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The first thing I noticed when I woke was the warmth of Reese’s arms around me. The second was the pillow hitting my face.
“What the fuck?” I yelped, my mind trying to catch up after being yanked from sleep.
“You fucking idiots,” Katie yelled, punctuating each word with another hit of the pillow. “Figure your shit out without ruining my damn auction.”
Reese brought one arm up to cover his face as the other tried to grab the pillow from her. “It’s my fault, don’t blame him.”
“I blame you both,” she snapped, finally tossing the pillow aside as she sank onto the floor. She wore the same dress she had last night, and there were bags under her eyes.
Guilt stabbed at me. I had completely forgotten about the auction and everything else once Reese pulled me away.
“I’m sorry,” I said. “I’m really sorry.”
She sighed and rubbed at her face. “You better be. And I expect a bonus.”
“Done,” Reese agreed quickly.
After a moment she looked up at us with her arms crossed. “Are you two good now?” We looked at each other and nodded. “Then you better make it up to me. And I need a week off, fully paid.”
“Absolutely.”
Katie glared at him. “You aren’t going to ask why?”
He hesitated. “…because you work so hard you deserve it?”
“Wrong.” She stuck out her finger and pointed it right at me. “Since someone flaked out on the Byrnes, I ended up doing damage control by agreeing to ‘date’ them for a week to make up for it. For free!”
“Oh shit.” I chewed at my lip. “It really is my fault; I can go talk to them and apologize -”
She didn’t let me finish. “You should apologize, but not now.” She pinched the bridge of her nose. “It’s fine, really. I’m just tired.” Katie took a deep breath and looked back up at us, some of her fire faded. “Tell me you love me and couldn’t run this place without me.”
“I love you and couldn’t run this place without you,” we both said in unison.
A sweet twinkle of a laugh was the signal that we had been forgiven. She pushed herself up from the floor and stretched her arms high over her head. “I just needed to be mad for a second.” She trailed her eyes over the crumpled-up sheets and clothes strewn around the bed. “It’s going to take all day to clean up the club, but I guess asking you two to come help is a lost cause.”
Reese leaned against my bare shoulder, his stubble prickly against my skin. “I’m not letting him leave this room till tomorrow.”
My mind and body were exhausted from the last 24 hours, but that one sentence was enough to reignite the lingering tendrils of desire.
Katie shook her head. “Fine, fine, the third wheel is leaving. Just remember you both owe me.” She blew us a kiss before turning on her heels and leaving us to ourselves.
I emptied my lungs and sank against the bed. “I feel terrible.”
Reese nuzzled against my shoulder, draping his arm over my chest. It was so easy to relax into him; his touch steadied me in a way I didn’t understand. “We’ll make it up to her,” he promised.
“I’ll need to talk to the Byrnes.”
His muscles tensed beneath his skin, his arm tightening around me. “Is it…okay?”
“Is what?”
It took him a few seconds to answer. “Is it okay to not take them up on their offer?”
I rested my hand on the back of his, petting him softly. “Yes. If it means I can stay with you, I’ll figure something else out.”
Sometimes Reese could be so easy to read. There was no need for him to be jealous of the Byrnes. He was the one I wanted, the only one. Money was still an issue, but in the soft morning light, it didn’t feel so daunting.
“I’d like for you to rely on me more,” he said, his voice low. I didn’t need to see his face to know what expression he was making. He was giving me vulnerability, and he deserved the same.
