But I’d never wanted anything so desperately in my entire life.

“Jaymeson…” Pris mumbled. “Aren’t you supposed to be in your room?”

“I am in my room.”

“You’re in my room,” she clarified without opening her eyes.

“My house. I own all the rooms.” I patted her head. “Sleep, love.”

“Am I going to suck?” She yawned and sat up, blinking a few times before her eyes seemed to focus on me.

“What are we talking about?”

She rolled her eyes and backhanded me in the shoulder. “When what’s his face flies in to Portland and we do that read-through — am I going to suck?”

“Of course not.” I tucked her hair behind her ear and kissed her lightly across the lips. “You’ll be with me. So everything’s going to be fine.”

“I’m worried.” She held her lower lip hostage between her teeth.

“About acting?”

Her head shook slowly. “About Dani.”

“She has us,” I vowed. “And we won’t let anything happen to her. She just needs time.”

Pris nodded and then offered an excited smile. “And we have that.”

“What?”

“Time.”

“We do.” I chuckled. “We have all the time in the world.”

“I love you,” she whispered, tears pooling in the depths of her deep brown eyes. “So much.”

“I love you too.” I brushed another kiss across her mouth. “Now, go to sleep. The sooner you sleep, the sooner you wake up and I make you pancakes.”

“Deal.” She snuggled back into the bed and held out her arm. I didn’t need a second invitation. I grasped my girl as tight as possible and fell asleep with a grin on my face.

Not because I was having sex.

Or because I was whoring myself around.

Not even because I was the luckiest bastard in the world.

But because, I had the heart of the girl I loved — and I wasn’t ever letting go.