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Millie looks up at him like the lovestruck little cherub she is and smiles. She takes one of our hands with each of hers.
We walk out of the playroom together in a chain—almost like a real family—with Tiffany following behind us.
“Am I still driving?” Nick asks when we get to the car.
“Whatever you want, bossman.” I wink at him.
After a very thorough wipe down of the seat with a couple things I keep in the car for cleaning, he watches me buckle Millie into her car seat and close the door. He wraps his arms around my waist.
“I’ll drive my girls anytime.”
With one more kiss on the forehead, I climb into the car, walking on Nick Brandt’s sunshine.
20
Special Favors (Nick)
I wake up next to Sleeping Beauty made flesh.
After our time in the car, I wasn’t willing to let Reese sleep alone. She came to my room after putting Millie down for the night, not long after I installed an extra security camera in the guest room for added peace of mind.
I’ve made my life a whole fucking lot more complicated, but with her small form huddled beside me, how could I regret it?
I lean over and kiss her cheek.
“Reese. You should probably wake up before Millie comes looking for us. She’s an early riser.”
She rubs the back of her hand over her eyes muzzily, blinks a few times, and opens her eyes.
“Nick?”
“Who else?” I whisper, bringing my lips to hers, tracing her bottom lip and then slipping inside.
I expected a crumb of relief from the reckless fling in the car yesterday.
Instead, it’s only made me hornier. There’s a permanent simmer in my blood every time we’re together.
She lets out a moan. I want to give her the proper bed experience I promised. Too bad we both have to get to work.
She touches my face. “So it wasn’t just a dream.”
I sit up and pull her into my arms.
“Hardly. Even if it were, it’d be my dream coming true.”
“Yesterday was something,” she muses.
“Something fuck-hot? I agree.” I clasp her hand and bring it to my face so I can kiss the inside of her palm. “You still deserve better than the back seat of a car. I’m going to deliver.”
She giggles. “It was perfect. We met in that car, after all.”
I snort. “You’re unlike any woman I’ve ever met.”
It’s true. Being with her is too easy.
We always find shit to talk about, and she enjoys whatever we do. Even when we were a mess of warring words, there was a certain pleasure in that, too.
“Is that a good thing?” Her face tenses.
“The best,” I say, kissing her hand again. It’s the reason I don’t care how difficult, how complicated, how risky this could be. “I could sit here all morning listing reasons why, but you’d better slip out before Millie wakes up.”
“You’re right,” she says softly, smiling fit to kill.
“Reese?”
“Yes?”
“At work today, we need to act normal. We’ll figure the rest out soon. We won’t be a secret forever. I promise.”
She grins, showing a dimple.
“I’m not worried.” Her voice drops an octave. “I know where you sleep, so if you play me, you will regret it.”
“You’re making it sound fun. I’ve fucked up enough in my life. This won’t be one more regret,” I promise her.
She bounces out of bed. “Bye, Quick Nick.”
I flop back against the pillows, combing my fingers through my messy hair.
Damn, this woman.
The more she calls me that, the more I want to show her just how slow I can take it, burning her alive.
The rest of my natural life might not be enough time to torment her with all the sweet fuckery in my head.
* * *
My office phone rings. Birdshit’s name flashes across the caller ID.
Knowing I’ll regret this, I answer anyway.
“Yeah?”
“You’re welcome, Nicholas,” he says in his oily, always too smug voice.
This guy is a piece of fucking work.
“That’s an interesting way to start a conversation. How have you fucked me over today?” I snarl, already balling my fist.
“I killed the latest hit piece.”
I stiffen, digging the phone into my ear. What the hell?
Since when does the most infamous hunter in Chicago media ever back down?
“About time,” I grind out, trying to play it cool. “Guess it sunk in that I’d own your little empire of dust within a week if you didn’t back off your bullshit?”
He laughs in this low, dark, booming chuckle that goes on too long. Maybe this asshole really did crawl out of a crypt somewhere.
“Believe me, my change of heart had nothing to do with your pathetic threats. My legal team would chew up your lawyers without leaving table scraps. If your overpaid attorney were worth his retainer, he’d tell you that up front.”
“He did. He just thought he could bury you so deep in paperwork, that you couldn’t afford to do anything else.”
