Imperfectly Perfect

Chapter 32

thirty-two

Savannah rustled under the blankets, her entire body overheating, and she just needed to get out from under the covers for a second to cool off. She flung the blanket over her hip and sighed as the cold room air hit her. The movement behind her was a surprise, and when she turned around, her brain caught up with the fact it was morning, and Fallon had stayed the night.

Naked.

Thoroughly fucked.

Gloriously happy.

“It’s too early,” Fallon mumbled and buried her face in the pillow again.

With a laugh, Savannah turned onto her other side and slid up against Fallon. She kept herself uncovered as she snuggled into the warm and sleepy woman who was still there. It was the first time she hadn’t hidden the fact that Fallon had stayed the night from Brinley, not that she’d loudly stated that it was happening either.

Two nights in one week together?

What exactly did that mean?

“I want to talk to you,” Savannah whispered against Fallon’s cheek, ending her request with a kiss to the warm, soft skin.

Fallon groaned again and tried to bury herself farther into the blankets. “Too early.”

“It’s not, I promise.” Savannah looked at the clock next to her bed. Her alarm was going to go off in an hour. That gave them exactly sixty minutes to have this talk before she had to start getting Brinley ready for school and they both needed to get ready for work.

“I want to ask you something.” Savannah took one finger and traced the curve of Fallon’s cheek.

“What?” Fallon did sound far more awake now than before.

“What do you think about what Brinley asked last night?” Savannah bit her lip, hoping that Fallon would give her the answer that she wanted, the one that would calm her nerves.

Frowning, Fallon popped her head up and pried open her eyes to look at Savannah. “What time is it?”

“Five.”

“Fuck, Savannah.” Fallon groaned again and turned onto her back. “I was right. Way too early.” She stretched though, and didn’t look as though she was about to fall back asleep. “And you’re going to have to be more specific. Brinley asked a lot of questions last night.”

“Right.” Savannah swallowed the lump in her throat. She hadn’t wanted to say it out loud. That was almost too scary. But if she was going to do this, then she had to get over herself and her fears. Fallon had done that already, hadn’t she?

“Give me a minute.” Fallon climbed out of the bed and left the room.

Savannah, now wide awake, lay on her back and stared at the dark ceiling. She was already messing this up, wasn’t she? She couldn’t ever do something the simple way. Fallon had put herself on the line on Sunday, and now it was Savannah’s turn.

When Fallon came back, she slipped under the covers and pressed her cold toes to Savannah’s calves. Squeaking in surprise, Savannah cringed as she got the exact cold she had been looking for ten minutes ago when she’d originally woken up.

“What question?” Fallon stated quietly, kissing Savannah’s lips. The scent of mint hit Savannah hard, and she knew without a doubt that Fallon had raced to the bathroom. “Also, I started the coffee maker because I’m going to need it before the timer if you’re going to have serious conversations with me at five in the morning.”

Savannah grinned. “You think of everything, don’t you?”

“No, I don’t. But I do try to.” Fallon played her fingers over Savannah’s side. “Remember, I’m not perfect. I wish I could anticipate everything, but I can’t.”

“I think just about everyone wishes they could figure out what surprises in life are going to happen.”

“Maybe.” Fallon pulled Savannah into her side more. “What’s the question, Savannah?”

“About us.”

“Ah.”

“Yeah.”

The silence between them was easy. It wasn’t fraught with worry—or anything else for that matter. Fallon was still touching her, gently, easing her fingers along Savannah’s skin in such a tender way that Savannah’s fear of rejection was once again banished to the furthest recesses of her mind.

“I do want to be with you, long term,” Savannah said, brushing Fallon’s hair behind her ear. “And I think you want that too.”

“I do,” Fallon responded, her lips curling up quickly before dropping again. “I have reservations, which you know about, but if we take this slowly, I think we’ll make it through.”

“Slowly?” Savannah raised an eyebrow even though Fallon couldn’t see her in the darkness. “You’ve spent two nights here this week, including an entire night with my kid.”

“Thank God I don’t have a cat.” Fallon chuckled. “I imagine I’d be on someone’s shit list then.”

Savannah perked up at the humor. “I don’t think we’re taking this slowly.”

“Then let me believe that lie a little longer.” Fallon pushed up on her elbow and curled her hand against Savannah’s cheek. “At least for this week.”

“This week?” Surprise coursed through Savannah. “Just a week?”

“Yeah.” Fallon kissed her. It was slow, passionate, loving. Their lips brushed again before Savannah opened to receive more. Fallon willingly gave what she was seeking. Their tongues touched, and Savannah sucked in a sharp breath, the press of their bodies heating up her just-cooled skin again.

If she wasn’t careful, she’d be so overheated that she’d have to take a cold shower just to get herself under control again. “Fallon…”

“One week,” she said again. “And this morning we can distract ourselves in other ways.”

Savannah chuckled until Fallon palmed her breast and flicked the edge of her thumb over the nipple. She gasped, every nerve in her body electrified and craving even more of that inciting touch. She would be happy if this never ended, if Fallon stayed next to her for the rest of her life. She truly would.

“Do you love me?” Savannah asked, needing confirmation for what she suspected. She wanted to know that she wasn’t leaping before she should, that she wasn’t making yet another mistake by entering into a relationship with someone so unwilling to open up and be vulnerable with her. As soon as that thought hit, she told herself it was ridiculous. Fallon had already proven herself different a crazy number of times. She wasn’t repeating past mistakes.

“One week,” Fallon reiterated her request as she moved her hand purposely down Savannah’s body and over her stomach. “I need to get some things in order first.”

“You need to organize before you fall in love?” Shock would have been her first reaction, but the more Savannah thought about it, the more it fit Fallon to a T.

Fallon didn’t say anything, but she moved her kisses from Savannah’s lips to her chin. She left wet, open-mouthed kisses down her neck and along her collar bone. Savannah knew without a doubt where this was heading, and she just needed another couple of minutes.

“Wait,” she said, putting her hand on Fallon’s shoulder and pushing back a little. “I just need…” she trailed off at Fallon’s concerned expression. “Give me a minute.”

Clambering out of the bed, Savannah walked directly into the bathroom. After relieving herself, she washed her hands and leaned against the bathroom counter, staring at herself in the mirror. Taking deep, calming breaths, she played back every moment she could from that morning. From last night. From the last week.

She was in love.

Head over heels in love.

But Fallon clearly wasn’t ready to talk about this, for whatever reason. Savannah could be patient. If there was one thing she was in this world, it was that. Fixing her hair a bit, Savannah made her way back to the bedroom, clean and refreshed. Fallon had propped herself against the pillows.

Savannah locked the door behind her. The last thing they needed was to be interrupted. She put her hands on her hips as she stood, fully naked in front of Fallon, who stared at her like a hungry wolf.

Just that look alone was almost enough to tamp down the self-doubt about her body, but not quite. The shame and self-consciousness still reared their ugly heads, but Savannah tamed them as quickly as possible and put them back in the box they came in.

“I love you,” Savannah said as clear as day.

Fallon’s face lit up. She grinned. Her entire body seemed to come alive with energy that she didn’t have before.

“I want you to know that, even if you’re not ready to say it to me.” Savannah stayed right where she was.

Fallon’s smile turned wickedly excited in the span of one second. She canted her head to the side, dragging her gaze down Savannah’s body and back up. “Are you coming back to bed or not?”

“Yeah, I am.” Savannah walked forward, her bare feet quiet on the carpet. As soon as she was lying against Fallon again, Fallon kissed her hard.

Taken by surprise, Savannah closed her eyes and let Fallon focus all her energy on this moment, on the touches and the sensations instead of the words that she wasn’t ready for. When Fallon pulled back, she said, “It’s not a question of love or not.”

“I know that.” Savannah curled her leg over Fallon’s hip and pulled her in closer. “You’re just not ready for full commitment yet. The feelings are there, but the fear’s also still there.”

“You know me so well.” Fallon skimmed her hand along Savannah’s thigh. “Just give me a week.”

“I won’t hold you to that.” Savannah pushed her thigh up hard between Fallon’s legs.

Fallon grunted and rocked her hips unintentionally. “That feels good.”

“I figured since I did wake you up early to talk, the least I can do is entertain you for the next thirty minutes.”

“You’re a goddess,” Fallon whispered, purposely rocking her hips this time. She ground herself against Savannah’s thigh, the smooth movements of her body causing the bed to shake and squeak.

Savannah listened carefully to make sure that it wasn’t loud enough to wake up Brinley, otherwise they were going to have to switch things up. Clutching Fallon’s back, Savannah increased the pressure as much as she could, wanting Fallon to have everything she needed.

“I’m already close,” Fallon whispered.

“Then don’t hold back. I’m ready for all of you.” Savannah hoped that wasn’t too pushy, but it was the truth. She wanted Fallon to be comfortable, one-hundred-percent, with who they were together as a couple and with who they could become together.

She kissed Fallon, giving her as much in this one moment as she possibly could. She wanted every morning to be like this, the two of them together before dawn, touching and tasting each other, making sure they were grounded before they started their day. How much better would their lives be if they were able to accomplish that? Savannah nipped Fallon’s lip, hearing the rhythm of her breathing change, the catch in her voice.

“I’ve got you,” Savannah murmured, not even sure if Fallon was with-it enough to hear her. But she held on as Fallon groaned, her movements jerky and tense, her face tight with pleasure and her lips parted.

“You’re too good to me,” Fallon said, kissing Savannah fully. “Really.”

“You’re everything I need, faults and all.” Savannah ran her hand up and down Fallon’s back, holding her close. She didn’t care if they continued from there. All she wanted to was stay right where she was with this woman—someone who loved and cared about her, through the thick and thin, and through all of the complications and trauma that followed them both.

Fallon kissed Savannah’s shoulder, then her neck. But it didn’t feel like she was trying to pull Savannah deeper into the moment. It felt like it was self-comforting. The cold wet spots reminded Savannah that Fallon was here for her, that her presence in Savannah’s life was going to linger long after she was gone for the day.

“Come back tonight,” Savannah requested. She knew it was a big ask, but she wasn’t ready for the little cocoon of hope to end. Not yet. That had been the main reason she’d skipped work the day before. She hadn’t wanted to shatter the spell they’d woven together.

“Don’t you want some time with Brinley?”

Savannah did need to talk to Brinley, especially with the probing questions she’d been so focused on last night. She needed to make sure that Brinley was comfortable with all of the changes happening, and there were so many of them.

“I hate when you’re right.” Savannah scrunched her nose in disgust.

Fallon kissed her quickly. “You would have thought of it before the end of the day, I promise.”

“I know.” Savannah rested against Fallon, holding onto her tightly. “I’ll talk to her tonight, if you’re okay with that.”

“Yeah. I am.”

Savannah chuckled. She leaned in, pressing her lips close to Fallon’s ear. With a purposeful move, she tweaked Fallon’s nipple in just the way she knew would get Fallon going again, and she nibbled on Fallon’s earlobe.

Fallon hissed, and she put her hand on Savannah’s hip, but she didn’t push her away. Rather, she pulled her closer.

“See, you do love me,” Savannah whispered. Again, Fallon didn’t verbally respond, but she did roll on top of Savannah, pushing her knees apart, and pressing lines of kisses all over Savannah’s chest.

Dragging in a shuddering breath, Savannah tangled her fingers in Fallon’s hair. “You don’t have to say anything. I know I’m right.”

The feel of Fallon’s smile against her breast was the only answer Savannah needed.

She would take what Fallon could give for now.

And she’d wait.

Because she didn’t need an answer to know that the love they shared was stronger than any other love Savannah’d had before.