Page 128 of Over the Limit

“I know it’s late to the game and I’m lame for thinking of this so close to the gala, but I know you’ve been stressing over your dress and the tailor who is behind fitting it and . . . I should have had the forethought to think of this sooner. So I called a designer I’ve worked with in the past and she sent me over a rack of dresses in your size.”

I stare at him and then move toward the dresses, running my hands over every single one of them. Dresses that are clearly designer and way out of my budget. “Thank you for your thoughtfulness but—”

“But you’re not turning me down.” He chuckles. “The bill has already been picked up so don’t use that as an excuse.” He leans in and brushes his lips over mine. “You’re going to look incredible in all of them. Picking which one will be the hard part.”

My hands go to his cheeks and hold him there. “You’re the sweetest. I don’t deserve you.”

“Nah, it’s me who doesn’t deserve you.” Then he points to the table. “And then there’s those to choose from.”

I take in the three clear cases of Christian Louboutin shoes with their gorgeous red soles and icepick heels. “Lach. I can’t . . .” But my fingers itch to touch their gorgeousness.

He smirks. “Just think of them as a down payment.”

“Them?”

“Yes, I took the pleasure of buying several different styles for you.”

“Wait. A down payment?” I ask as I struggle with what to focus on—the dresses or the shoes.

“Mm-hmm.”

“On what?” I ask.

He steps up behind me and wraps his hands around my waist and pulls me back against him. I can already feel his cock, hard and ready. My body reacts viscerally to the feeling. “On you being naked, sitting on my face, wearing only those.”

“Oh.” My voice cracks and body fires to attention. “In that case.” I laugh as he spins me around, his hips pressing me against the table as his lips capture mine.

“That’s what I thought,” he says. And then when he kisses me again and I twist my fingers in the hair at the nape of his neck, his good deeds aren’t forgotten . . . they’re just overshadowed momentarily by the intoxication of his kiss. “Hey, Blair, I think you should try the shoes on. Now. The dresses can wait.”

“Thought you’d never ask.”

CHAPTER FIFTY

Blair

The amphitheater is a mass of who’s who from Hollywood, from the racing world, and from the elite of the elite. For thirty-five thousand dollars a plate, the price tag to attend isn’t for the faint of heart.

I look up from behind my mask and across the room and meet Lachlan’s eyes. He hasn’t been very far from me all night. Close enough to give me a look here and there. Near enough to walk behind me and brush a hand on my lower back. Always present with a quick text to tell me how beautiful I look.

I went with the red dress. It’s floor-length with embellishments on the bodice, and I feel like a freaking queen in it. It hugs my curves but gives enough room to move freely without feeling confined. I’m a bigger girl and finding a dress I feel sexy and confident in that I don’t worry all night what people look at me and see is an incredible feeling.

Especially on a night like tonight.

Only a few more hours and the stress will be gone. And my own personal victory celebration that I pulled this off will most definitely be on.

My head feels like it’s on a constant swivel as I take in the crowd, the television crews, and Tori Michelle killing it on the stage.

“Blair?”

I turn to find Paolo. He’s standing there in a tuxedo, his masquerade mask in his hand, and a drink that he’s been nursing all night to appear to be drinking but not because he’s technically still working.

I, on the other hand, haven’t had a drink all night because I need to be in control of all of my faculties.

That, and Lachlan set out a very old, ridiculously expensive bottle of wine for us to celebrate back at the hotel room later.

I will be staying with him tonight. There is nothing that would prevent that.

It feels like everything is falling perfectly into place for us. His contract with Gravitas that will be signed soon. This gala—fingers crossed—going off without a hitch. The impending freedom for us to just be as a couple, whether that being is us out in public or tucked away at his condo. It doesn’t matter. What matters is we don’t have to care anymore.