Sophie didn’t say a word. Disappointment began to take shape in the back of his throat, but she took a step forward and placed a hand on his cheek. “Thank you,” she said.

And that was all.

It was exactly what he needed to hear. Not pity and not enthusiasm—not even an awkward change of subject. Just gratitude.

His own gratitude took the form of a kiss. Given the imposed chastity of the past week, it would have been so easy for that kiss to become frantic and desperate, for his need to have this woman in his arms pushing aside all other considerations.

But he didn’t feel frantic. He didn’t feel desperate. He just felt whole.

She responded to the kiss by melting into him. Her body was pliable and warm, her mouth a soft place for him to land. He didn’t know what to do with such a gift—with the offering she gave him every time she opened up and let him in—but she did.

“And here I thought you were just bringing me up here to ravish me,” she said, smiling up at him. The upturn of her lips filled his heart, the happiness in her eyes impossible to ignore.

Laughter. That was the one thing this place needed, what it had been missing all those years.

It was what had been missing from his heart too.

“I guess that’s what I get for jumping to conclusions,” she added. “Your way is a lot better.”

He answered her laugh with one of his own. Almost immediately, the attic began to feel airier, lighter. More like home. “Ravishing you can still be on the menu, if you want,” he said. “In fact, there’s nothing I’d like to do more.”

“Yes, please.”

It was all the invitation he needed. The moment was right to put the mattress to good use, but Bubbles had taken up a patient perch right in the middle. Harrison didn’t have the heart to move her, nor did it seem all that important—not when Sophie was standing right in front of him.

He sank to his knees and grabbed her by the hips. Sophie’s surprised gasp lasted only a second before it transformed into an enthusiastic murmur of appreciation.

“I’m going to need you to remove these jeans,” he said, his voice rough with desire. “Ravishing requires nothing less.”

She eyed him with a kind of laughing disbelief, but she obeyed him all the same. “I thought it was the shirt you took exception to,” she said as she unbuttoned her jeans and began sliding them down over her hips. Her underwear had taken a drastic turn for the scandalous since their camping trip, today’s offering some kind of red lace contraption it looked like he could tear with his teeth.