One Night Stand novel · Chapter 22 of 24

Chapter 22: Slow

The board voted thirteen to nothing, and Preston sat with his hands flat on the table and did not raise one.

It took four minutes.

By noon it was in every newspaper, and by dinner I had stopped looking at my phone.

Otto fell asleep on the sunroom sofa at eight, between Dottie and a stuffed diplodocus with a bandaged leg.

"Go on," Dottie said, not looking up from her crossword.

"Dottie."

"I mean it. I've been up since five, and I'm going to snore like a bear. Go."

I went upstairs.

The house was quiet, with one lamp lit in the hall.

Mateo was standing in the doorway of his bathroom with his sleeves rolled to his elbows.

The big old tub behind him was steaming.

"I thought," he said, and stopped.

"What did you think?"

"That you haven't had an hour to yourself since Otto was born."

He cleared his throat.

"I ran you a bath. You don't have to. I'll go."

"Are you in it?"

His eyebrow went up.

"Is that a condition?"

"It's a question."

"Then yes," he said slowly. "If you'll have me."

I put my hand against his chest, over his heart.

It was going very fast.

"Slow," I said.

"All right."

"I mean it. I want to see you."

"Callie."

"Not because anyone's watching or a vote's coming.

"I want one night where nobody is waiting to take anything from us."

He did not say a word.

He took my hand off his chest and kissed the center of my palm.

Then he undid the buttons of my sweater, one at a time, with his eyes on my face.

He folded it and laid it on the counter.

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