Chapters (25)
“I know.” I wrinkle my nose. “But the inn has views of the ocean, and we’re going to be staying on the property.”
He leans against the countertop and crosses his arms over his impressive chest. “Okay, I have a question for you. What does your dream home look like?”
“Huh?”
“Humor me.”
I look down into my mug as a series of images move through my mind, and then I shrug. “I don’t know. Small, I guess. Simple.”
“That’s not good enough. Give me specifics.”
“This is silly.”
“No, it’s not silly. I want you to answer the question. I want you to tell me what you want rather than brushing the question away.”
“I guess I want a Craftsman home, near the water, with a garden. I want a gourmet kitchen and enough bedrooms that I can be the cool aunt and have all the kids come to stay with me. And I want to see the ocean from my bedroom.”
He nods. “That sounds amazing. Now, why couldn’t you just say that in the first place? Why do I always have to coax and pull information out of you?”
“You don’t—”
“I do.” He rubs his hand over his face. “Your music, what kind of car you want, hell, just about anything at all. If I ask for your opinion, for what you want, you brush me aside and say anything is fine. But it’s not fine, damn it. I want you to tell me what you want because it’s my mission in life to give it to you.”
My mouth drops open.
“I suspect that this is something left over from before,” he continues, “and you don’t have to confirm or deny that, but I’m not your former husband. I won’t shut you down, make you feel stupid, or disregard your feelings. I want you to have whatever you want.”
“I’m not used to asking for it,” I admit. “Of course, I want a beautiful beach house. But the one I have is—”
“If you say fine, I’ll spank your gorgeous ass.”
I bite my lip.
“Let’s work on this, okay? Be honest with me. We established a while ago that we don’t lie, and we don’t keep secrets, right?”
“Yeah.” I sigh and take another sip of tea. “I’ll work on it.”
“Good.” He pushes away from the counter and walks around to me. “Now, let’s go to bed so I can lose myself in you for a while.”
“That sounds nice.”
“I’m going for better than nice, sweetheart.”