Page 94 of One Last Thing Before You Go

I want her to be my home base.

Trying not to dwell on what the future might bring, I tell her, “Well, I can tell you we will absolutely not be going anywhere where you’ll need this, Pretty Girl. But I wouldn’t mind you wearing it for me in the privacy of our own room.” I shoot her a lascivious grin and she bites her lower lip, trying not act like she isn’t thrilled about this getaway.

“I packed matching shoes,” she whispers, pulling a pair of silver stiletto sandals from her suitcase and showing them to me.

“Fuck,” I whisper, kneeling by her to take her face in my hands. “I want to see what they look like on my shoulders while I fuck you.”

“Should I try them on now?” she jokes.

I ignore her, kissing her so deeply and intensely I feel the need for her build almost instantly. When her hand brushes over my hardness, I groan in her mouth, the hunger nearly overpowering me. The taste of her lips on mine is like alchemy, and it’s not long before we’re naked and I’m over and in her on her living room floor.

“Are we there yet?” She whines, leaning her head on my shoulder.

Keeping my eyes on the winding roads, I tilt my head to press my lips to the top of her head. “Soon.”

I shift gears and feel her hand come above mine on the stick shift, squeezing it lightly before moving it over her thigh and lacing our fingers together.

I pull our joined hands to my lips and kiss the back of hers before setting them back on her leg. We drive the last twenty minutes in comfortable silence as the excitement at spending the next three days alone together builds in my stomach.

It’s only as near the B&B that a growing sense of unease begins to build within me. All I can think about is how much I like this woman, how much I care about her. In just a matter of weeks, she has become the brightest spot in my life in the darkest and murkiest time. The way I feel about her now is exciting and new and intense—but terrifying. We’re more than casual now, right? You don’t go away for the weekend with someone you’re just seeing casually. This means more to me. This has to mean more to her, too.

Right?

The sudden terror that we’re not on the same page grips my heart, rooting me in place. This long weekend was supposed to bring us closer together. It wasn’t just about business or even spending time alone, away from everything. But what if being a we is not what she wants? Not long-term, at least.

My heart races, thoughts of being on unequal ground causing a wave of anxiety to wash over me. But as always, she’s able to pull me back to the present.

“Thank you,” she breathes. “I think we really needed this.” I look down at her wide eyes, warmth spreading through me. We.

We.

We. We.

The word drums in my chest with every one of my heartbeats. We implies there’s an us. It must.

It must.

“It’s a business trip.”

“Yeah, but I’m sure you picked one far enough for us to be alone, didn’t you?” She smirks, seeing right through me.

I don’t reply because she already knows the answer to that. Instead, she leans over and kisses me on the cheek.

There’s no way we’re still doing the casual thing.

No way at all.

CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

LOTTIE

“This place looks…” I exhale, looking up at the gorgeous luxury B&B as Knox searches for parking in the lot.

“Perfect?” A wide grin spreads across his face, pride in his eyes.

“Expensive.” I frown. “A little too expensive to justify for a business trip.”

He laughs softly as he slips into a spot and shuts the engine off. “I know. Which is why I paid for it.”