My foolproof night is drowning in bubbles. This was supposed to bemywin. My vision, my execution, my moment—the one where our bosses finally saw me as the MVP of this operation.
But Cole Hartwell happened.
He tore the roof off, stripped to his waist, and replaced my elegance with shirtless mayhem. And the absolutely infuriating, soul-crushing part of it all? These people worship him for it.
By tomorrow morning, no one will remember my logistics or strategy. My name won’t even be a footnote; it’ll be the lint at the bottom of his gear bag.
What’s a girl to do?
Change tactics.
I am officially retired from being the “Responsible One.” No more planning and predictability.
He wants reckless?Fine. I’ll be reckless.
Watch your ass, Hartwell. I’m stealing your playbook.
Chapter Six
Cole
Last night was her fault. It’s four-thirty in the morning, and here’s what I know:
Ivy Ellison, with her cozy sleepwear and her fruit-scented shampoo, is pure fucking temptation.
I woke up in the dead of night with one sheet. One goddamn thin sheet. The rest? Hostage to the force of nature—lush curves, no regard for personal space—sprawled across three-quarters of the bed. This woman has a chokehold on the blankets, like she’s daring me to comment.
I can’t even see her beneath the layers.
Just Pillow Everest.
At least she’s on her side.
Progress is progress.
Fifty-eight minutes until my alarm. Fifty-eight minutes to achieve the impossible: sleep.
Totally doable.
If my brain would cut the crap.
It started in the shower.
Well, technically, it started at the gala foam-pocalypse with that damn blue dress.
Because I’m a gentleman, I let her shower first. I stepped in next(rookie error)andbreathed in the delicious steam of her apple shampoo. It took less than a minute for my cock to demand immediate attention.
I handled it like a mature adult.
Quickly.
Quietly.
Under water hot enough to boil pasta.
“Get a fucking grip,” I’d hissed.
My brain saidwhateverand flashed images of Ivy’s tits in that dress. Her soft, full lips that I imagined were stretched around me and sucking with each wet, slippery thrust. Five goddamn seconds later, I exploded.
