He shrugged.
“I’m serious, Chandler,” she said, frowning, squeezing his fingers tighter. “I have fought too hard and too long in this life to get what I want and that includes you. I wasted a lot of time thinking that letting other people in meant giving them control, but you showed me differently by turning us into a team, facing everything together. I realized that being independent doesn’t mean I have to do everything all alone and that I’m actually happier going through life with a partner. With you as my partner. It scared the hell out of me at first.” He opened his mouth to say something, but she held up a hand to stop him. “Let me finish. You weren’t the only one scared, especially because when I finally let myself be vulnerable with you, you pushed me away. That was not cool, Chandler. Not at all.”
“I’m sorry.”
She squeezed his hand again. “Me too. We both made mistakes here. We’re both scared and in new territory with this. But we make a damn fine team and if we can just stick it out, I have no doubt we’ll get through anything life throws at us. Together.”
Chandler seemed to take that in for a moment—then suddenly she was in his arms, and he was hugging her tight. The position was awkward and uncomfortable, since his arm was pressing against her sore ribs, but she never wanted to be anywhere else. She hugged him back, and they just sat there a while, holding each other in the quiet until at last he pulled back to kiss her sweetly.
“I’m glad you’re here,” he whispered against her lips.
“So am I,” she returned, kissing him again, longer and slower and deeper this time, a new urge overtaking her need for sleep as molten need spread through her core. “I need a bath.”
“So do I,” he said, nibbling along her jaw and making her shiver again, this time from desire. “Since your bath stuff is back at your parents’ house, feel free to use mine. You can go first.”
“Or we could go together and save the hot water,” Eden said with a wink.
“Are you sure you’re up for it?” he asked, looking wary.
“Honey, I’ve never been more up for anything in my life.” She stood and held out her hand. “Plus, I need you to scrub my sore back.”
Chandler chuckled and swept her up into his arms. “Deal.”
This time when they made love under the warm, soapy spray, it felt different. More real, more intense, more everything. Deeper, truer, stronger. Maybe it was because the uncertainty was gone, or the danger, or whatever had been holding them back before. They’d both confessed their deepest, darkest fears and now they were free. Vulnerable, in the very best way.
Afterward, they lay in Chandler’s bed, snuggled together beneath the covers, warm and happy and sated. Chandler stroked his fingers through Eden’s damp hair while she rested her head over his heart.
“In case you haven’t figured it out yet, I love you, Chandler.”
His fingers halted in her hair, and she looked up to find him watching her in the darkness. “I love you too, Eden. So much it hurts.”
She smiled and kissed his chest, then lay back down again.
“You know,” he said a short while later, his voice low in the darkness. “I was always afraid I wasn’t capable of being valuable outside of my former SEAL team. But your case showed me I was wrong.” He took a deep breath, his chest rising and falling beneath her cheek. “Working together with you might just be the most meaningful thing I’ve ever done—even if it was also the most terrifying. I’d never have forgiven myself if anything had happened to you, Eden.”
Propping herself up again, she gave him another look. “What did I tell you about that, huh? I’m the one who got you involved in my case to begin with, remember? And if anything happens to me from this point on, I can almost guarantee you I’d be the one responsible for it, so stop blaming yourself.” She leaned up and kissed his lips, then stared down into his eyes. “It took a lot for me to let you in, Chandler, after what happened with my ex and the divorce. Took a lot for me to trust you too. Even when my life depended on it. But I’m happy I took the risk with you—and look how it paid off.”
“It did, didn’t it?” he said, chuckling. “I’ll never forget the look on Terry Ross’s face when I charged at him with that metal pipe. Talk about someone shitting their pants.”
“Pretty sure he did exactly that,” she said, laughing. “Well deserved, too. Asshole.”
“Agreed.”
They lay there quietly again for a while, lost in their thoughts, until finally Chandler’s breath eased into the patterns of sleep. Eden stayed awake a little longer, saying a silent prayer of gratitude to the universe for them getting past their own insecurities and finally coming together like this with nothing standing in the way of the future, before drifting off to sleep herself in the warm, solid comfort of Chandler’s arms.
