Craig looks out of place standing in my living room. I can still count the number of times he's been inside my house on my hand. His gaze carefully takes in every detail, just as I observe him. Craig's gaze lingers on the various photo frames, which I should have taken down. I don't want to give him the wrong idea. I hadn't thought about that until now. Clara asked to meet for coffee this morning, which is the opposite direction of Craig's house, so I asked him to pick Noah up.

My phone rings and I see Daniel's name on the screen. I silence the call and slide the phone into my back pocket. I'm not ready to talk to Daniel and I refuse to do this in front of Craig.

"Trouble in paradise?" Craig raises his eyebrow.

I shove my hands into the front pocket of my jeans, then shake my head.

Noah appears at the entrance of the hallway with an arm full of toys. I raise an eyebrow and point to his room. He bunches the toys closer and frowns back. I raise the other eyebrow and shake my head.

"Three toys, Noah, we made a deal."

If this is how he acts at three, I fear what sixteen will bring.

Noah stomps down to the bedroom, and we fall back into our awkward silence.

Craig clears his throat and catches my gaze. I much preferred the awkward silence to this.

"I was thinking about taking Noah to the aquarium today. Would you like to join us?" He shoves his hands into his front pockets and rolls onto the back of his heels.

"Thanks for the invite, but I have a few errands today."

"Oh, okay."

We dip back into that silence and I'm thankful for it.

Noah shortly returns with three toys. We glance at each other and I nod my approval. He wanders over to his Dad while I grab the backpack off the kitchen counter. I help Noah into the back of Craig's car and kiss his cheek.

"Be good," I whisper. "And have fun!"

I wave goodbye before heading to my own car. I pull my phone out and glance at the missed call, then at the time.

"Shit, I'm late."

* * * * *

The clank of the coffee machine, the fresh brew, and the chatter of customers fill the small cafe. I wind through the closely knit tables in search of Clara. I spot her nestled in the back corner booth. I drop onto the faux leather seat and slide across.

"Sorry, I'm late." I bite my lower lip. "I asked Noah's father to pick him up and Noah tried to take an arm full of toys with him. If he loses one, he'll have a meltdown, so I have to limit the amount of toys he lugs anywhere."

"Kids." Clara giggles.

My phone rings again and I pull it out and look at Daniel's name on the screen. I wait for the call to ring out before messaging Daniel.

'I'm with Clara, talk soon.' - Ellie.

I flick my phone onto silence and turn it over. Clara raises her eyebrow and I sigh.

"Sorry, again." I exhale another shaky breath.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm great." I tug on a smile.

"How are you, really?"

"I don't know." I sigh. "Tired."

I struggled to sleep last night and maybe it's because Daniel wasn't there, or maybe it's because this is the first problem we've had in our relationship. I think I love this man and the thought of our relationship imploding because of his mother is terrifying. I don't want to lose him. I can't lose him.

"Is everything okay? You both seemed upset when you left."

"I felt overwhelmed by all the questions, and meeting everyone. I told Daniel I needed some time to myself."

"I know how you feel." She softly chuckles. "Emma asked me so many questions, I swear my head must have been spinning."

"I think mines still spinning." I chuckle. "I told Daniel we would speak today, but frankly, I'm kind of relieved you messaged to meet for coffee."

"I remembered what it was like meeting his family for the first time and I wished there was someone I could talk to. Henry is amazing, but they just don't get it." She sighs, rolling her eyes. "Emma is wonderful once you get to know her, but she's cautious of who her boys bring home. She treated Aubrey and I the same."

"Except you two don't have children with other men." I groan. "I don't think she's ever going to like me and that's going to cause problems."

"Give her a chance. She loves her boys furiously and it's hard for her to accept that they move on. Once I became a parent, I understood a fraction of why she reacted that way. I may become crazier when the girls are old enough to date. Which just the thought of, terrifies me. There are some things you can't protect them from, some pain you just can't fix with a kiss on the forehead."

"You're right."

"Talk to Daniel, he's probably thinking the worst."

"I feel horrible." I frown.

"Go and talk to him, you'll both feel much better."

"We didn't get a chance to have coffee."

"I will organise a girl's night so we can get to know each other."

"I would love that."

I message Daniel to meet and he swiftly replies with an address.

Where is he taking me to?

* * * * *

It's a house in the suburbs. A nice house with a park down the road and a big front yard. I park next to Daniel's car and knock on the double front door. There's a thud and a clunk and then the door opens. Our gaze meets and a smile lights his face.

He's dressed in his usual work gear. Denim jeans, steel cap boots, and a tan tool belt loosely hanging on his hips. The sawdust clings to his skin and hair, and it's surprisingly a turn-on.

I leap into his arms despite the sawdust and he crushes me to his chest. I inhale his comforting scent which is tinged with the sawdust. He loosens his grip so his lips can meet mine. One arm hooks around my waist while my fingers slide through his hair and tug on it.

"I'm sorry," he whispers.

"We've missed you."

"We?" He frowns.

"Noah and I." He smiles and rubs his nose against mine. "He woke up from his nap and asked where you were. I suppose he's just as used to you being around as I am."

Our lips meet again, and this time our kiss is sweet and I savour the moment.

"I missed you, everything about you. I never thought I'd miss your soft snores, but that room has never been so silent and I hated it." I sigh. "I'm sorry I pushed you away, I'm sorry I ignored your calls this morning. I don't know what's wrong with me."

"You were scared, Ellie. It's okay to be scared. I'm sorry I couldn't be there for you, through everything."

"You're always here for me. If I'd called you last night, you'd have raced over and climbed through my bedroom window and that counts. I'm not used to this."

Daniel crushes me against his chest and kisses the top of my head.

"I hate him for hurting you, Ellie. Nobody should feel like this."

I slump against his chest and brush a stray tear away from my cheek.

"Let's go inside." His fingertips softly trail down my arm and then intertwine with my fingers. He tugs me inside the house and closes the front door.

There's furniture and boxes shoved into the center of the room, which may contribute to how big this room looks. There's a lingering smell of paint and a hint of sawdust.

"This is your house, the one you've been building?"

Daniel nods.

"Can I see it?"

"I would love to show you around." He grins.

"This will be the living room. I've painted the majority of the house with neutral colours because I wasn't sure how I would style it."

"Neutral is a good choice."

He leads me down a short corridor that opens to an opened planned kitchen and what would be a dining area but there's just piles of boxes labeled 'kitchen stuff'.

"Obviously, this is the kitchen." He chuckles.

We walk down another corridor that branches off to different rooms. He takes me into the first room which is a soft grey with beautiful natural light cascading in.

"I thought this room could be for Noah. It's plain now, but we can decorate it however Noah likes. We can re-paint, even add dinosaurs on the walls if he wants."

"He would love that."

He shows me another bedroom that catches the mid-day sun and there's a built-in window seat that overlooks the newly planted garden.

"Or this is another option. There's a reading seat by the window."

"Oh yeah, this room looks great as well."

"Or we could use it for something else." He shrugs.

"A library?" I wink. "It already has my new favourite reading spot."

"I think there's somewhere else you'd prefer."

He pulls on my hand and we're walking back down the hallway. There's a door just off the dining area which leads to a construction zone; this must have been where Daniel was working. There's beautiful large windows overlooking the garden and the beginning of built-in bookshelves.

"Is this what you were talking about at dinner with my mum?"

"Yes." He nods.

"You're building me a library?" My jaw drops.

"I don't think there's enough space, but I've started on the bookshelves. I'm going to add an attached ladder so you can reach the books on the top of the shelf."

"Daniel." I gasp.

He scratches the back of his head.

"I'm not the best designer, so you'll need to help me because I'm not sure what else to add."

"I love it."

"You do?"

"Nobody has ever done anything like this for me."

I wrap my arms around his neck and smile.

"Thank you."

He squeezes my waist and we kiss. His tongue sweeps across my lower lip and my fingers curl into his unruly hair. I gently tug on the strands, then comb my fingers through the back.

"I love you." He murmurs against my lips.

I dip down and lock his gaze with mine. Fear creeps into his eyes as they dart around, drinking in every detail.

He cups my face and his thumb gently rubs circles into my cheek.

"I love you, Ellie."

I kiss him with everything I have, with all my being.

"I love you."

He sweeps me up in his arms and we spin around. Once my feet touch the ground, I yank on his tool belt but groan when I can't undo it. Daniel laughs and easily unbuckles it. He drops it to the ground with a clunk. I fiddle with the small buttons on his t-shirt while he works on undoing my jeans. When our clothes are discarded on the ground, he takes a step back and rakes his gaze over my naked body.

"You're so beautiful," he murmurs.

Daniel pushes me against the wall and his lips trail feverishly down the length of my neck, across my collarbone, over the curve of my breast, down my soft stomach, and inching towards my center. He hooks one leg over his shoulder and then his mouth is on me.

I gasp and arch my back. My fingers swirl through his hair and I tug as moans slip through my parted lips. My legs tremble and I struggle to hold myself upright. He pulls back and I groan from the loss of touch.

Daniel picks me up and I wrap my legs around his waist. He takes me into the living room and sits on the couch. He runs his hand over my breast, gently kneading them.

"So beautiful," he whispers against my flaming skin.

He catches my nipple in his mouth and swirls his tongue around it. I tilt my head back and moan. He places his hand on my lower back and etches me closer. He kisses my neck as I rack my fingernails over his chest.

Daniel's thumb strokes my inner thigh and it creeps closer to my center. I bury my face into the crook of his neck to cover my moans. He pulls on my hair and my head springs back so he can hear my breathy moans.

"I want you."

"I need you," I groan.

"I didn't bring a condom." He curses under his breath.

"I'm on birth control."

He lifts my waist and guides himself deep inside of me. We sit for a minute, our breaths warm on each other's skin. I push up and slowly sink back down, taking his full length in.

"Fuck." He groans.

I clasp his face between my palms and plant my lips on his.

His fingernails dig into my waist as he helps build a steady rhythm. I feel the orgasim building, so I move faster until my body tenses and I moan my release. Daniel's mouth covers mine, swallowing the sound. Daniel helps continue the rhythm until he pushes down my waist and finishes inside of me. I lean my forehead against him and we battle to regain our breath.

Daniel tucks my hair behind my ear and kisses me.

"Now I've had you, I simply can not let you go."

"Unless it's for a shower?"

He chuckles and nods his head.

"Let's shower if that's what my beautiful girlfriend wants."

"Can we shower here?" I glance at the boxes.

"Yes, but I'll need to bring the towels and soap from the other bathroom up to the master one."

"Oh."

"If you go through that door." He points to one across from here. "It'll lead you through to the master bedroom and bathroom. I'll meet you there."

Daniel helps me to my feet and we part ways. I venture into the master bedroom which to no surprise, is filled with boxes and a disassembled bed frame leaning against the far wall. To the right is the bathroom which looks like it could be in one of those design magazines. Beautiful white marble tiling, lots of natural light, and a large shower.

I step into the shower and turn the hot water tap on. The pipes rattle and then cold water spurts from the shower head. It takes a couple of seconds until the water heats up. I adjust the taps until the water is nice and warm.

"I like this view."

I peer over my shoulder and watch as Daniel strides into the room. He places fresh towels on the counter and then joins me in the shower with the soap. He joins me under the warm spray and kisses my temple.

"I really like you here."

"It's a really nice house you have here. Any plans to move in soon? The house looks like it's almost complete, minus all the packing boxes."

"A few weeks depending on how the bookshelves and unpacking goes. I've been very distracted recently." He eyes my lips, but I turn my head so he ends up kissing my cheek. I'll get too distracted if he keeps kissing me like that.

"I want you to move in, if that wasn't clear from the house tour."

"Really?"

"Yes." He nods. "I love you, Ellie. I want this house to be the start of our beginning."

"I love that." I smile.

"I want to wake up every morning next to you."

"I have to speak to Craig about it and see what he says."

"Let's hope he's okay with this."

He kisses me and smiles.

"Now's not the time to worry about it."

Except the worry has already settled into the pit of my stomach.

His hands slide over my waist and he kisses my forehead.

"Let's just imagine what a perfect Sunday morning would look like."

"You and Noah are cooking me breakfast in bed." I wink.

"Mm, I like this."

I rest my head against his chest and he wraps his arms around my waist. We bask in the warm spray of the shower and I lose myself in the bubble of what it'll be like to share a home with Daniel.

This is the easiest part about falling in love; the idea.

* * * * *