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I moan and throw my arm over my face. I hate lying to my sister. “I don’t know. Maybe. We’re having a good time.” There was at least a little bit of truth in that statement.
“I like what you were wearing. You look hot in the pictures.Reallyfucking hot.”
“Iamhot.” She laughs. “Speaking of billionaire assholes, I have to be on Carter’s dad’s fucking yacht in like an hour. I need to get ready.”
“Carter’s dad’s an asshole?”
“A huge asshole. Carter hates him but has to maintain the status quo for now.” I sigh. “What’s the weather?” Please let it be cold out.
“It’s actually unseasonably warm today.”
“Shit. I guess I’ll be expected to be in a bathing suit.”
“Reagan, your body bounced back perfectly. Why are you worried? Look at these pictures. You don’t even look like you’ve had a baby, let alone babies.”
“I’m not worried about that. Carter’s father is a creep. He made some comment about looking forward to seeing me in a bathing suit.”
Harley scrunches her nose. “Ew. That’s gross.”
“Yes, it is. I hope I have a one-piece suit somewhere in my drawers. And a long skirt. Maybe I should dig out some of the maternity dresses.”
She laughs.
* * *
Per our plans,Carter picks me up an hour later. He looks at my outfit and laughs. “You know, even if you hide your body, you still exude sex appeal. Sorry, but that’s not an opinion. That’s a fact.”
I lay my head back on the headrest. “Ugh, Carter. I don’t think I can deal with your father creeping on me today. It makes my skin crawl.”
I see him go to squeeze my leg, but he stops himself and pulls his hand back.
I’ve officially terrified him away from all intimacy. Despite ample opportunity, he didn’t touch my body without invitation once the entire night last night or the other night when we went out. I caught him stopping himself multiple times. He’d instinctually start to reach for me, but he never once touched me. I initiated all the hand-holding, hugs, and intimate dancing.
I appreciate that he heard me with regard to respecting my boundaries, but now I’m sort of regretting it. I find myself desperately wanting his hands on my body. Those damn big, enticing hands.
There’s no denying that he’s sexy as hell. The more time I spend with him, the more I like him.
He looks at me. “I’ll protect you. Don’t worry. Just remember, don’t ever be alone with him. Make sure you’re with me or my mother the entire time.”
I nod. “Okay. Please just keep him away from me.”
“I will. Also, this will be the last time we see them before our announced engagement. So, we kind of need to appear in love. I’m sorry. I know you don’t like me touching you, and I won’t. Just maybe make an effort to be a little affectionate.”
I grab his hand. “It’s fine, Carter. You can touch me like a normal boyfriend in public. I won’t bite your head off. I just thought you were unnecessarily pushing the envelope in the hot tub. But I won’t go crazy over a little bit of appropriate affection. Okay?”
He nods. “Okay. If you’re uncomfortable at all, just give me a sign.”
I smile. “Like a secret code word?”
He laughs. “Sure. We can come up with a secret code word.”
“Hmm. Let’s find a good one.” I think for a moment. “How about boomsham?”
He lets out a loud laugh. “You do know what that means, right?”
“Of course, I do, but most people don’t. It will be funny.”
“Considering the context in which we’re using it, I think we should come up with something else.”
