Page 117 of Cocky Brutal Sinner

“Yeah.” He laughs and shoves a hand through his hair. “I had an interior designer come in. I realized that I spent a lot of time designing the kitchen, and very little time putting thought into anything else.”

I walk toward the couch, dragging my fingers along the soft fabric. The room is massive, but Beau’s decorator managed to make it feel cozy. The open concept apartment means I can see into the kitchen, with its ivory cabinets and marble countertops. The vision of reading a book on the couch while looking up to watch Beau cooking fills my head.

It’s a nice vision.

“Do you like it?” he asks.

“Ninety percent of it, I love. But come on, what’s with all the empty bookshelves? You have like three cookbooks and nothing else.”

“You know I’m more of an audiobook guy. Besides, I didn’t really get them for me.”

I spin on him and find him looking slightly sheepish. “No. No, you didn’t. Tell me you didn’t just Beauty and the Beast me.”

“What?”

I poke him in the chest. “You totally Beauty and the Beast-ed me. You got me a library!”

“You’re giving me way too much credit here, Brin. I didn’t buy you a bunch of books or anything, just empty shelves you could put yours in if you want.”

“Because you want me to move in.” I can’t stop the grin tugging at my mouth. “Because you love me. Because you want me and my ten thousand romance paperbacks all to yourself.”

He grabs my hips and pulls them against him. “Can you blame me? I don’t want to push you if you don’t want it, though. There’s no rush.”

I laugh. “We’ve been together for five years, Beau. I don’t think it’s possible to rush anything at this point.”

“Yes, but I planned on enjoying all the little firsts we didn’t get to do the first time around. The first date, first meeting of the family, first time spending the night…”

“We already did everything out of order. Might as well move in together, then have our first date.” I run my fingers up his biceps.

Beau raises his head before I can kiss him. “Do you mean it?”

All jest is gone from his eyes. They watch mine with an intensity that makes my belly flip. “You really want to move in?”

I cock my head at him. “Of course, I do.”

His face splits into a rare lopsided Beau smile that he tries to cover with a hand brushed over his mouth and a throat clear.

“Now, that’s settled,” he says, and a glint of mischief shines in his eyes as he takes my hand and leads me down the hallway to his bedroom.

When he opens the door, I’m left with no doubt that this room was also designed for me. The walls are painted a dreamy blue, and the bed is draped with complementary deep blue blankets and pillows. More empty bookshelves stand next to a set of ivory armchairs, perfect for curling up and reading on. One of Maura’s paintings hangs on the wall.

“I love it,” I breathe.

He comes behind me, wrapping his arms around my waist. “100 percent?”

“One hundred and one, even.”

“Let me show you my favorite part of the room.” He shifts me so we’re looking at our reflections in a tall, wide mirror. “Do you like the mirror, Brinley?”

His large hands drag over my stomach and my hips, tracing a line under my breasts. I inhale sharply as goosebumps rise on my skin. God, we look good. He should wear a suit jacket more often. My gaze snags on where the fabric is stretched taut over his biceps.

“Yes,” I murmur. “It’s very nice.”

Beau slowly unzips my red dress, and I watch him work in the mirror as he reveals inch after inch of my skin. He pulls it off my shoulders and pushes it down my legs to the floor. Next, he kneels and lifts my left foot onto his thigh to undo the straps of one short heel, then the other. His fingertips skate gently up my calves and thighs as he stands.

“You’re so beautiful, Brinley baby.” He runs his fingertips up my arms until I shiver. His lips brush my collar and shoulder as he moves to stand behind me. “I’m obsessed with your body. Did you know that every time your shirt rides up a little when you reach up for something, it drives me fucking insane?”

“No.”