He settled us front to front, covered by my duvet, tangled in each other.

He slid the tip of his nose down the bridge of mine before he whispered, “’Night, Amy.”

“Goodnight, Mickey,” I whispered back.

He lifted up, kissed my forehead and settled in to the bed, doing this tightening his arms around me.

I pressed closer and returned the favor.

I didn’t think I’d do it.

Heck, I didn’t want to do it.

I wanted to lie in the dark in my bed with Mickey Donovan and exalt in the feeling.

I did that.

But I did it quickly falling to sleep.

Chapter Sixteen

Open Your Door

My phone on the nightstand clattered as it rang.

I opened sleepy eyes and stared at the light coming from it as I looked at my alarm clock.

It was the night after Mickey and I connected (literally).

It was also the middle of the night.

My heart started racing because a middle of the night phone call could mean anything.

I reached out, grabbed my phone and saw the caller was Mickey.

I took the call and put the phone to my ear. “Everything okay?”

“Open your door, Amy.”

My skin ignited and my body flew into action.

I threw back the covers, jumped out of bed and ran down the hall to the front door. I unlocked it and pulled it open to see Mickey, in his firefighter-not-fighting-a-fire outfit sauntering up my walk toward me.

I waited, my eyes locked to him, his eyes locked to me, the burn building with just a look, and when he was close enough, I jumped him.

He caught me, kissed me, backed me inside, closed the door and locked it, all without taking his mouth from mine.

His tee hit the top step to the sunken living room.

My nightie fell to the first set of steps that led up the hall to my bedroom.

In the morning, I’d find my panties dangling off the arm of the daybed in front of my fireplace.

But we didn’t make it to the bed.

We sunk down on the rug under it and that was where Mickey fucked me.

When he was done with me, I was too replete to go searching for my nightie. So when he lifted me in his arms, deposited me in my bed, went to the bathroom to deal with the spent condom and came back to me, we slept together naked.

It wasn’t one of my top things to do. I wasn’t big on naked sleeping.

I didn’t give it a thought with Mickey.

* * * * *

The next evening, nervously, I walked on my silver pumps into Magdalene’s firehouse.

As arranged, I was there to have dinner with Mickey and the boys.

It was coming clear that when he said he’d make time for me, he meant it.