Page 60 of Unstable

“Everything okay?”

Irina’s soft voice pulled him from his reverie, and he rolled his head to the side to look at her. “Yep. We go back in two days.”

“Oh.”

Yeah. He felt the same way. This time when she pulled away, he let her go. She pushed herself to a sitting position, perched on the edge of the couch, and sent a worried look his way. “So… what does that mean?”

“I’ll stay on at your place until everything’s settled.”

Her tongue darted out and swiped nervously over her lower lip, and she let out a shaky breath. “Then what will you do? I mean… after?”

“My job, or us?”

She flicked her eyes his way, then dropped them back to her hands. “Us, I guess.”

He reached out and turned her face toward his. “We figure it out day by day.”

Her gaze slid away again, and he pulled her into his lap. “Hey.” He waited for her to meet his stare. “That’s not me blowing you off. This is going to be a huge adjustment for both of us, so we’ll just have to figure it out as we go. You’ll start touring again in a couple of months, and I probably won’t be able to travel with you most of the time.”

“You would come?”

Those big blue eyes drilled into him, and a vise tightened around his chest. He was quickly beginning to realize that he would do just about anything for this woman. “If I can get away from work for a bit, sure.”

“But… will Knox mind?”

He didn’t honestly care what Knox thought. “I’d prefer to stay out of the spotlight, but we can deal with one issue at a time.”

She bit her lip. “I don’t think he likes me very much.”

“Too bad.” He wasn’t about to let go of her, not unless she chose to walk away. Maybe not even then. He wasn’t one to give up easily; he’d rather stay and fight it out than throw in the towel when things got tough. “I didn’t say it was gonna be easy.”

“I know.” Her shoulders dropped. “I just don’t want to put you in an awkward position.”

“Don’t you worry about me. One thing at a time,” he reminded her. “Let’s get home first, get settled, and figure out a routine from there.”

“But—”

Technically, in the eyes of God and the law, they were married. Unless something crazy happened, he had absolutely zero intention of annulling the marriage. She was his, and he was going to fight for her. He threw all his cards on the table. “I’m all in if you are.”

Her giant blue eyes flared wide at his words. “Okay.”

He stared at her, assessing her response. “Before you agree to anything, just know that I’m not letting you go. So, tell me—are you in?”

“Yes,” she breathed. A smile broke over her face as she wound her arms around his neck. “I’m so in.”

“Good.” He stood, pulling her to his chest. Everything else could wait, but right now, he needed his woman in his arms—right where she belonged.

CHAPTER

TWENTY-NINE

Irina woke to find Roman gone. The sounds of bustling from the direction of the main room reached her ears, and a smile lifted her lips. Rolling from the bed, she changed into shorts and a tank top, then headed down the hall to the bathroom. Once she was done, she padded toward the kitchen to find him. She stopped at the end of the short hallway, stunned. Beach paraphernalia littered the floor of the living room, and Roman threw her a grin.

“What’s this?” Her gaze flicked over the colorful umbrella, beach chairs, and towels.

“It’s our last day here,” he replied with a nonchalant shrug. “I thought we could spend it at the beach.”

“Really?” It sounded almost too good to be true.