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“Now go and clean yourself up. No one wants to smell sex at the lunch table.”
Groaning at him, I run down the hallway, starting to panic that I need to get upstairs before anyone arrives.
“You are such a jerk!” I yell as I run from him.
And all I can hear from behind me is him laughing a deep chuckle because he knows I’m right. It’s what makes him who he is.
Not wasting any time, I feel more put together and calmer as I walk back down the stairs when I hear the first car approach. Looking out the front window before I head back to the kitchen, I see it’s Wallace delivering Elouise around to the back entrance where Nicholas likes to enter the house.
Oh my God, she’s here!
My steps get quicker, trying to get to her before Nicholas does. She will be so intimidated, and I know exactly how that felt the first time I drove up the long driveway.
I find Nicholas with a smug grin while he is wiping off the counter he just made me explode on.
“Don’t say a word,” I say as I’m passing him.
“Wouldn’t dream of it. Your flushed cheeks say it all.”
Bastard! Now that’s all I’ll be thinking of when the guys arrive, and he knows it.
Wallace opens the car door and smiles at me. “Miss Elouise, delivered all safe and sound for you.” He is like a cuddly old grandpa, and I can understand why Nicholas wanted him to stay with him after his grandfather passed away. He is like a link to a past that he missed out on.
Just like I expected, Elouise steps from the car looking totally shellshocked. We have only ever seen places like this on television or in movies. We know they exist in England but never thought we would see one in person. It’s like being given a golden ticket to the Willy Wonka factory for kids that grew up where we did.
“Thank you, Wallace,” I say, seeing him smiling at her too. He understands. He might work for the Darby family, but it doesn’t mean he lives like they do. I make a mental note to get to know more about him once things settle down. If that ever happens.
Taking the few extra steps to where she is still standing next to the car, I pull her forward into the biggest hug I have ever given her. Wallace, now able to close the door, disappears to move the car out of the way before everyone else arrives.
“Lou.”
Her arms grasp on to me like her life depends on it. “Tori. What. The. Actual. Fuck.” And I can’t help but giggle at her.
Pulling back, I let her go from my arms. “I know, right? It’s insane, but so, so, beautiful. I’m living in a fairy tale. Well, I hope it’s that and not going to turn into a nightmare.”
I link my arm in hers and turn toward the house. I want to get her inside and meet Nicholas before everyone else descends on us and chaos breaks out. But as I’m turning, he comes out the door and I hear her whisper under her breath.
“Fuck me dead.”
“Oh, he does.” I giggle at her words.
“I get it now. His suit last time, yum, but this? I fucking get it.” I’m guessing she is referring to his bone-colored shorts hanging low on his hips and the dark charcoal-gray polo collared t-shirt that is molded to his biceps and chest. But for me, it’s the bare feet that complete the ensemble. He thinks he is still in Australia where shoes are apparently optional.
His hair is getting longer by the day on top and giving him more of an unkept curly look that is so hot. He told me his hair was blonder when he was in Australia when he saw more sunlight, but I love it just the way it is. Blond highlights in a light brown mop of hair. The stubble on his face is darker than the hair on his head, but I don’t care about the color of it. The feel of it on my thighs is what makes it attractive.
You couldn’t really see much of the variations when we first met because he kept his hair short and styled for work. Groomed and tidy, but since we have been here this week, he hasn’t once put any product in it, and I love the natural man he is when he lets himself go.
I try to get her feet moving so we don’t look like two idiots frozen looking at the hot man. I mean, Nicholas knows I have no class, but I don’t want to prove him right.
“Elouise, it’s lovely to meet you properly this time and not while I’m carrying a drunk woman into your house at some stupid time of night.”
“Hey, in my defense, you insisted on taking me home!”
He leans down and kisses her on the cheek like he knows how important she is to me, so she is important to him too. “Welcome to my home,” he says, sweeping his arm around at the surroundings. “Please come inside and I’ll get you a drink. I’m sure you could use one after that drive.”
“Right, this needs to stop now,” I say, snapping my fingers in front of Lou to wake her out of the hypnotized state she’s in since he kissed her. “He can be an asshole too, don’t let him fool you. Besides, he’s mine, so you need to find your own Neanderthal.”
That works to bring her back to reality. She swings around to push me with her hand. “Tori, stop it. Don’t be a bitch. As if I would go after your man.”
