"Do you know what my only perk ever needs to be when it comes to us?"
She shook her head, too taken by his words this evening. As if confessing his love for her wasn't enough, the things he said tonight in the intimacy of their bedroom were declarations most women could only dream of.
"Having the knowledge that an extraordinary woman like you loves me completely and unconditionally."
"You should be very secure in that knowledge." She leaned into his lips. "Because I know with a hundred percent certainty that I'm going to love you for the rest of my life."
"That's a long time, sweetheart." He aligned their lower bodies, getting ready to enter her and become one. "I'm not an easy man to deal with."
"You're everything I've been waiting for." She raised her hips, taking his shaft in her hand and lowering herself onto him. "Chase..."
"That's it, baby, nice and slow. Let me feel you."
"Slow..." she mumbled, "can be a good thing."
"Sometimes." He took her face between his hands as he moved inside her. "Slow can be wonderful."
After a few moments, the talking ceased and the passion took over. He interlocked their fingers as he moved inside her. Their unhurried rhythm mirrored their soft, tender kisses. No urgency in their actions as their bodies validated their love and commitment to one another.
"Look at me," he whispered.
She lifted her head and opened her eyes, staring into his.
"I love you."
"I love you too." She wrapped her arms around his neck, losing herself in him. There would only ever be him.
Chapter Twenty-two
Chase admired Tessa as she brushed out her long, red hair and checked herself in the mirror one last time. When she wriggled in her brown suede skirt, trying to get it to look just right, he laughed.
"You can't mess with perfection." He buttoned his shirt as he took in the thigh high leather boots adorning her long legs. "You look fantastic."
"You spoiled me with the shopping spree and the personal shopper."
"Are you going to yell at me again about that?" He'd arranged for a new wardrobe for her. He wanted her to have clothes for the holiday season. He had several business and personal functions to attend and he wanted her with him, without her having to stress over what she would wear. She had put up an initial fight, but she did seem to enjoy trying on all of her new clothes and shoes for him after her shopping trip. His favorite part, of course, was helping her take the new clothes off.
"No, I'm not going to yell. I love this skirt."
"So do I."
"I want to look good for dinner." She slipped on a silver bracelet. "It's a special occasion."
They planned to visit her dad for Thanksgiving, then they were off to spend the afternoon with May's family.
"May can't wait for you to meet her kids." He sat on the edge of the bed to put on his shoes. "She's told them all about you."
"And us. She told them I was your girlfriend." Tessa sat next to him. "You grew up with them. Do you think they'll like me?"
"Just as everyone else does, they'll adore you." He pressed her knuckles to his lips. "Since we're not so much of a secret anymore, I think it's time we tell your father about us."
"I have a feeling he already knows."
"He's smart." Chase wanted to be the one to tell Pat that he was in love with his daughter. "He's coming to live with us in a few weeks. I want to tell him before that. I don't want him to have any surprises."
"Let's tell him today."
"I'd rather do it alone."
"Why?"
"Call me old fashioned, but I'd like to let him know how serious I am about you and how I intend to be with you for the rest of my life."
"Wait, you're not going to ask for my hand or anything silly like that, are you?"
"If I wanted to marry you, do you think that would be silly?" They were hardly ready for marriage, but he was curious about her feelings on the subject. He saw a long lasting future with her. One that included marriage and a family.
"No, it's just that … well, we just met like three months ago. Don't you think we should get to know one another better before we start talking about a wedding?" Her hands fidgeted with the soft material of her skirt. "It's not that I don't dream about being your wife. I love you, but I have to finish school and..." She took a deep breath and he saw the worry on her face.
"Relax, sweetheart." He draped his arm over her shoulder. "I do plan to marry you someday. When it's right, it's right. I haven't been more sure of anything in my life. You are meant to be mine forever."
"I do want that. I didn't mean that I don't want to be your wife, someday."
"I hear you." He kissed her temple. This was a conversation for another day. "Don't worry. I don't have any immediate plans to ask your father for permission to marry you. I don't want to kill him. I just want to go to him man to man and make him see that you're my world. He trusted me with you and I need him to know I didn't use that to my advantage."
"I don't think he would see it like that. He's very fond of you. I'm sure he sees how happy you make me, but I'll let you do it your way."
"Thanks for not arguing with me for a change."
"Really? When do I ever give you a hard time?"
"You don't really want me to answer that, do you?" He held her close, enjoying the feel of her soft, warm body. "You ready to go?"
"I could stay here like this with you all day."
"So could I."
***
Chase stayed late at the office, working on a new building design. With the holidays quickly approaching and Pat moving into the house a few days before Christmas, he wanted to tie up any loose ends at the office. He was planning a special trip for his favorite girl. Since Audra had ruined his original Christmas gift of the cabin, he needed a new one. Tessa had never been away on a real vacation and he wanted some alone time with her before the craziness of the season took over. A few days on a private tropical island owned by one of his clients seemed like the perfect getaway. He couldn't wait to tell her.
A light knock at the door pulled his mind away from his designs. Standing in the entryway of his office was his sexy, redheaded bombshell. She wore a sleek, navy blue skirt, matching heels and a crisp white dress shirt that buttoned to just above her breasts. Her hair was pulled into a high ponytail that swung to the side when she turned to shut the door. The cut of the skirt accentuated her slender hips and tight ass. What he wouldn't give to...
"Hey, sexy." She turned and shot him that flirty little smile of hers. "I was hoping you were still here."
"Did you think I would leave knowing you were two floors down interviewing for that internship?"
"Were you worried about me?" She twirled the end of her ponytail around her finger.
"Not worried." He pushed back in his chair and motioned for her to come to him. "Knowing you were in my building distracted me."
"You're going to be very distracted come January." Her bright, infectious smile told him everything he needed to know as she climbed into his lap, straddling his hips. He glanced down, catching a view of her creamy thighs as her skirt slid up her legs. "I got the internship." She wrapped her arms around his neck, thrusting her breasts into his chest. "How cool is that?"
"The coolest." He removed the hairband from her hair because he needed to see her wild look. "I had a feeling you'd get the job."
"I knew the interview was a formality." She moved her lips across his jaw. "Especially when Zach told me the job was mine before I even had a seat. You created that position for me, didn't you?"
"Always so perceptive." He leaned his head back when she loosened his tie. "Zach said he was going to be really busy after the holidays and I suggested he hire someone to help. You were the first name that popped into my head." His dick reacted as she sucked his earlobe into her mouth, grazing her teeth along it before she made her way to his mouth. "Of course, now I don't know if I'm going to be able to concentrate, knowing you're in the building."
"It's only three days a week, in the afternoons."
"I suppose I'll have to get all my work done in the mornings." He reached for the buttons of her shirt. "You look seriously hot in your business attire, Ms. Burke."