Page 84 of Lost and Found

Grace tossed her hand. “Please do. Someone has to make Wes smile like that.”

Chapter Nineteen

Wes played a card game on his phone while Bailey corralled Matt upstairs for a shower, but his attention wasn’t focused. Bailey had raised her son without a partner. She was more than capable. Did she ever think about sharing parental duties?

Parental duties. That sounded so formal. He hadn’t thought about what they entailed until he heard her cajole Matt into the shower. Once Matt was in the shower, she had to convince him it was time to get out. Parenting seemed to mean lots of convincing about activities that should just make sense.

Not to mention, kids had doctors’ appointments and preschool. Those probably came with their own to-do lists. Like…he didn’t know. Snack duty? Cupcakes on birthdays? Bailey had done it all on her own, on top of working full-time. Hell, she owned her business. How many balls did she have in the air? More than he’d ever considered.

Not to mention the added burden of, potentially, Caitie’s killer harassing Bailey. Yeah, she had more on her plate than anyone reasonably should.

Wes laid his phone down and considered walking upstairs to see if she wanted help, then decided against it. Bathtime wasn’t the right time. There had to be another way to help. The place was pretty clean. What did she need?

He wandered around the house. Helplessness and not knowing what to do were unfamiliar. He walked into the kitchen, wanting to do something for her. His eyes landed on the electric kettle. Two minutes later, he’d made mint tea.

He had no clue whether she drank tea. Or if she’d think the gesture silly. Maybe she wouldn’t even notice. Wes set the mug on the living room coffee table and waited.

He was kinda nervous. Kinda smitten. Earning her appreciation was as important as earning her trust. A woman had never made him this needy. This captivated. He couldn’t get enough.

The hallway lights flipped off. With her hair tied into a ponytail, she descended the stairs in shorts and a loose T-shirt. God, she was beautiful. Comfortable and relaxed. So damn intoxicating that he wanted to pull her into his arms and carry her straight to bed.

“He was out like a light as soon as his head hit the pillow.” She joined him on the couch and spotted the mug. “Did you make me tea?”

“I put honey in it.”

The light in her blue eyes and the hazel flecks intensified. He’d do it again and again, just to brighten her like that. Wes tucked her under his arm. It was less about pressing her soft body to his, and more about holding on to her. He needed less space between them and breathed her in.

“You’re ruining all other men when you do things like that.” She burrowed against his chest.

“My evil plan is working.” A month ago, if he’d asked himself if this moment with Bailey was possible, Wes might’ve dropped dead from laughing so hard. Now, the lack-of-oxygen feeling was the inability to catch his breath around her. He wanted to strip her down and kiss every inch of her body until it was impossible for them to stay apart, until he was sliding into her, wrapping her around him, unable to be close enough.

Bailey couldn’t have imagined that this day would end with her falling into Wes’s arms. Years seemed to have passed since they found the strange key that morning. Not to mention, they’d driven for a couple of hours and ended up in a little town with a cute ice cream shop. She was depleted and didn’t feel the least bit desirable after tucking Matt in. But the hunger in Wes’s eyes shot straight through her. And he’d made her tea.

She couldn’t believe how quickly she’d morphed from mom-mode, ready to crash into bed, into a woman who wanted to go to bed for entirely different reasons. “Tell me more about your evil plan.”

He slanted his mouth over hers as if he couldn’t hold back another minute. His heat buzzed through her. Wes kissed her like he couldn’t get enough. Like he didn’t notice she was too soft in the wrong places, too tired after a day of running around. He made her feel pretty and wanted and sexy. No man had ever lusted after her. His hands roamed, his mouth took, and she was there for all of it.

Bailey twisted in his lap, straddling one leg on each side of his powerful thighs. Her shorts hiked, and his bulging erection pressed against her center as she rocked against him. He gripped her hips and groaned.

“I thought I was going to fall asleep early.” She heard her breathiness and didn’t care how needy she sounded.

“You can do whatever you want.” His large hands grasped her bottom, flexing his fingers into the curves of her ass. “Everything’s your call. I’ll give you anything you want.”

Her pulse raced. She believed he meant it. Those words whispered—promised—against her mouth were more than anyone had ever given her. She wanted all the kisses. All the feels. She needed his rough, searching hands scratching over her skin and his devouring mouth working its magic again. Her answer was to rub against him again.

“Fuck, Bailey. Killing me.”

Sizzles of expectation rushed down her back—but she’d been running around all day. She was sweaty and gross—and unsure of how to be completely vulnerable with him. Bailey inched their lips apart, losing herself for a moment in the beautiful pool of his green eyes.

“Tell me,” he said.

“I want to…change. I have to shower. I need a minute.”

“Are you okay?” he asked, putting his full court press on hold and softly caressing her cheek with his knuckles. “I don’t want to rush you.”

She wanted this to be perfect.

Or at least better than wondering whether Matt’s shower had made her face shiny and whether her deodorant still worked after a day of combing through a storage unit and walking blocks in the summer heat. “I just want to take a shower.”