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ALICIA

Silence reigned supreme outside of the rhythmic clicking of our two keyboards, but the air between Holden and me was so charged, it felt like we were about to trigger a thunderstorm. After we’d eaten, we’d crammed ourselves onto the couch together. While it was well past midnight now, we were still at our computers, both of us still trying to get some work done.

I stared at my screen, doing my best to complete a massive winter book order for the children’s department, but it genuinely felt like the air was vibrating with an invisible current of tension. Beside me, Holden was furiously typing away at the paper he had to finish, but every so often, he’d shift, or sigh, or groan, and it made me suspect he was feeling whatever this was as acutely as me.

Every time one of us got up to stretch or grab a glass of water, we ended up closer together once we sat back down. A few minutes ago, I’d shifted my laptop on my knees and the movement had caused Holden’s thigh to press up firmly against mine through the fabric of his sweatpants.

The heat of his leg radiated straight through my pajamas, making my skin tingle at the contact, but I didn’t move and neither did he. It felt like we were both hellbent on torturing ourselves, or maybe he was simply as unwilling as I was to shatter the moment because it also felt too damn good to finally get this close.

At this point, I wasn’t working as much as just staring blindly at my spreadsheet, trying to remember the last time I’d had sex. Honestly, I had no idea why it suddenly seemed so important to figure that out, but the harder I tried to dismiss the thought, the more space it seemed to dominate in my mind.

All I knew was that it had been so long, it felt like the event belonged to a different lifetime. Moving my fingers across the keyboard to at least pretend I was still focused on what I was supposed to be doing, I caught sight of the golden band around my ring finger and sighed.

Not only did I want my husband badly, but I was also extremely aware of the fact that eventually we were actually going to have to do it. We still hadn’t discussed that part of the contract. The heir. But basic biology dictated there was really only one way to achieve that particular goal. Easily, at least.

But apparently, we were taking things slowly. Not that we’d discussed that yet either. Or the kiss.

God, we really have to start talking to each other, don’t we? This is getting a little ridiculous.

Suddenly, the rapid clicking of Holden’s keyboard stopped and he snapped his laptop shut with a definitive click. I jumped slightly at the abruptness of the movement but quickly turned to look at him. “Are you okay?”

My voice got tangled in my throat after so many hours of not using it, the question coming out as a breathless, pathetic little squeak. In my defense, I’d spent most of the day until Nancy’s visit obsessing about him penning me against the wall last night.

Eventually, I’d decided to cook the meal and bring some domestic peace to our home, knowing that I was going to drive myself nuts otherwise, but Nancy had ruined that plan. Now here I was, watching him drag his hands over his face before setting the laptop down on the coffee table.

While I thought it was incredibly cute and honorable that a grumpy, rich guy like him was so intent on winning a silly neighborhood contest for me, I suddenly felt bad about how many hours he’d spent in that warehouse when he should’ve been working on his paper.

Over the past few days, I’d also often seen him doing so many other things around the house that I’d always imagined my future, loving husband would do one day. It was pretty terrifying that everything I’d ever wanted in a real partner was coming to fruition, but in the shape of Holden Thayer.

A guy who was not only grumpy as hell but who should’ve been working on his paper then, too. I shouldn’t have been watching him so closely that I’d even noticed what he was up to. Neither of us should’ve been kissing the other like we were about to devour each other whole either. Especially when we hadn’t even spoken about the elephant in the room, the fact that we had to produce a child.

What a mess. Maybe he’s mad at me. Maybe—Wait. Why is he staring at my lips?

Holden hadn’t answered my question, but he was openly staring at my mouth, those gray-blue eyes darker than I’d ever seen them. He suddenly reached for me, one large hand wrapping around the back of my neck and drawing me closer. I went willingly, melting into him when his fingers sank into my hair as he slid across the cushions. Then he kissed me and my brain misfired.

A sharp gasp tore out of me right before our lips collided and we pulled apart for a fraction of a heartbeat, but then we crashed back together, and this time, it was a lot. Instead of just being an exploration, it felt more like the sudden breaking of a dam.

Holden’s mouth moved against mine, his tongue tracing my lower lip before he stroked it into my mouth, sending another shiver of desire racing down my spine. Reaching down with his free hand, he lifted the laptop from my knees and moved it to the coffee table without looking, leaning into me until he was pressing me down into the couch cushions.

Just about intoxicated by the weight of him on top of me, I pushed my fingers into his dark blond hair, pulling him closer instead of asking any of the questions racing through my mind. Like what the hell happened to taking it slow?

“Do you know if Tasha’s coming back?” he murmured breathlessly between kisses. “I’d rather not be interrupted for this.”

For a second, I couldn’t grasp a single thought in my head, but then the answer suddenly popped up like a jack-in-the-box. “She’s pulling an all-nighter at the library.”

He grinned against my lips. “Great, because I’d also really rather not move right now. I don’t think I’d even survive trying to get up the stairs.”

My cheeks flushed, but when he crawled fully between my legs, I opened my eyes to find that handsome face hovering a mere inch above mine. I brought my gaze up to his, seeing the burning heat in it, but instead of acknowledging the heat pooling between my legs, I frowned.

“I’m confused,” I finally whispered. “I thought you didn’t want to mess things up by falling into bed together.”

“We’re on a couch,” he said, deadpan, then pressed a kiss to my forehead and groaned. “Okay, I still don’t want to mess things up, but tell me you’ve actually gotten any work done tonight.”

Since I couldn’t tell him that, I kept my mouth shut and a slight smirk appeared at the very corners of his lips. “Exactly. I did my best and my paper is almost there, but I couldn’t take it anymore. You were squirming, Alicia.”

Heat flared across my cheeks, probably turning my face the color of an over-ripe tomato. “I was?”

Strangely, he didn’t smirk again, simply lowering his hips between mine until I could feel the hard length of him pressing into me through the layers of fabric between us. I almost moaned, but I caught my lower lip between my teeth to suppress the sound.