Hayden Cross swept into my life like a storm, with lightning that ignites every inch of my soul and thunder that shakes me to my core.

Telling him about my dad and Mer was a good idea. It feels like our connection is even deeper, more intense now. We spent the rest of the night talking about my family and his own, sharing stories and jokes. I learned his relationship with his parents is practically nonexistent, and even though I told him I think it'd be a good idea to mend fences, I also know this is his decision to make.

We talked a lot about my mom too, and no matter how much it pained me, it also warmed my heart. I've been trying to avoid the topic ever since it all went down, but it turns out that talking about her is actually a good thing. It helps to keep her memory alive.

Besides all that, Hayden also set his heart on finding a new lawyer for my dad, and he even met a few of them. He wanted to make sure they're reliable before we fill them in on everything. Luckily, he found one pretty soon. Michael Keller supposedly is the best in his field, and Hayden said he already had an idea on how to approach the case, just by listening to our brief explanation.

I insisted on coming with him to the appointment in a few weeks; I'm the one who knows all the details, after all.

We had our first small fight when he said he wanted to pay for him too. I don't want to rely on him, and I don't want him to spend his money on my dad. But he made a pretty compelling point when he showed me his bank account balance.

Because holy shit. I thought my book paid well, but compared to his salary, I'm a dog in the street. And so I agreed, solely because I know the world isn't fair and money is the way to get what you want in this legal system. I insisted we don't tell my dad about it, though. He'd have my head if he knew.

I'm staying with Hayden for now; the thought of being away from him pains me, and as a writer I have the freedom to work wherever I want.

"Goddammit." The sound of his alarm makes me groan, and I turn around, flinging my arm over the sleeping mountain next to me, trying to reach his phone to shut the damn thing off. "Shit!" Instead of grabbing the phone, I push it off the nightstand, and for a second I lie there, looking at that phone on the ground, the ringtone still echoing through the room.

I tilt my head when I hear Hayden's chuckle, his body shaking with laughter beneath me as he watches me curiously.

"You think that's funny, mister?" I quickly bend over and reach for the phone, turn off the alarm, and then turn back to Hayden to slap his chest in mock appall.

"Very funny." He laughs again and catches my wrist on his chest before I can pull it back. Within seconds, he's on top of me, pinning my hands above my head as he kisses my nose. "Have I told you already..." he whispers as he peppers kisses on my face, "how goddamn..." another kiss, "beautiful..." His lips find mine, and I melt into him with a sigh, waiting for our lips to collide when I tug him closer. "I wasn't finished yet, Lucky." He chuckles into the kiss, but his eyes betray him. Because he pulls back, and I see the desire and heat in them, heat that transfers right into me when his fingertips brush over my cheek.

"Sorry," I mumble, but he shakes his head before he lies down next to me, propping himself up on his elbow, his fingers tracing patterns along my collarbone.

"What I wanted to say was..." His lips find my breast, his tongue wanders up to my nipple, and I feel the pleasure in my bones before he even continues his journey. "Waking up to you in the morning, seeing you like this..." He licks his way back up, the tip of his tongue tracing a path until he's right on top of me again, his lips only inches from mine. "Is the most beautiful fucking thing I've ever experienced."

I arch my back to kiss him, but he quickly swerves left, kissing the contours of my jaw until he reaches the sensitive spot behind my ear. My heart hammers when he sucks at my skin, and I actually have to suppress a gasp from the sensation. "I thought you'd grow tired of me eventually," I tease, and I feel him smile against my skin as he nibbles my ear lobe.

"I'll never grow tired of you."

"It's only been eight weeks. Who knows what you'll think after the next eight?" I almost moan the words, my brain slowly turning to mush from his magical touch.

He stops and moves back on top of me, steadying himself with his hands next to my head, those emerald eyes staring me down, hunting, chasing, capturing his victim. "Does that mean you'll stay with me for the rest of the season?" We haven't talked about that. It's been more of a spontaneous decision every time he had to move to a new city, but I wasn't ready to go back home. Not without him, at least.

"I'll stay with you as long as you'll have me."

"That's a really long fucking time, Mila. I never want you to be anywhere but with me."

His answer makes me smile, and I scratch his stubbles subconsciously, deep in thought.

These past weeks have probably been the best in my life. Hayden always made sure I felt at home, like I wasn't a bother to him, simply by doing everything in his power to ensure I belonged right next to him. It's insane how well we get along, considering we're practically living together from hotel room to hotel room.

"Good. We're on the same page, then."

"That we are." A genuine smile crosses his face, and it's so beautiful, I just want to tell him I love him right here and now. Because I do. With all that I have. I know it's ridiculous, after the relatively short time we've spent together, but the heart does what it wants.

Love is scary, dangerous, and fragile. Especially a new one like ours. And I feel like there's one more thing that stands between us, keeps us from being the couple we should be.

"I need to talk to you," I say, my palms suddenly clammy from nervousness.

"Okay..." He arches his eyebrows as he sits up and leans against the headrest.

"Nothing bad, I promise," I reassure him and pull up the sheets before I position myself cross-legged in front of him, interlacing his fingers with mine. "I, uh..." Wow. This is harder than I thought. "I'm working on that plot hole right now, and to avoid thinking about that nightmare, I mulled over other stuff. I started thinking...like, a lot."

"You tend to do that." He smirks.

"I know. But...I, uh...I think it's time to, like...come out?"

He leans back, his eyes wide as he studies me for a minute. "Coming out of what?" His question makes me laugh, but I slap his chest, ignoring the wide grin on his face as I try to speak again, but he immediately interrupts me, "Coming out of bed? 'Cause there's no way I'm doing that anytime soon. Not with you in it."

"Oh my God, stop!" I exclaim while planting my palm on his mouth, his deep chuckle vibrating against my fingers. I love that he's such a doof; sometimes, he's just missing the off button. "What I'm saying is, I want people to know about us."

His eyes grow even wider now, and he pulls my hand from his lips before he places it in his lap. "Are you sure about that?"

"Do you, like, not want to? Because I mean, that'd be okay, really. We don't need—"

"Of course I want to, you crazy woman. I'm just saying, are you sure? There's a lot of attention out there. And with your dad..." He sighs.

And this, right here, is the reason I've even considered going public. Because Hayden is so considerate and respectful that it's impossible not to want everyone to know he's mine. "I know. But if we actually do this thing with my dad, together—"

He cuts me off once more. "Of course we'll do it together. I'll be there every step of the way."

The pure conviction in his eyes overwhelms me, and again it's hard not to let emotions cloud my mind, not to let the tears fall. I'm still trying to wrap my head around the fact that he showers me with attention like this.

"I mean it, Mila. You're not alone in this. I'm here. Always."

"You'll make me cry again if you don't stop saying these things," I whisper, but he immediately circles his arms around my back and pulls me into his lap.

"Well, you'd better get a shit ton of tissues then. Because I won't stop saying them."

I look at him for a second, and I just know I'll burst into tears if I don't change the atmosphere. "We don't have space for a ton of tissues. There are peanut butter cups in every empty spot in here."

He laughs and pulls me even closer toward him; the sensation of his lips feathering kisses on the top of my head calms me immediately. It's the effect he has on me, and I enjoy how we stay like that for a while, simply breathing each other in, bathing in each other's existence. I wish we could live in this little passionate bubble the whole time.

"Mila." He breathes my name as I glance up at him, and I dive into the sea of emotion and passion in his eyes, a passion that ignites my soul with every second his gaze lingers on my lips. My breath hitches when he kisses me so gently, I almost don't feel him, and still it's enough to cause a storm in my heart that invades all my senses in mere seconds.

Every inch of my skin is aflame when he spins us around and towers over me, his rough fingers discovering every part of me as if it was the first time he's felt my body. "Close your eyes," he whispers into our kiss and watches how I meet his command, his fingers already pushing up the football jersey I'm wearing.

I almost gasp when his tongue flicks over my sensitive center, a deep moan escaping my lips as I hold on to the silk bedsheet. "Hayden..."

But he shuts me up with another stroke of his tongue before he lavishly devours me, his hands kneading my breasts while he continues his attack on my senses. Just as I think I can't take it anymore, when the undeniable wave of passion surges through my body, he suddenly stops. I almost quiver when he moves, everything within me screaming for his touch.

"Not yet." I feel the smirk playing on his lips as I arch my back, desperately wanting to have him. But again, he denies my wish, and instead I feel the bed shift until the tearing of a wrapper only heightens my anticipation. I almost want to reach out for him when the bed shifts again, but soon I sense him right on top of me, his erection pressing into my thigh as his gravelly voice vibrates against my lips. "Look at me."

I follow his command the second his fiery gaze settles on my own. "Fuck, Mila, you're so goddamn beautiful." He pushes into me, painfully slowly.

It's hard not to believe his words, because I can see how much he means them with the way he looks at me, his eyes holding a volcano of emotions. Every inch of my body electrifies as he intensifies his thrusts, and I can't stop myself from pulling him down, suddenly needing to feel every part of him.

As our lips collide, as our tongues dance, as his thrusts grow more desperate and energetic, I feel how we suddenly become one. I can sense every part of his soul when he kisses me so deeply I think I might faint, and I know he feels it too; the fervor of his thrusts mirrors his arousal, and it's mere seconds later that we both come undone, my fingers digging into his back as I try to hold on for dear life.

I've never felt a high like this. There's a gentle ferocity to it that blows my mind, but Hayden doesn't give me any chance to breathe, his lips finding my own with passionate urgency.

"I... You... Fuck," he mutters in between kisses, not once letting me catch my breath.

Our gazes lock as he leans back again, and the second I dive into the storm of emotions in his eyes, I just know.

Without a shred of a doubt, I know I lost the rights to my heart.

It belongs to him now.

Like thunder to a storm.