Claire Dane’s POV
I don’t ask. Instead, I rest my hand against his chest, feeling his heart, strong and real, beneath my palm. The contact feels inevitable, like gravity finally giving up the pretense. His forehead dips-
Beep beep.
The cookie alarm goes off, and he groans, resting against mine. No kiss. Just the shared breath, the shared weight of everything unsaid. And me not wanting the cookies to burn, I pull away.
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“Is that all?” Jeremy and I are at the supermarket, picking up something to bake tonight. Christmas meal since he insisted he is not going over to his mother’s house if his ex is there.
Daniel opted to stay put until we return, insisting he wanted to check out the new video game his father bought him yesterday.
“Er, yes?” I had taken up a crate of eggs- 48 in the cr
