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I shrugged. “I mean, it’s fine. I’m good at it, but I hate being cooped up in an office all day. And honestly, I kind of just thought, ‘That’s life, deal with it,’ until now. But listening to you finding a way around all that red tape? It’s got me doing some thinking.”
“Want to detail boats? It’s pretty fun.” He waggled his eyebrows.
“Don’t tempt me.” I laughed. “Then you’ll never be rid of me.”
“I could always use the help. You just show up anytime you want to detail some boats, and you’ve got yourself a job.”
“Good to know. Someday I may take you up on that. Hell, I’m not even sure what I’m going to do for work when I get back to Chicago.”
“You gonna quit?”
I let out a long sigh. “I don’t know. I really don’t think I can work with Jimmy again. I don’t want t0. I’ll just spend all day trying not to punch him in the face, and that doesn’t sound very productive.”
“Oh! Add that to your list of things to do before you die. Punch Jimmy in the face. And make sure you get a video. I wanna see that shit.”
I burst out laughing as I nodded my head. “Done. It’s added to the list. Jump in a pile of leaves and punch Jimmy in the face.”
“Nice. Can’t wait to see it.” Ethan smiled as he turned the car into a hotel parking lot. “We’re here. This is home sweet home for the next few days. Normally, I crash at my parents when I come to visit off-season, but the house is full of people for the wedding, and honestly, I think I’ll choke on perfume with all my aunts crammed in there. So, I got a suite on the water. Walking distance to the bars in Sister Bay, big suite, jacuzzi, the whole nine yards. Owner’s a client of mine, so he hooked me up.”
I swallowed. “And, uh, the bed? I kinda didn’t think about that until just now. Is it one bed or two?”
“Don’t worry, Ivy. You will have your own bed. It’s actually a suite, so there’s a pull-out couch. I’ll take the pull-out, and you can have the king-sized bed.”
“Oh, I can’t put you out like that. It’s your suite, and I’m just along for the ride. I’m not making you sleep on a creaky pull-out.”
“You saying you want to share the bed?” He waggled his eyebrow. “Eat a little pizza in it?”
I felt the heat rise to my cheeks. “You’re never gonna get sick of that, are you?”
“You comparing sex with me to eating pizza? Nope.”
I gave in and laughed. “Well, the answer is no, I don’t want to share the bed with you and eat pizza. I meant I’ll take the pull-out.”
Lies. There is nothing I want more than to climb in that bed with you and eat alllll the pizza.
“I’m just teasing. I know Rule Number One is in full effect. And seriously. You can have the bed. I’m used to crashing in all sorts of weird places, so I won’t mind a creaky pull-out couch.”
He put the car in park, and we got out and stretched simultaneously. Then we grabbed our bags and headed inside. The man working at the front desk greeted Ethan with a fist bump and a smile, and the housekeeper ran up and gave him a hug. It became clear very quickly that in Door County, everyone knew everyone.
“Thanks, Justin. We’ll see you later,” he said to the man at the front desk with the dark hair and the warm smile.
“Bye. Thanks.” I waved at him as I followed Ethan to our room. When we got there, my jaw dropped when we got inside. “Wow. This is really nice!” I ran over and jumped on the bed, then sunk into its pillowy softness. Right at the foot of the bed was a big jacuzzi tub and a fireplace, then across the room was the small sitting area and a mini kitchen.
“Not bad, huh?” Ethan set our bags down and then flopped beside me on the bed. “Oh, damn. This mattress is nice. Maybe I will fight you for the bed. Arm wrestle for it?”
I glanced at his biceps, and they made my mouth water, remembering what they’d felt like beneath my fingertips when I’d grabbed them during our kiss. “Uh, I’m pretty sure you’d win. Seriously. You deserve the bed. I’ll take the pull-out.”
“I’m just teasing. My mama raised me better than that. You’re in the bed. I’m on the pull-out. I insist.”
“Thanks, Ethan.” I rolled my head over to look at him, and when our eyes locked, it was all I could do not to reach over and stroke the soft stubble on his face and pull him in for a kiss.
No pizza!
I sat upright and moved to the big balcony window overlooking the water. The sun was just beginning to set, and it nearly took my breath away. “Oh, wow,” I breathed as I opened the door and stepped out onto the balcony. “This is incredible.”
“Oh, yeah,” Ethan said as he came out and leaned on the railing beside me. “The sunsets here are incredible. Paradise Isles too. Apparently, I have a thing for living in places with outstanding sunsets.”
“Yeah, I’ll say. I saw a few gorgeous sunsets in the Paradise Isles. They were incredible. And this looks like it’s going to be too.” The bright reds and oranges streaked across the sky, with the purples and blues swirling between them.
