Page 41 of Love From the Ashes

“What are you doing?” I said, laughing.

“I want to hold you. Lay down with me for a while. We have plenty of time before we have to get dressed.”

Reid laid me on the bed, and then he snuggled next to me while I curled up in his arms. He leaned down and kissed me, his lips sweet and tender, his hand gently caressing my hip.

My mind wandered while he held me. What we’d shared a moment ago was wildly uninhibited sex. What we were sharing now was love, and you needed love for the sex to mean anything. I hadn’t understood that until I’d met Reid. Intimacy with Dean had been unemotional and purely for sex, my part simply a job. Once I understood it, the difference between the two seemed striking.

“I want you again,” Reid said, kissing my neck and extracting me from my thoughts.

I nodded, never seeming to get enough of him.

Reid slid on top of me and tenderly slipped inside. His demeanor and his passion were different this time. He was slow, tender, and deliberate. He kissed and caressed me, his hands sliding across every inch of my body as we lit each other on fire. He came inside me. Then he held me for a long time.

“I want you to move in with me,” Reid said, his words seeming to come out of nowhere.

“What?” I stared at him, wondering if I’d heard him right.

“I want you to live with me.”

“Seriously? Are you sure?”

“Yes, I’m sure. I hate the nights I’m here and you’re at home. It’s hard for me to sleep because I constantly think about you. And it’s not only about the sex. I want to make you breakfast, sit on the rooftop terrace together, relax with you in the evenings, and discuss our plans. I want this to be our home together. Does that make sense?”

“It does, but when do you plan on this happening? I have a lease, even though it’s only month-to-month. But still, I’d have to give notice.” I was trying to sound logical, although my head was swirling with a mix of thoughts. What Reid was asking me to do was a huge step, and I didn’t know if I was ready for it. For the first time in my life, I was living on my own, and it had taken enormous amounts of hard work and effort to get to this point. I had to pull myself up with grit and determination and force myself to move forward, more so during the times I desperately wanted to give up.

“For some reason, I thought you’d be ecstatic when I mentioned moving in with me. But you sound hesitant instead. Don’t you want to live together?”

“I do, but it’s complicated. And it’s not you, I promise.”

“Are you afraid you’ll be giving up your independence and freedom? That you’ll lose it once we’re under the same roof?”

“Yes, that’s part of it.” I let out a long sigh. “I’ve never lived by myself until now, and having my own apartment feels like I’ve accomplished something, especially after all the garbage I went through to get here. This will sound silly and probably won’t make much sense, but I almost feel like I’ll be backsliding if I give up my apartment.”

“It doesn’t sound silly, and I understand what you’re saying. I want you to live with me, but I don’t want you to feel pressured to do it. How about if I give you some space to think about what I said? We can talk about it when you’re ready.”

“Thank you for being so understanding. I’ll give it some thought, I promise.”

“That’s all I can ask. Now we better shower and get dressed. I don’t want to be late for the gala.”

*

Reid and Ilooked for his mother once we’d entered the Symphony Hall building. After spotting her in the large foyer outside the concert hall, we worked our way across the floor to join her.

“Mother,” Reid said, giving her a hug and kiss on the cheek.

“You look very handsome this evening,” Ms. Morgan said as she smiled at her son in his black tuxedo. “And you, Sofie, are gorgeous in that chiffon dress. The color is stunning on you.”

“Thank you, Ms. Morgan.”

“Please, call me Ginny. It’s more than proper since you’re dating my son.” She smiled, displaying genuine warmth toward me for the first time.

“I’ll try to do that.” Although I meant what I said, it was difficult for me to do. Being Reid’s mother was one thing, but she was also the company’s owner, and whether Reid cared to admit it or not, Ginny was in charge. She was formidable and, at times, quite intimidating.

“Is that Geoff?” Ginny said, gazing at a gentleman working his way through the crowd.

“It is. I hate to say it, but if Geoff’s here, he must have an ulterior motive. I’ve never known an evening of culture to be appealing to him.”

“Let’s not jump to conclusions, shall we?” Ginny raised an eyebrow at Reid.