Whispering With You

33. Your boy math is dumb.

Kelly

AFTER GLANCING AT THE TIME ON MY PHONE, I dart out of the ensuite bathroom of the new house, abandoning my task, and trudge down the stairs, the sound of my boots against the wood a loud clunking sound in the quiet house.

Flipping this house has been a slow process since I'm only able to work on it when I have free time between the houses that I'll actually make money on. I spend the majority of my time here after hours and sometimes on the weekends if I can spare some precious time away from Sutton.

Now that the sun sets so ungodly early these days, the scene outside the wall of windows in the living room is a breathtaking view of the golden rays reflecting off the lake across the street. I don't take the time to appreciate it, though, as I cross the main level of my new house, now growing dark as the day begins its surrender to night.

I cuss under my breath when I realize I'm too late. Because I got lost in my task, I didn't realize the time and I didn't have the chance to flip on the outside lights before Sutton arrived.

I open the front door just as she's climbing the porch steps, awkwardly balancing a pizza box between her arm and hip.

"Hey." Her voice is breathless as if she walked here instead of driving. I take the pizza box from her and set it aside so I can pull her into my arms, inhaling the familiar and intoxicating scent of her.

"Hey." My voice is a whispered rasp.

Ever since her unexpected emotional response to my surprise earlier, I've been itching to get her in my arms. Had I known she'd react so strongly, I would have waited to give her the present until we were together. I regretted the decision immediately.

I pull out of the hug and lean down to softly brush my lips against hers. "Hey," I say again, tracing her lips with my thumb as I study her face for signs of her mood. The blue of her eyes sparkle under the fluorescent porch lights and her cheeks are tinted a soft pink, but it's her shortened breaths that give her away.

She's still processing the gift.

She's an internal processor, taking her time to mull over every little thing. I know this about her. I love this about her.

I finger the tiny heart pendant, my thumb nail running over the textured grooves. "Beautiful," I whisper, looking her in the eyes.

She ducks her head, burying her face in my chest. "Kelly," she groans, her voice muffled against me.

Not allowing her to hide for a single second, I pry her head away, forcing her to look up at me. "Baby girl." My voice is a deep warning, and she shivers in my arms. "Talk to me."

"You're too fucking sweet." Her words come out in a rush, and she laughs at herself. "I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed by the gesture, to be honest."

I cup her face in my hands, holding her in place, forcing her to focus on the words I'm about to say. "If you think that's too sweet, then hold on, baby girl. I plan on spoiling you every single fucking day of our lives simply because you deserve it. And I want to. I want to overwhelm you. If anyone deserves to be overwhelmed by sweet gestures, it's you, baby girl. You deserve far more than I can give you, but I'm going to try every damn day to show you your worth. You're worth more than all the sweet gestures in the whole fucking world, Sutton. So get used to it. This is only the start."

She sucks in a breath, and I steal it away with my mouth, my tongue greedily seeking entrance. She allows me in, swiping her tongue against mine, eliciting a deep rumbling moan from me. Just as I settle in to show her with actions what I meant with my words, her small hands push into my chest, and she laughs against my mouth.