7. Shaw

7

SHAW

I take a rideshare over to where Juliet's car is parked, then drive her car back to her place. I'm not gone long, but when I walk back into Juliet's apartment, I find her asleep on the couch. She's on her side with her legs curled up against her body, her curves soft and relaxed, a peaceful expression on her pretty face.

Just as I hoped, she's still wearing my sweatshirt.

I'm tempted to carry her into her bedroom and tuck her into bed, but I don't want to wake her. Instead, I pull a blanket off the back of her couch and gently drape it over her.

As my hands fall from the blanket, I glance over at the door. I know I should probably leave, but I don't want Juliet to wake up and not find me here.

So instead of leaving, I carefully settle into the other end of the couch.

There's just enough space for me.

Seven hours later, I wake up with Juliet's legs stretched out across my lap. As I roll my neck and blink away the fog of sleep, Juliet stirs on the other end of the couch. Rays of morning sunlight cast a warm glow over her. My dream girl. I can't help but be transfixed.

She lets out an adorably groggy yawn. "You stayed."

I smile. "Morning, cutie."

"Yeah, I bet I'm looking real cute right now." She shakes her head at me. "Meanwhile, you look just as good as you did last night."

I laugh and gently rub her leg. " You're just as beautiful as you were last night. How's your leg feel?"

"Better than yesterday. And—thank you. I don't believe you, but thank you."

I wonder how long it will take until she starts to believe it. I glance over at her kitchen. "All right. Time for breakfast. I'm going to make you a Dutch baby."

"A what?"

"You've never had one?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Shaw."

"Nice. It'll be a surprise, then. You're in for a treat."

She moves her legs off my lap and watches me curiously as I show myself into her kitchen. I get the oven heating up, then start combining ingredients in a mixing bowl: a couple eggs, flour, milk, sugar, and a generous shake of ground nutmeg. I give it all a good whisk, then toss a thick slice of butter into a cast iron pan and slide it into the hot oven. As soon as the butter is melted, I pour the creamy batter in.

Twenty minutes later, a fluffy golden pancake emerges from the oven. I slide it onto a plate, drizzle it with warm syrup and powdered sugar, and grab two forks on my way back into the living room.

Juliet takes one bite, looks at me, and shakes her head. "Is everything you make amazing?"

I chuckle. "To be fair, everything of mine you've tasted has been something I've made plenty of times and perfected."

"Did you always know you wanted to own a bakery?"

I shake my head. "Nope. After I graduated high school, I actually felt pretty lost and unsure what to do with my life. Then one day I walked past a bakery with a Help Wanted sign in the window. I thought it was just going to be a job, but it turned out to be so much more. The man who ran the place, Lonnie, was the kindest person in the world. He taught me everything he knew, and it gradually became my passion, too. When he retired, he handed me the keys to the shop and told me to make it into my own."

"That's so sweet. I bet he was happy to have someone to pass his business off to."

"Yeah. Definitely."

A comfortable silence lingers in the air for a moment, and then Juliet says, "So…is this technically still our first date? Or has it turned into date number two?"

"I think it's all kind of blending together," I say.

She smiles. "I really like spending time with you, Shaw."

"I really like spending time with you, too."

"I'm keeping this sweatshirt, you know."

"Is that a fact?"

"Mm-hmm."

My eyes drop to her lush mouth. When she wets her lips with her tongue, I feel like I might combust.

Slowly, I lean forward. She leans into me, too. When our lips meet, it feels like the air around us shimmers.

Her lips taste like sugar. I slowly slide my lips over hers, drowning in how good she feels.

I could keep her on this couch all day. Kiss her for hours. Give her every kind of pleasure. Touch her, taste her, spoil her with bliss until she's completely mine. I want to give her everything. I want to take care of her.

And start making babies with her as soon as possible.

The thought feels a little crazy, but not wrong. There's no doubt in my mind that we're meant to be. The rest of my life belongs to her. I can picture it all: the wedding, the babies, the beautiful wrinkles she'll get as the years go on.

But all of that belongs to the future. Right now, this is where we are. On the cusp of becoming us .

Juliet looks at me with flushed cheeks, her honey-colored eyes shining bright. "That was nice."

" Nice is one way to describe it," I say.

She laughs. "What word would you use?"

"Perfect."

"Hmm. I can get on board with that." She bites her bottom lip and smiles at me. "So, Shaw. What should we do with our day off?"

"It's so lovely to meet you, Juliet," says Mackenna, flashing a friendly grin. Juliet and I just arrived at the wildlife sanctuary that Mackenna and Reid run together. Knowing my sister-in-law, I knew she would be welcoming to Juliet. My brother is the one I'm less confident about.

Reid appears with baby Ari nestled in a carrier against his chest. He's friendly when I introduce him to Juliet, and looks proud when Juliet coos over Ari. But when the girls are busy chatting, he pulls me away for a private conversation.

"What the hell are you doing here with her, Shaw?" he says, keeping his voice low. "Isn't she engaged?"

"Not anymore," I say.

He stares at me. "You're going to need to tell me more than that."

"I'll catch you up soon. For now, just trust me. We aren't doing anything wrong."

His staring continues a few seconds longer before he sighs and says, "Okay. I'm taking your word for it. But we're talking later." He looks over at Juliet, who's laughing about something with Mackenna. "So she's the one, huh? You're really sure?"

"I'm really sure."

"Well…I wish you luck, man. I look forward to getting to know her better."

After giving us a tour of the sanctuary, Mackenna invites us to stay for lunch. So we end up staying for a while longer, eating on a picnic bench set in the shade of a couple big oak trees. Ari keeps us all entertained with her cute little noises and gestures, and when Mackenna asks Juliet if she wants to hold her, Juliet jumps at the opportunity and takes the baby into her arms. It all feels so natural and meant to be, like Juliet is already part of our family.

Later, as we drive away, Juliet can't stop talking about how wonderful the visit was.

"I had a really nice time, too," I say, reaching over to squeeze her thigh. "You were great with Ari, by the way."

"She's a very sweet baby."

"Believe me, she's also got a good pair of lungs. If she wasn't happy in your arms, she would have let you know."

"Well, that's nice to hear."

I glance over at Juliet, hoping she really is as content as she seems to be. "Is it too much if we keep this date going into the evening? Because I'd really like to have dinner with you tonight."

She eyes me suspiciously. "This isn't all just a dare or something, is it?"

"What?" I laugh. "No. What would make you think that?"

"I don't know. I just feel like most men wouldn't want to spend this much time together on a first date."

"Well, I think by now we're somewhere in third-date territory, so…"

She laughs. "Still."

"You're right," I say. "This probably doesn't happen very often. But I don't really care what's ‘normal.' All I want to do is keep spending time with you."

"What a coincidence. I want to keep spending time with you, too."

"So is that a yes to dinner?"

"It's a yes to dinner. And dessert, if that's an option."

"Dessert's always on the table. You should know that about me by now, Juliet."

I'm feeling damn good as I drive us the rest of the way into town. I know exactly what I want to cook for Juliet tonight, but I need to grab a few things, including a bottle of wine that will go with the meal. As we pull into the little parking lot behind the wine shop, Juliet warns me that she's extremely easy to please when it comes to wine and that I really don't need to get anything fancy on her behalf.

"You'll give it a try, though?" I say as I hold the door of the wine shop open for her.

"Oh, of course," Juliet says. "I just wanted to tell you that, in case—" Then she suddenly draws in a quick breath, her eyes snapping to something behind me. "Mom. Dad. Hi."

I turn and see an older couple standing a few feet away from us. They're both well-dressed, and are giving off an air of affluence.

"Juliet," the woman says, the surprise coming through more in her voice than her expression.

There's an awkward beat of silence, and then Juliet places her hand on my arm. "Mom, Dad, this is Shaw. Shaw, these are my parents."

I hold out a hand. "Nice to meet you both."

But neither reaches out to shake my hand. It doesn't feel great to drop my hand back to my side.

Juliet's dad gives his throat a hard clear. "Excuse us. We were just on our way out."