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After dinner, Mom suggested she could give Hailey a tour of the house. Before Hailey could reply, I offered to show her the pantry first. We needed more brie and camembert cheese, which we were having for dessert with fruit, but it was also pretext to have a few minutes alone with my woman.
“Holy shit. I can’t believe there’s an actual section for cheese here,” Hailey exclaimed, glancing up at the red-brick arch. “Val needs this. I mean, I need it too, but my house is tiny.”
“Want to choose the cheese?”
“This is the most romantic thing I’ve ever heard.” She clasped her hands together, turning away from me to study the different types.
“Want to get out of here?” I asked.
“Your parents have great cheese, and they’re pretty awesome. What gave you that idea?”
“I promised you an evening out and about in the city. You wanted to go to that open-air cinema. We can still make it in time for the movie. Or we can do something else. I’m up for people-ing too if you want.”
She turned, staring at me. “Reid, do you think I need a reward for spending time with your family?”
“No.” Fuck, I did, didn’t I? “Maybe. I promised you excitement today. Not just time with me and my folks.”
“I happen to like your broody ass. And I don’t need the rest, Reid. I’m an adaptable person. And so are you. Sorry to break it to you, but you’re not this ogre you think you are. Nope.”
She doesn’t need all those other things. I matter more.
I kissed her with all I had, exploring her mouth with mine, her body with my hands. The more I lost myself in her, the easier it became to push away the fear that she might change her mind later down the road.
She was mine, and I planned to keep her. I’d never wanted anything more.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Hailey
I had never really been one to muse about the guys I was dating for no reason. That, however, was changing fast. Reid was taking care of it. I caught myself from time to time with a dopey smile, or simply staring into space for no reason. It didn’t help, of course, that Reid kept sending me texts throughout the day, sometimes for no reason at all, almost as if he couldn’t help thinking about me any more than I could help thinking about him. I caught the dopey expression on my face on the screen of my laptop, and tried to tone it down. I managed for all of two seconds before my phone pinged again.
Reid: What if I show up for lunch at your office and convince you to take the rest of the day off?
Hailey: You might get me fired.
Reid: Maybe that’s the master plan.
Hailey: Hmm... can’t see how that would be of any advantage to you. YOU WILL NOT GET LAID for a very long time if that happens.
Reid: I trust my seduction skills.
I wanted to write back something sassy but then saw that he was typing a message again and waited not so patiently, tapping my foot under the desk.
Reid: As to the other thing, there are many advantages. I’d convince you to work for me.
I chuckled and typed back. The nerve of him, really.
Hailey: How would that be an advantage?
Reid: For lunch, I could have you right here in my office, spread wide and begging for me. Just thinking about it makes me hard.
Holy shit! What was wrong with him? He couldn’t just get me hot and bothered like that. Well, it probably said more about me than about him that my body reacted this way, but still... I felt compelled to chastise him.
Hailey: My boss wouldn’t be happy if he knew how much time I spend texting.
Reid: See? One more reason to work for me. I’m a lenient boss. Wouldn’t mind if you sent me hot texts during business hours.
I groaned. Of course, he wouldn’t.
