“It’s perfect,” I say.

Riley smiles as he exits the vehicle. “Wait until you see the inside.”

I get out of the car and open the back door to help Nathan out. He immediately runs up the stairs and tries the front door.

Riley laughs. “Whoa, slow down there, buddy. I need to enter the code to get the key.”

Nathan scrunches his brow. “How come we hafta have a secret code?”

Riley looks at his phone and punches in the combo his realtor gave him to unlock the key box. “This funny looking thing is just temporary. It will be gone once the sale of the house is final.”

Nate bounces on the balls of his feet as he waits for Riley to open the door. As soon as the lock unlatches, Nathan sprints inside.

“Nathan! Wait for us!” I say.

Riley takes my hand and leads me inside. He grabs the back of Nathan’s shirt as he runs by. “Hold up, dude.”

Nathan stops mid-stride. “Aw, man!”

Riley chuckles. “I thought the three of us could look at the house together. Does that sound okay with you, buddy?”

Nate rolls his eyes. “If we hafta.”

I grab his hand. “Yes, we have to. Now behave yourself, mister.”

“Aw, mom,” Nathan whines.

Riley smiles. “So, what do you think?”

The main level consists primarily of one big open space with dark plank wooden flooring throughout. The living room takes up the front portion and boasts a gas fireplace with large windows that allow tons of natural light to filter in. A gorgeous kitchen with an oversized island is towards the back. The cabinets are white, the countertops are quartz, and the appliances are stainless. There’s a nice-sized space in between that could easily accommodate a six-person table.

“It’s ginormeous, mommy!” Nathan exclaims.

“It sure is, baby. Riley, this is incredible. It looks like something off HGTV.”

Riley chuckles as he moves about opening doors for me to peek inside. “Coat closet, powder room, and pantry. The bedrooms and laundry are upstairs.”

Riley tugs on Nate’s hand. “Do you want to go see your bedroom?”

“I get my own bedroom?” Nate asks.

Riley nods. “You sure do.”

Nathan scrunches his face and looks up towards me. “But where will you be, Mommy?”

I make eye contact with Riley as I reply. “I’ll be right here with you, baby. The three of us are going to live here together.”

“What about Unca’ Drew?”

I kneel in front of him. “Uncle Drew is going to stay right where he is. I’m sure he’ll come over for lots of visits though. And if you miss him, I can take you to see him too.”

“Promise?”

Riley ruffles his hair. “We promise. You wanna go pick out your new room?”

Nathan’s face lights up. “I can pick?”

Riley nods. “You sure can. Mommy gets the biggest bedroom but you can choose your room from the other two.”

“Then you get the one I don’t want?” Nate asks.

Riley gulps and looks at me. “That’s up to your mommy, dude. She gets to choose where I sleep.”

I feel the blush creeping into my cheeks as his words sink in. He’s going to let me set the pace. Even though I’ve agreed to move in, he’s not going to pressure me into a relationship with him. We haven’t really had a chance to talk about it yet, but I meant what I said earlier. I’m pushing full throttle here; I’ve waited long enough for this opportunity. The three of us can finally be together every day. Riley and I can be together as a couple and we can raise our child together. I can’t think of anything that I want more.

Nathan giggles. “So she can make you sleep in the toilet?”

Riley laughs. “Yep. She sure can.” He holds out his hand. “Let’s go pick out your room, buddy.”

Nathan grabs on and Riley extends his free hand towards me. I clasp our fingers together and follow as he leads us up the stairs. There are two rooms for him to choose from, each one about ten by ten in size with a full bath in between.

Nate points to the one on the right. “I want that one!” He runs into the room and starts pretending to be an airplane.

Riley stands in the doorway watching him. “Hey, dude, are you going to be okay in here for a few minutes? I want to show Mommy her room.”

In reply, Nathan continues spreading his arms and making plane noises.

Riley turns to me. “You ready?”

I nod. “Lead the way.”

RILEY

I TAKE HER INTO the master bedroom. She trails her fingers over the light gray walls and walks across the room to perch herself on the window seat. She tilts her face towards the sun and looks out the window.

She presses her hand on the glass. “Oh, wow! You can see the water from up here.”

I smile. “You like it?”

“I love it, Rye. It’s absolutely perfect.”

I offer my hand to help her stand. “Let me show you the master bath.”

She takes my hand and allows me to lead her into the attached bathroom. She looks around the room from the marble double vanity to the rainhead shower and finally to the deep soaker tub.

She raises her eyebrows suggestively. “A tub built for two. Brings back some good memories.”

“Huh. Look at that. I didn’t even notice.”

She laughs and smacks me playfully. “Right.”

She peeks into the small walk-in closet and steps back into the bedroom.

I shove my hands in my pockets. “So…”

She tucks a hair behind her ear. “So…”

We share a heated glance but don’t say a word. I can’t stand not touching her anymore so I stalk towards her until she backs into the wall. She gasps when I place my hands on her hips and lean over to whisper in her ear.

“You’re not really going to make me sleep in the toilet, are you?”

She chuckles as she wraps her arms around my waist. “Hmm, I haven’t decided yet.”

I place soft kisses down the nape of her neck. “No? Maybe I can help you decide.”

She moans when I pull her against me. “How are you going to do that?”

“I have some ideas…”

She ghosts her hand over my denim-clad erection. “Such as?”

I groan as I press into her palm. “Honey, you keep doing that and I’m about to show you every idea I’ve ever had up against this wall.”

She shivers. “That sounds promising.”

I pull back to look her in the eyes. “You think so?”

She bites her lower lip. “Very much so.”

I smile as I hover over that sexy mouth of hers. I pause for a second, giving her a chance to back out before I press my lips against hers. She responds instantly, opening so I can slide my tongue between her lips. Fuck, she’s so warm and tastes so sweet.

I deepen the kiss, thrusting my tongue inside her mouth as I grind my body against hers. She pulls me into her, practically climbing me like a tree trunk. She keeps making these sexy little whimpers like she’s so hungry for me, she can’t get enough. Desperate to feel her bare skin, I glide my fingertips beneath her shirt and brush the underside of her breast.

She gasps. “Oh, Rye.”

“Whatcha doin’?” Nathan asks.

Shit! We both break apart instantly. I didn’t even hear him come into the room. Devyn smoothes her shirt down. She looks down and sees the tent in my pants and smirks. She steps in front of me so I can hide behind her as we face our son.

“Hey, buddy,” she says.

“Why were you making those funny sounds, Momma?”

Her eyes widen. “Um, your daddy and I were um…we uh…we were just making silly animal noises.”

Holy shit! Does she realize what she just said? Did Nathan catch it?

I know the moment it hits her. Her jaw drops and she gives me a look that says, Oh my God, did I really just do that?

I adjust myself and hunch down to the floor. “Hey, bud. Remember when you asked me if I was your daddy?”

Devyn’s eyes widen. Oops, I guess I forgot to tell her about that.

Nathan nods. “Yep.”

“And do you remember what you said to me?”

“That it’s okay if you wanna be my daddy but you have to wuv my mommy.”