Chapter 35

Perched on the vanity counter in Xavier's bathroom, Peyton swung her legs and waited while he took out his contacts. She'd already removed hers and brushed her teeth. He'd thrown on a pair of black briefs and had her slip into his button-down shirt he'd worn earlier. The casualness of their undress, plus the domestic scene of their toothbrushes beside one another's, kept tripping her mental focus.

It wasn't as if she hadn't been in a relationship before. It had just been a long time. Mark's toiletries had shared space with hers, but he'd been gone so much that it hadn't seemed real sometimes. He'd been as much a ghost in her life as her parents' memory.

This...was different. Every experience with Xavier was different. From the way he touched her to how he spoke, he gave the impression she wasn't simply someone beside him sharing oxygen or a warm body to pass time. Rather, he saw her, the woman. Inside, out, up, down, throughout...and every crevice in between. And he apparently liked