“I know, darling,” he says, holding me tighter. “Is everything okay with your mom and Tilly?”

I nod against him. “Better than okay. It’s… lovely. And frightening.”

“I have a good feeling about it, though. Don’t you?”

“Yes, but I needed us. I came here for sex, but then, seeing that note and you, it all caught up with me at once.”

He laughs. “You get the prize for holding it together this long.”

“I’m a smidge overwhelmed,” I confess.

He nods. “Rightly so. Tell me what’s upset you.”

My shoulders bounce in an I-don’t-know. “All of it. None of it. It’s all too much. She apologized to me… in tears, Grady. I want to believe her, but how can I?”

“It’s a risk. She’ll have to earn your trust again. It’ll take time. The longer she’s here, the more you’ll relax into it.”

“And Tilly. Oh, my God, Tilly. She’s an adorable bundle of sweetness and smarts. It kills me that I’ve lost so much time with her, but at the same time, I’m scared to death. I don’t know how to be a big sister.”

“Yes, you do,” Grady laughs. “You already are a big sister. Look what you’ve done for Marigold and Wren. They adore you, and you’ve done all you can to help and encourage them. That’s what it’s all about—loving and supporting them.”

I wipe my tears, thinking of my sweet friends. “You’re right. I’m good at loving and supporting people I care about.”

He chuckles. “See? It’s easy. It’ll be even easier with Tilly because you know exactly what her life has been like.”

I take a breath. “Yeah, I do.”

He leads me over to the cushy space he’s created. “Get comfortable and have some wine. The more you talk, the less overwhelmed you’ll feel.”

Sinking into the blankets and pillows, I feel nested—warm and protected. He hands me a glass of wine, and, between sips, I tell him everything, from Mom’s sweet apology to my un-niceness to my housing problem.

“Move in with me,” he says with zero hesitation. “I want you to, anyway.”

“Do you always ask women to move in after only one date?” I joke.

“Never. You will always be the exception,” he says, making me swoon.

I match his intense stare with my own, considering it. Saying yes goes against my hard-earned independence and good common sense. It feels too soon.

But Grady’s my exception, too. If he isn’t my soulmate, then soulmates don’t exist.

“I’ll think about it,” I finally say.

His lips curl into a sexy smile. “Fair enough. Think about it. Think hard, though.”

I laugh. “I will.”

“Perhaps a preview of what that’d be like will get a yes out of you,” he says, making me giggle as he moves closer.