Total pages in book: 90
Estimated words: 89012 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 445(@200wpm)___ 356(@250wpm)___ 297(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 89012 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 445(@200wpm)___ 356(@250wpm)___ 297(@300wpm)
A candlelight dinner on the beach? I look up at Maddox. He doesn’t flinch, doesn’t appear flustered at all.
“Sounds great,” Maddox says. “Thank you.”
“Of course. Do you have any dinner preferences?” He smiles proudly. “If not, I’ll create a menu based on your pre-arrival form.”
Inwardly, I cringe. I filled that out based on Eton.
“That works,” Maddox says.
Let’s hope it works, and we aren’t delivered ridiculous entrées because my ex-fiancé was a snob.
“Then I shall leave you. Dinner will be on the beach directly in front of your suite at seven fifteen. It’ll allow you to witness the beauty of the golden hour.” He bows his head. “Enjoy the rest of your afternoon.”
The door clicks softly behind him.
Maddox takes a step back, removing his arm from behind me.
“I think you misunderstood the assignment,” I say, laughing. “You touch me when people are around, and I can’t do anything about it. And then once we’re alone, you step away.”
His grin is mischievous. “I have to touch you in front of people, or else they won’t think we’re married. Because, trust me, no man with you as his girl will manage to keep his hands off you.”
“Well, it’s a good thing the staff wasn’t predominantly female then. You don’t want to know what I’d have to do to you to make it believable.”
“That sounds like a good time.”
“It might be. Who knows?”
He steps in front of me. He’s so close that a piece of paper would barely fit between us.
My breath hitches, and my heart thunders. This is it. This is the moment.
He places a finger beneath my chin and lifts my face. He bends forward until his lips are inches from mine.
I shiver, trying my best to hold my ground and not fall into him.
“For the record,” he says, licking his lips. “I understood the assignment perfectly. And I will touch you when we’re alone. I’ll touch every inch of your delectable little body with my hands and my tongue.”
I gasp. Yes, please.
“But before I do that, I need to know that you didn’t agree to this on the plane because you felt pressured. You were my friend before this, and you will be my friend after. We can have a lot of fun while we’re here, but not until I’m absolutely sure that’s what you want.”
“It’s what I want. I promise.”
He grins and drops his hand. “I hope so. But for now, let’s get settled and explore this place.”
My brain malfunctions. This isn’t what’s supposed to happen. He’s not supposed to tell me no—because that’s basically what he’s saying.
Anger and embarrassment begin to rise inside me, but that stops when I look into his eyes.
They’re clear, free of mockery.
He’s not trying to put me in my place.
The man is trying to take care of me, putting me first.
So that’s what this feels like.
Okay, then.
I smile at him and then face the glass. The waves roll gently into the beach a stone’s throw away.
“Isn’t this amazing?” I ask.
“Is it everything you dreamed it would be?”
One corner of my mouth dips as I remember the day I booked the suite. “It’s more than I dreamed, really. Considering the day I booked it, I did it out of spite.”
Maddox stands just behind me. I don’t have to look to know it. The attraction of his body to mine is undeniable, like two magnets drawn together.
“Why was it out of spite?” he asks.
I close my eyes and breathe in his cologne, a scent that I realize calms me. It somehow dilutes my stress and makes me feel like everything will be okay.
“I don’t want to talk about Eton,” I say. “He has no place here.”
“I don’t want to talk about that jackass either. But I don’t think you’re talking about him. I think you’re telling me how you felt because of him. And that matters to me. How else am I going to learn what makes you happy?”
My lips twitch. “That’s pretty deep.”
“I’m a middle child. I’ve had a lot of time to think.”
“It’s also pretty charming, Mr. Carmichael,” I say, turning around and catching him grinning. “You’re playing this husband role well.”
“Mrs. Carmichael, we’re just getting started.”
“Sounds like there’s a promise there.”
“I took vows to keep you happy,” he says, laughing when I do. “I promised in front of our friends and family. I don’t take that lightly.”
Humming, I start toward the kitchen. “I wonder what I swore in my vows. I bet I wrote my own.”
We enter a large, bright room filled with state-of-the-art kitchen equipment. Stainless steel appliances and a built-in refrigerator make the space stunning.
“I love this, but who cooks on vacation?” I ask, laughing. “Who books a honeymoon suite and thinks, ‘Man, I’m going to stay in that kitchen the whole time’?”
He opens the fridge and takes out two Cokes. “My mother. I’ve seen her do it. It drives my dad nuts.” He finds two glasses and fills them with ice. “Dad says she can’t sit still. They’re always bickering about it.”