“Oh God, Carly, I’m sorry.”

I laughed and cupped his cheek. “I’m fine. Take me to bed, Marco.”

He grinned. “I’ll try not to maim you in the process.” Then he carried me into his room, lowering my feet to the floor next to his bed.

“Are you sure?” he asked, worry filling his eyes.

“I’ve never been more certain of anything in my life.”

He kissed me again, and we fumbled with each other’s clothes, shedding pieces while we kissed and ran our hands over each other’s bodies. His was every bit as beautiful as I’d known it would be. We lay down on the bed, and Marco grabbed a condom out of the nightstand drawer, then didn’t waste any time putting it on.

He studied my face, seeming to hesitate again, so I rolled him onto his back and lowered myself onto him, leaning my head back and moaning at how good he felt.

“Jesus, Carly,” he gritted through clenched teeth, grabbing my hips and holding me still.

I fell forward and kissed him, then bit his bottom lip.

He groaned, rolling me over onto my back, and grabbed my hips again. “I want to take it slow.”

“Take it slow next time,” I said, “I want to go fast.”

He growled, then gave me what I wanted.

Afterward, he collapsed next to me, gathering me in his arms as though he worried I might regret what we’d done.

I looked up at him and smiled. “I’m not going anywhere. I won’t change my mind.”

“I love you.” He stroked my cheek, staring at me with so much adoration I wondered why I’d wasted so much time.

“I love you too.” For the first time ever, I felt like I was where I was supposed to be.

Chapter Nineteen

I overslept the next morning.

After Marco and I brought the telescope inside and put it away, we put on a movie but only made it a few minutes in before we started making love again. This time we took Marco’s slow route, not that I complained. But I forgot to set my alarm, so I didn’t wake up until Marco’s alarm went off at seven-thirty.

“Shit,” I said, scrambling to get out of bed. “I’m supposed to be at Hank’s right now.”

“You don’t have to meet Wyatt, Carly,” Marco said, sitting up in bed. The sheet fell down to his lap, exposing his broad, naked chest and drawing my attention to the erection the sheet was covering. “You don’t owe him shit.”

“I know,” I said, hurrying into the bathroom to brush my teeth. “But I’m not doing it for him. I’m doing it for Hank.”

I started brushing my teeth, catching a glimpse of myself in the mirror. My hair was wild, and I had the look of a woman who had been thoroughly satisfied.

Marco walked up behind me and pressed his naked body to my back. He lowered his lips to the curve of my neck as his hand pressed on my stomach.

“You’re making this hard,” I mumbled around my toothbrush.

“Good.” He kissed his way up my neck to my ear, then bit my earlobe.

“You also realize this has got to be one of the most unsexy things I could be doing right now.”

“See how much I love you?” he asked with a grin.

I leaned over and spat into the sink, then rinsed out my mouth. I stood and turned around to face him, resting my hand on his firm pec. Why was I leaving again? “You realize I’m an older woman,” I teased. “Carly Moore just turned thirty, but Caroline Blakely is about to turn thirty-four.”

“I guess that makes you a cougar,” he said with a grin, his hand skimming over my shoulder and down my arm.

I sobered. “My biological clock—”

He leaned over and gave me a slow, sensuous kiss, then lifted his head, keeping our faces inches apart. “You are what I want, Carly. You. If we never have kids, I’m okay with that.”

“How can you be so sure?” I asked with tears in my eyes. “I’m not okay with that.”

“I would never want to bring our children into a world where they’re not safe. We’ll work it out, okay?”

I nodded, and he kissed me again. “Do you want me to call Hank and tell him you’ll be late?”

“No. As crazy as it sounds, he’ll be happy I’m late.”

“Doesn’t sound crazy to me. Just the other day he told me to quit takin’ so long and make my move already.”

I laughed. That sounded like Hank.

I quickly got dressed, wishing I’d taken another shower since I was sure I smelled like Marco. Not that I cared, but I didn’t want an inquisition. Nor did I want this to be any more awkward than it already would be. Marco had left the room, and I found him in the kitchen, wearing a pair of gym shorts and pouring coffee into a travel mug. God bless the timer on his coffee maker.

“I can get coffee at Hank’s,” I said as I packed my notebook into my purse.

“I know, but I figured you could use the caffeine, especially since you’re about to go deal with Wyatt’s bullshit.”

I walked over and kissed him, then stared up into his eyes. “You’re the man I want, Marco.”

He tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. “If you wanted to be with Wyatt, you could have gotten back together with him months ago. And I get why you’re doin’ this. You want to make sure Hank is taken care of.”

“Thank you for understanding.”

“I’m not goin’ try to control you, Carly. Lovin’ you doesn’t mean puttin’ you in a cage. I love the person you are, which means I respect the decisions you make.”

Why had I ever questioned this man’s intentions? I kissed him again, letting it linger for longer than I’d meant to

He groaned and pushed me back a few inches. “No doubt I’ll regret this later, but you need to go now or I might keep you here for another half hour.”

I grinned up at him. “Only a half hour?”

He swatted me on the butt. “Off with you.” But he walked me out to my car and opened the door, giving me another kiss before I got in.

He handed me the coffee, then rested his arm on top of the car. “You get off at midnight?”

“Yeah,” I said as I put the cup in the holder in the console.

“Do you need to stay with Hank tonight?”

“I don’t know,” I said, feeling torn. I hadn’t seen Hank for nearly twenty-four hours, and now I was only dropping in for breakfast. Then again, he wouldn’t be up when I got off work at midnight, which meant it would make no difference if I spent the night with Marco. “No.” I grinned. “Do you have something in mind?”

“Obviously, I’m bein’ too subtle.” He kissed me again, so thoroughly that when he pulled away, I forgot why I was sitting in my car.

“I’ll be here.”

He only laughed for a moment before turning serious. “I’m coming to the tavern tonight, but call and check in with me at some point today, okay? Or multiple times.”

“I’ll check in when I can.”

He hesitated, then reached in and cupped my cheek. “I love you.” Worry filled his eyes, like he was still afraid to say it. Like I’d suddenly change my mind.