Page 43 of All In

Maybe I need to call Josh and thank him.

I know this marriage isn’t real, and there’s a time limit on it. I know Harlow doesn’t have feelings for me the way I do him.

But I also know that I wouldn’t know the taste of his lips without this, and I can’t even find it in me to regret that.

Chapter 14

Harlow

I’m pretty sure I just want to be kissing Grayson all the time. Despite telling me we could add more to our marriage, we haven’t taken it there. I thought I’d be more impatient. Well, alright, I am impatient, but there’s something really special about the soft, slow kisses that Grayson seems to be into.

I can’t think of anyone I’ve been with who has been like that with me. My normal operating speed is fast, fast, fast. Gray has always slowed me down. Not like he’s trying to control me or change me, but just in my soul. He slows my soul down.

Wild that I never even considered how amazing just lying together in bed and exchanging gentle kisses could be.

He kisses me like we have the rest of eternity to do it. Like he’s trying to memorize me and keep me inside him forever. Like he’s trying to make me forget everything in the world except for him. Never knew how much I’d appreciate that.

When I saw us kissing in that video, I thought for sure that anything between us physically would be burning want, and, I mean, yeah, it kinda is. But it’s mostly just… calm. Like he calms my brain, clearing it out until all that’s left is him.

I expected lust, and I got it in spades. What I didn’t expect was the slow unraveling, stomach flutters, and heart palpitations. I’m still deciding whether the last one is a good thing or not. Might need to get checked out at the doctor when I get home.

We only have three days left in Vegas, and I’m already dreading going home. Back to the real world, and work. Especially because work means I might see Josh. He’s still defending me on socials, which makes no sense to me. Maybe he just feels guilty.

I’d probably feel guilty too if I had left him at the altar. But even without the whole married to Gray thing… Once I got past my initial embarrassment at standing there like a fucking idiot, part of me was so fucking relieved and grateful, and I feel like that’s very telling.

The bathroom door creaks open, and I glance over to find a freshly showered Grayson. His towel is tied around his waist, his still-wet hair dripping onto his chest. “What do you want to do today?” he asks, running his fingers through his sopping hair, sending more droplets down his chest and toned stomach.

Is licking the water off his body an option?

He laughs. “Not today.”

“Huh?”

“Licking the water off my body? Not an option today.”

I dart my eyes to his face. “Fuck. I said that out loud?”

He walks across the room, then sits down on the bed beside me. “You sure did.” He stares at me, his big brown eyes dancing. “I was thinking we could go out tonight?”

“Out?” I echo.

“Yeah, maybe we can find something…” He pauses, then exhales slowly. “Something couple-y to do together.”

“Couple-y?”

“Yes, parrot.”

I wrinkle my nose. “Parrot?”

Grayson laughs. “Yes, you’re parroting everything I say.” I don’t quite know why, but the idea of going out to do something couple-y sounds… very married of us. “Do you want to do that?”

I find myself nodding. “Yeah, what are we gonna do?”

“I was doing some searching last night in bed, and there’s a nightclub right off The Strip. I was thinking we could get out and dance and drink some.”

My eyebrows shoot up. “You think drinking again is a good idea?”

“I mean…” Gray shrugs, his eyes sparkling. “It’s not like we can get more married or anything, so yeah.”