We arrived at the restaurant, an Italian place in Mayfair that had come recommended by a guy at work. I’d visited during my lunch hour just to see if it was a place Ashleigh would like.

“Murano?” Ashleigh asked.

“Yeah, is that okay?”

“It’s more than okay. I’ve always wanted to come here. I thought you said tonight was nothing fancy?”

I grinned. I’d chosen the right place.

“Mr. Daniels, nice to see you again,” the host said as we arrived.

I watched as Ashleigh’s face dropped. I could tell she thought I’d been here with another woman. I bent and whispered in her ear, “I came earlier today to check it out. I’ve not been before, and I wanted to make sure it was good enough.”

She turned toward me, wrapped her hands around my neck and pressed her mesmerizing lips against mine. “Thank you,” she said, pulling away.

“What for?” I wasn’t complaining about the kiss, but it had caught me off guard.

“Oh, you know. Just for being wonderful.”

My heart swelled at her words. It was incredible to me that this amazing, sexy, caring, funny and gentle woman could think I was wonderful. I wasn’t about to question it.

By the end of the evening, I was aching for her. Every minute I spent with her made me realize what a fool I’d been for all these years. She had been right in front of me, wanting me, and I’d never chosen to explore it.

Ashleigh

We stood outside my building, and he brushed my hair from my face. “Ashleigh, thank you for agreeing to come out with me tonight. I’ve had a great evening, and I’d really like to see you again. Are you free on Saturday, all day?”

Was he calling time on our date already? I wasn’t sure I was ready to be apart from him. “Thank you for a wonderful time, and I would love to see you again on Saturday.”

He nodded. “May I kiss you?”

My stomach flip-flopped. I slid my hand up his hard chest, taking a half step forward and closing the gap between us. “I would like that, yes.”

He cupped my face and dropped a kiss at the corner of my mouth. My lips parted as he traced his tongue across my bottom lip before dipping inside. His hands smoothed down my back, pressing my body against his, making me feel wanted and safe. He gasped as I trailed my fingers along the top of his belt. We’d already slept together, and I really wasn’t trying to put the genie back in the lamp. Would he stay if I asked? Before I got a chance to say anything, he broke our kiss and took a step back.

“You’re incredible, but I’m having a hard time staying in control.” The thought that I could do that to him still took a little getting used to. “I have an early start, so I’m going to go.”

I nodded, disappointment flooding my veins. He was set on leaving. He kissed me on the cheek and watched as I made my way into my building.

I felt wooed, cherished. And now I was lying in bed with an ache between my legs that only Luke had a cure for. Should I have invited him in? He hadn’t asked, hadn’t assumed, and I’d forgotten where we were with things. Did dating for him mean no sex? Now on my own, Luke was all I wanted, and he’d made it more than clear that he wanted me. What was I waiting for? I had a lot to lose, but even more to gain.

I threw on my coat and ran outside. It was late, and I lived some way from a main road where I could catch a passing cab. It took me about twenty minutes before I spotted a taxi with its light on, and when I scrambled in, I realized I didn’t know Luke’s flat number. I’d been there before, but only once. I spent the journey scrolling my messages, trying to find the text where he’d given me his address. Before I knew it, I was standing on my own outside Luke’s building, looking at the dissolving taillights of the cab. Jesus, I was an idiot. What was I doing here? Maybe he hadn’t pushed to come in because he didn’t want to. Maybe he was feeling unsure about our relationship as well. I started to pace, too panicked to continue my search through old texts. I shouldn’t have come. I should have trusted my initial instinct and let us marinate—let us both get used to the idea of being together. What was I thinking, being so presumptuous, assuming I was the only one holding back?

I missed him.

“Ashleigh.”

I jumped and spun to find Luke walking toward me.

“What are you doing here?” he asked.

“Uh . . . oh. Um. I don’t know.” Was he mad? “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry. How long have you been here?” He checked his watch then looked at me. He pulled me into his arms. “Are you cold? I’m sorry I wasn’t here.”

It registered that he’d only just made it home after dropping me off. Where had he been?

“No. I shouldn’t have come. I should go. I didn’t mean to push.” Jesus, I should have just stayed at home. We’d had a wonderful night, and I’d spoiled it by showing up uninvited.

“What do you mean ‘push’? Please don’t go anywhere,” he said into my hair as his arms tightened. “Tell me why you are here.”

I took a deep breath. “I missed you.” It was so good to be held by him. It felt so safe.

“You did?” He kissed the top of my head. “Let’s get you inside. You must be freezing. You shouldn’t be out on your own. It’s not safe, and I don’t want anything to happen to you.

“But if I’m pushing, you have to tell me.”

“Pushing me by being here? Ashleigh, I’m ready to run; I’m just waiting for you to catch up, baby.”

Everything he said made me feel better. Every moment I spent with him made me feel more certain of our future together.

“Am I crazy?” I asked as we headed inside.

“In general or for some particular reason? Because yes and maybe.”

I rolled my eyes and he chuckled.

“For missing you, for turning up here in the middle of the night. I think I’m crazy.”

“Well, if that makes you crazy, I like crazy. I thought you didn’t want me to stay, and I don’t want to push.” His brow was furrowed as if he were trying to piece together a puzzle.

“I know what I said, but I’ve changed my mind.” I glanced at the floor. “Dating should include sleepovers. What do you think?”

He stuck his keys in the lock and ushered me inside. “I think that maybe you’re beginning to catch up.”

He collapsed on the sofa and pulled me onto his lap. “I don’t want to waste another moment without you. I feel like a fool for not seeing what was under my nose for so long. Every night should be a sleepover as far as I’m concerned, but I know you have some doubts and you want to protect yourself. I get all that, and I want to go at your pace, but you never need to worry that you’re pushing. Everything else I want in life pales in comparison to how much I want you.”

My stomach dipped and rolled at his words. Those words had been the stuff of my dreams since I was a teenager. “You’re wonderful.”

“I’m really not. Ask Emma, or Fiona. Any of my exes. It’s different with you. You make me different. Better. I like myself with you more than I do without you.”

I wasn’t sure that I’d ever been paid such a compliment by anyone. It was close to overwhelming. “Okay, so you’re my Mr. Wonderful.”

“I can live with that.” He linked his fingers through mine and nestled his head against my neck. “Are you feeling better?”

I nodded. It wasn’t possible to feel anything other than ecstatic given what he’d just said. “Much.”

“We’ve always been able to talk, Ashleigh, and now that we’re together, it doesn’t mean that should stop. In fact, in my experience, not talking, not saying how you feel, can only lead to pain.”

Now we’re together.

The words played on a loop in my head, mixing with his breath on my neck, making my brain fuzzy and my limbs loose. He sounded so sure. So solid. As if it were a done deal, a one-way street.

“Maybe you’re right.”

“Maybe?” he asked incredulously.

I giggled. “I mean, yes, you’re right about the talking, but also when you told me that we had this. Maybe you knew it all along.”