Page 69 of To Love the Stars too Fondly

The clock said 10:03, far past my usual wake-up time, but it hadn’t exactly been a relaxing day and night.

Alex sat on the bed beside me, already dressed to the nines in a silky button-down. “How are you? Do you need more sleep?”

I shook my head, then rubbed the sleep from my eyes, uncaring of looking cute. If Alex wanted to be my girlfriend, this was the vision she could expect to wake up to. “What time do we need to check out?”

She frowned. “Do you want to leave?”

“Well, no. But I assumed we were just staying the night.”

“We’re here, aren’t we? Might as well make the most of it.”

My smile came unbidden. “If you insist.”

“Excellent. The concierge brought clothes for you. Take your time, but I might have booked us a surprise at 11:30, so don’t take all your time. You get me?”

I nodded, my cheeks stretched to the max from my grin.

I stole a peek out the window, curtains drawn to reveal the majestic high desert views. Clear skies today, plus the chance to explore. It didn’t get better than that.

The concierge had provided a casual pink dress, the fit suspiciously accurate. “Alex!” I called from the bathroom. “You didn’t take my measurements while I was sleeping, did you?”

She peeked her head through the open doorway. “No?”

I made a point of sliding my hands down my torso, noting her intrigue. “Then how is this so cute?”

“You underestimate how much these people get paid to know things without asking any questions.”

I would never understand rich folks.

Or, well, perhaps I would, but standing at Alex’s side as she’d swooped in and seamlessly demanded the world was so foreign and…kinda hot.

I did my hair as well as I could. No make-up, but that was all right. When I stepped out, Alex immediately pulled me into her side and kissed me soundly, leaving me gasping for breath. “You look beautiful, Princess.”

“You don’t look so bad yourself.”

Her fuckboy grin no longer pissed me off. Just left me weak and wanting. When I began pawing at her buttons, giggling as I kissed her neck, she groaned in obvious defeat. “You know we have to be somewhere.”

I glanced at the clock. 10:47. “What sort of somewhere?” I asked, sighing when her hands snaked beneath my dress and groped my ass.

“Somewhere you’ll be sad to miss if we don’t get there in time.” But she stole my lips again, and it was much too late to stop.

At 11:05, we raced out of our room as Alex called for a cab on her phone. By the time we got to the resort entrance, it was already waiting, primed for passengers. The cab driver held open our door. “Good morning, Ms. Winthrop. And lovely guest.”

“Terra Stern,” Alex corrected.

“Ms. Stern,” the man said with an apologetic nod.

I whispered as the driver circled around the car to his seat, my grin conveying my tease. “Guess I should get used to being called ‘guest’.”

But to my surprise, her gaze was soft. “Your name will be synonymous with mine soon enough.”

My blush burned bright and hot.

As we rode, my gaze remained fixed out the window, the grand sights of Sedona unveiling themselves. Busy tourist shops caught my eye, as did the incredible scenery, and the old trees and mountains far beyond. But we drove past the main street to what appeared at first glance to be a small airport.

“Am I about to be kidnapped?” I teased, giddy from joy and sex as I wrapped my arm around hers. “Whisked away from my home and subjugated to your will?”

“Your thinly-veiled kink is showing.”