Her arms wrap around my back and her hands gently caress my shoulders as we both catch our breath. After a few seconds, I lift up just enough so not all of my weight is on top of her, and I reach up to brush my thumb over her cheek.

“Are you okay?” I ask, worried that I was too rough.

“I’m perfect,” she answers with a sated smile. She lifts up and presses another kiss to my lips. “I’m really so perfect, Huxley.”

And she looks like she is. Heady eyes. Satisfied smile. Relaxed body.

“Are we able to just lie here for a second?” she asks.

“As long as you want. Let me just get something to clean us up.” I press one more kiss to her lips and then lift off her. There’s a bathroom attached to the bedroom, thankfully, so I walk in there, clean up quickly, and then wet a washcloth for her. When I turn to go back to the bedroom, I discover her standing in the bathroom doorway, wearing my shirt.

Fuck.

She looks so damn good with her hair rumpled, coming loose from her ponytail, and a satisfied expression on her face.

I hold out the washcloth. “Here,” I say.

She presses her hand to my chest, kisses my jaw, and then takes the washcloth and goes into the bathroom. Giving her some privacy, I step into my boxer briefs, then hop into bed and under the covers. We have an hour before we have to be back in our seats.

After a few minutes, she comes out of the bathroom, looking sexy as hell in my shirt, and crawls into bed next to me. I open my arm, and she curls against me, her head resting on my shoulder and her hand on my bare chest. I curl my arm around her, clutching her tight.

And just like that, I’m a taken man.

Fucking besotted.

This is what I want.

Her, in my arms.

Exactly like this.

It’s as if the last few weeks have been the most intense foreplay of my life, because the end result, Lottie in my arms . . . yeah, the best fucking thing that could happen.

“I’m on the pill,” she says softly.

“I figured,” I say, moving my hand over her hair.

“I don’t want you thinking I’m trying to trap you.”

“I’d never assume such a thing. You have too much pride to consider doing anything like that.”

“That’s true.” She chuckles. “But I thought I’d let you know anyway.”

“Thank you.” I kiss her forehead and close my eyes.

After a few beats of silence, she says, “Can I ask you something?”

“Anything,” I answer. I don’t think I’ve ever been this comfortable, this carefree, as I am in this moment.

“When you said it’s never been like this, did you mean that?”

“Fuck yes,” I say without skipping a beat. “I wouldn’t lie about shit like that.”

She lifts up, and I open my eyes to find her staring at me. “Are you saying I’m the best you’ve ever had?”

I chuckle. “Looking for a trophy?”

I mean it’s not a lie, she is the best, hands down. And I know a lot of that has to do with this connection I feel toward her.

“I wouldn’t mind one.”

I tickle her side and she squirms against me, laughing.

“After all you’ve put me through, I’d say a trophy wouldn’t kill you.”

“Call it character building.”

She rolls her eyes. “Such a businessman-type thing to say.”

“Get used to it. That’s who you’re dating now. A businessman.”

Her brow arches in question. “Oh, are we dating now?”

“Yeah,” I answer. “What the hell do you think tonight was?”

“A lucky night out with my fake fiancé?” She smirks.

“Is that how you want to see it?” Fuck. I hope not.

She shakes her head. “No, I don’t want to go back to whatever it was that we were. That was stressful.” She’s right. It was stressful. Not only did I have my normal job to do, but I felt enormous pressure to be someone I’m not around her. I’m not a hard-hearted asshole. I’m reticent. Slow to show my inner self. Protective. And yet, somehow she’s managed to pull deeper parts of me to the surface. But, thank fuck, she’s not tossing that back in my face. She wants more of me . . . and I want her to have it. Willingly. Gratefully.

“So then, we’re dating.”

She pauses, thinking about it for a second, and then she chuckles. “Never thought I’d date my fake fiancé, but then again, I never thought I’d do half the things I’ve done since I’ve met you.”

“And we haven’t even gotten started yet.”

OceanofPDF.com

Chapter Nineteen

LOTTIE

“I’m nervous. Why am I nervous? Should I be nervous?” I twist my hands in front of me as I pace the entryway of Huxley’s house.

He’s sitting on the stairs, a grin spread across his face.

“And I don’t like that you’re finding joy in my pacing.”

He chuckles and stands, then steps in front of me to keep me from wearing a path into his beautiful floors. He stills me with his hands to my shoulders and then lifts my chin. Only to bend down and place a soft kiss to my lips. Not sure I’ll ever get tired of receiving his affection.

Ever.

“You have nothing to worry about.”

“Easy for you to say. My mom already loves you, but I’ve never really spoken to your brothers before. Besides a few pleasantries, they’re strangers to me. And they must know I’m some kind of lunatic for agreeing to be your fake fiancée.” I grip my forehead. “God, what they must think of me.” Eyes wide, I ask, “Do they think I’m a gold digger? Because I’m not. I’ll break up with you right now to prove them wrong.”

“They don’t think you’re a gold digger. If they’re judging anybody, they’re judging me. Trust me, I’ve taken enough shit from them over the past week about us getting together. They’re going to be ecstatic to get to know you better.”

“They’ve given you shit?” I ask.

“They said from the very beginning that I liked you but I was in denial. So, basically, them just rubbing it in my face.” He shrugs his shoulders as if it’s nothing.

“And they know my mom thinks we’re engaged?”

He nods. “They’re well aware. Everyone is going to act as though we’re engaged.”

I blow out a deep breath and step into his embrace.

His hand rubs up and down my back. “It’s going to be okay, Lottie.”

“Why did we think it would be a good idea to have our families over for a barbecue? This seems like a recipe for disaster.”

“I thought it was because you wanted to tell everyone how amazing my cock is.”

My head shoots up and I catch the blatant humor in his expression. “What is wrong with you?”

He chuckles. “Trying to lighten the mood, babe. It’s really going to be okay.”

“And what if your brothers don’t like me?”

“They will, trust me. Anyone who can give me as much shit as you do and bring me to my knees, they’re going to love. I wouldn’t be surprised if they showed up wearing Team Lottie T-shirts. Trust me, they’re fans.”

“Team Lottie. I like the sound of that.” I press a kiss to his jaw. “And you still don’t have any regrets?”

He shakes his head. “None.”

It’s been a little over a week since the concert, since we confessed our feelings, since Huxley Cane took me by storm. When we got back home, he brought me back to his bedroom and fucked me until we passed out. The next day, he called in sick—I told Kelsey I’d be working from Huxley’s place—and we spent the entire day getting to know each other all over again. He told me about how when he was an Eagle Scout, he used to boast about it to get girls to notice him. Sadly, none of them cared, which made me laugh so hard I snorted. And I told him about the time I caught my mom making out with Jeff in the pantry when they first started dating, and how Mom said she lost her Tic Tac in his mouth. She was trying to find it. Which then inspired Huxley to proceed to push me on my back and say he lost a Tic Tac as well . . .

I’ll be honest, I’ve never had this much sex in my life. I’ve never been contorted the way Huxley contorts me. And I never knew there were so many surfaces you can have sex on.