His fingers tightened on my leg. “I’m right where I want to be. Are you done eating?”

I shoved the last bite of taco in my mouth and nodded.

Derrick set our plates on my side table and pulled me onto his lap. “Em, I don’t say this lightly. I love your new soap.” He buried his face in my neck, and I giggled, the doubts banished for the moment by his enthusiasm.

Contentment spread from my chest in a warm wave. Why had I avoided him for so long? Derrick held me secure against him, and I laid my head against his chest where I could feel his heart.

He skimmed his hand up and down my back. “Are you ready to talk?”

“We have been talking.” I nipped at the flower tattoo on his pec, attempting to distract him. “Among other things.”

“We’ll definitely be revisiting the other things, but you know what I mean. Why haven’t I seen you for two days, Em?”

Talking was easier when I didn’t have to face him. I took a deep breath and voiced my biggest fear. “This doesn’t seem real. I keep holding my breath waiting for everything to fall apart, and it felt safer to keep my distance until then. I can’t set reasonable expectations if I don’t know what you want.”

Derrick laced our fingers and kissed my knuckles. “I want this to be real. I want to look up in the stands and see you there. I want to come home to you and hear all about who Pantsy propositioned that day. I want you.”

My hair got caught in his stubble as I looked up at him. “What about football, the draft?”

His dark eyes locked on mine, and that familiar buzz of connection swept through me. “This is my last year playing in college no matter what else happens in my life. The draft isn’t until the end of April. That’s almost seven months. Give me until then before you decide my future is too scary.”

“It’s not your future that’s scary. You’ve earned your place in the NFL, and I am so proud of you. I’m just not convinced you’ll want me tagging along.”

He raised a brow, full of challenge. “If I have my way, I’m not going anywhere without you. No matter where I land, it’s you and me.”

Goosebumps pebbled across my skin at the confidence in his gaze. “We haven’t known each other that long. How can you be so sure?”

“Because I’ve never met anyone that makes me feel the way you do. I’m all in to see where this goes. You and me.”

No one had ever said that to me before—never committed to me. My life was full of transitory relationships. Until now.

I nodded. My throat too full of emotion to speak.