Chapter 42

• The Lawson house was hush when they stumbled through the door — giggles caught in the seams of that old porch, her hand fisted in his collar while he pressed her against the screen door just long enough to steal one more kiss she’d taste for hours.
• But inside, all that fancy restaurant hush washed away — no soft music, no flicker of candlelight. Just the old boards groanin’ under his boots, her breath caught warm in the crook of his neck when he dragged her shirt up over her head, mouth ghostin’ the soft dip of her shoulder like he couldn’t bear to waste a second.
• They didn’t make it far. A couch cushion, the old rug, the wall where her soft laugh cracked sharp when he hoisted her up, thighs clappin’ around his hips like she was born for that spot. And when he carried her down the hall, feet tanglin’ in her half-kicked-off boots, her giggle turned soft enough to hush the whole house.