Cam sat on the edge of the bed, every nerve in his body crackling with heat and anticipation as he glanced toward the bathroom door. She was back there. Mina. And as he waited for her to come out, he couldn’t help but think that he had no idea how he’d gotten so lucky to have finally won her.

But he had. She was his. His.

He swallowed, nerves tingling as he waited. He was hyperaware of everything. The buzz of the air conditioner. The silk of the bedspread. The sound of the water running in the bathroom.

And then—oh, God—the subtle click of the doorknob turning and the creak of hinges as the bathroom door opened.

She stepped out, clad in a short terrycloth robe that ended at the top of her thighs and revealed miles of perfect legs. She walked toward him, and he swallowed, knowing without seeing that she was naked underneath. That all she had to do was loosen the tie at her waist and open the robe to reveal herself to him. Her firm breasts, her flat belly, her entire body that he’d come to know so well but could never get enough of.

“I’m ready,” she whispered, and he felt his cock go hard.

He nodded, his mouth too dry to speak. And when she took another step toward him and pulled loose the sash, he thought his heart might stop.

But that was nothing compared to when her hands went to the robe, and she started to pull it open. To reveal herself to him. To stand naked before him and—

Bang!

A wave of golden light burst from the robe, blinding him and knocking him backward.

And when he’d blinked enough to clear his vision, she was gone—and so was the entire apartment.

He was left standing alone among white concrete slabs, sun bleached and cracked. All except one that stood in the middle, a single phrase sprayed on it in bold, curvy lettering:

Forever only lasts until it’s over.

---

Cam sat bolt upright, his heart pounding as the dream lingered.

Beside him, Mina blinked and rose up onto her elbow, then reached for him, her warm hand on his managing to calm him. “Hey. Are you okay?”

He nodded, forcing himself to breath normally. “Nightmare,” he said, then rubbed his palms over his face. “Christ. That was—” He broke off with a shake of his head.

“Do you want to talk about it?”

“No,” he said quickly. And then he took a deep breath and tried again. “No, it was just a stupid dream.”

That was the truth, wasn’t it? His dream was because of what she’d said at the park. Because he’d let himself believe that they’d gotten past her fears and hesitations, and those quixotic words had snuck into his subconscious, making him fear that he’d been deluding himself.

And hell, maybe he was.

After all, she still hadn’t told Darryl that they were dating. And she still dreamed of working in Hollywood.

He’d been living a lust-filled dream with her, but except for amazing and regular sex, they were right where they were when they’d started. Nothing had changed at all.

Except it had.

The little voice in his head stressed the point again. It had.

And maybe that was true. They were together, after all. They had a connection.

For all intents and purposes, they were a couple.

Hell, maybe if he brought it up again, she’d be just fine telling Darryl. After all, it wasn’t as if they’d talked about it recently.

“Hey,” she murmured, her voice heavy with sleep. “You’re really upset. You want to talk about it?”

He shook his head. “No. It just got under my skin.”

“Well, come here.” She lifted the sheet, inviting him back under, then spooned up next to him. “Better now?”

“Much better,” he said. And he hoped like hell it was true.

---

“I’m not working tonight,” Cam said on Monday morning as they scurried around the condo, gathering up their personal belongings and putting the place back in order for Kiki and Noah. They weren’t arriving until Wednesday, but Cam wanted to clear out today so that the housekeeper could do a thorough cleaning. “Do you want to see if Darryl’s up for a movie night? I could handle a wild action flick.”

“Sure,” she said, her voice muffled since she was on her hands and knees searching for a lost sock under the bed. “Come on, you,” she muttered. “Show yourself.”

Cam pressed his palm to his mouth to stifle a laugh, then leaned against the wall and watched her. He wanted to capture each and every memory. Because as much as the sex was great—and it was—these were the moments that he truly cherished. The little things that filled the days and made him smile.

The way she talked to herself when she gathered her clothes, which were inevitably scattered across the house. The way she hummed when she brushed her teeth, classical music on the weekends, and The Beatles during the week.

And he definitely loved the way she leaned casually against him as she waited for the bread to pop out of the toaster.

Real stuff. Real life.

That’s what he wanted to wrap a bow around and keep forever, and that was what her comment at the park and the later dream had made him fear he was losing. The entirety of the woman he loved, not the girl he slept with. The nitty-gritty. Every tiny, unexplored piece that he could spend a lifetime discovering.

That’s what he wanted—and he hoped she felt the same way. Because he couldn’t stay hidden any longer. He wanted her. He wanted them. All weekend he’d had to censor his conversations at work, being careful not to reveal who’d he’d been with. And, dammit, he’d hated it.

He wanted to be a couple. For now and, God willing, forever.

He just hoped that when he told her as much he’d get his wish—and not one hell of a kick in the balls.