Page 87 of Puppy Christmas

Her lips twitched. “That’s not the point.”

“I’ll even give you a pair of my pajamas to wear so you can see for yourself why I never take them off. One night with this well-worn flannel between your legs, and you’ll never go back to lace and satin. We’ll have to trade. I don’t mind. I rather liked those white ones you wore the other night. I think I could get used to them with a little time and practice, don’t you?”

She outright laughed that time. “None of this is helping your case.”

“I know, but it’s the only way I seem to get anything out of you. You refuse to believe in my sincerity. You always have.” Her hand was still clasped in his, so he brought it to his lips. Under any other circumstances, he’d have felt ridiculous—this gallant gesture more suited to the suave gentleman in the tuxedo than a man standing barefoot in his five-by-five pink-tiled bathroom—but Lila had a way of making even the most commonplace activity seem like an opportunity in seduction. “I’d really like for you to stay the night tonight, Lila Vasquez. Not because I want tof-u-c-kyou, even though I do, but because having you here seems to make even my biggest problems seem like nothing. You’re capable and warm and loving, and I don’t know how you’ve gone through three decades of life and not been snatched up by every single man who’s crossed your path.”

Lila’s lips fell open. She stood and stared at him, not moving—not even to blink. Her usual look of incredulity was there, but so was something else, something distant. Somethingnew.

“Emily feels that way, Jeeves feels that way, and you know I sure ash-e-l-lfeel that way.” Ford finally dropped her hand, which fell like a deadweight to her side. “Will you please stay?”

That new, distant look didn’t go entirely away, but Lila softened enough to nod. “Of course I will. Until the six weeks of training are up, being on call is part of the job.”

It wasn’t nearly the answer he’d been hoping for after the declaration he’d made, but it was enough. It had to be.

Until the six weeks of training was up, it was literally all he had.