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Nope. Just us.
————
My jaw nearly hit the floor like one of the animated characters in Jamey’s cartoons when Sophie stepped through my door. I understood now why she wanted to know if Jamey was coming.
The tight, black dress she wore hugged every nook and cranny of her body. The neckline plunged almost down to her navel, thin straps held it up on her shoulders, and the back showed off so much of her skin that I thought I might actually not make it through the evening. I wasn’t sure I’d be able to think about literally anything else other than what lay beneath the fabric.
“Don’t stare at me like that,” she grumbled, turning toward the nearest reflective surface as she pushed her stud earrings through the holes in her lobes. “You’ve seen me naked. Surely this must be nothing for you.”
“That dress might just be on par with you, bare, underneath me.”
She mumbled something under her breath, the little strands of hair hanging from her high bun rustling as she turned toward me. “Well, I figured soon enough I won’t really be able to wear something like this for a while, so I might as well tonight.”
“I’m not complaining.”
“I know you’re not.”
“But for the record.” I said, taking a step toward her. I brushed a wavy strand of hair from her face, my fingers gently swiping against her skin. It felt far too electric for my own good. “I’ll still find you just as enticing when you’re in your second and third trimesters. You can absolutely still wear things like this.”
Her cheeks warmed beneath my touch, blush spreading out across her face. “I don’t know if I should take that as a compliment or just a guy being pervy.”
I chuckled as I dragged my fingers down along her jaw, lifting her chin so she’d meet my gaze. “Well, you’ll have plenty of time to decide in the car. We need to get going, though. We’re already late.”
“Late for what?”
“You’ll see.”
————
Sophie didn’t say one word to me the entire car ride.
Normally, her silence didn’t bother me. I knew her too well by now to take anything bad from it. But for the thirty-minute drive out to the docks, I’d found myself white-knuckling the steering wheel, thoughts racing from bad to worse to catastrophic. I was nervous about getting back on the yacht after so long, I’d been spending my time on my smaller boat instead. I was worried that Sophie might get angry at me, might not feel the same way I did, or would just full-on have a heart attack from my openness.
A quick glance at Sophie’s left hand as I pulled into the parking lot confirmed she hadn’t worn the ring tonight. I almost wished she had, but she had no reason to and I had to remind myself of that. I didn’t tell her she’d be impressing anyone, I didn’t tell her there’d be anyone to fool.
I only hoped that when we inevitably left the yacht, there’d be one on her finger.
The rain slowed a little as I shifted into park, and her head lifted from the passenger window of my Mercedes. “Are we here?” She asked, a little yawn drawing her mouth open.
“Yeah.” I leaned back between the seats, searching around on the floor for the umbrella I normally kept down there, but came up instead with an empty bag of crisps and Jamey’s tiny raincloud umbrella. “Fucks sake,” I breathed, groaning as I laid it out in my lap. “This isn’t going to plan.”
“It’s okay,” she said softly. “How far is it?”
“About a two-minute walk. But I don’t want you to get wet.”
“Jamey’s umbrella should be fine.” Her lips twitched upward as she looked at me, her eyes far too soft. “Don’t worry about it. Have you got anything to cover yourself with?”
I shook my head no, pushing the door open with my foot. “Nope. I don’t mind a little rain.” The droplets began their ruination of my decently styled hair as I rounded the car, the pebbled parking lot crunching beneath my feet. My trembling hand shook as I reached for her door handle, slipping against the slick outer shell of my car, and I leaned over the empty space the door left behind to shield her from the rain. “Come on, angel.”
She blinked up at me, Jamey’s umbrella clutched in her hand, as she untangled the velcro close on it. “What’s happening?” She chuckled as her heeled feet touched the rocks.
“We’re having dinner on my yacht.” I held out my hand, taking a step back as she unfurled the umbrella before grasping onto my arm for leverage.
“Are you taking me on a date, Hudson Brady?” She joked, elbowing me in the side as she found her footing.
“That’s exactly what I’m doing.”
“Wait, seriously?” Her eyes met mine, wide and full of a mixture of surprise and some hidden emotion.
