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Alex tangled her fingers in my hair, and I met her eyes. “You love me?”
“I do,” I whispered.
Her smile was bright and breathtaking before she lowered her lips to mine.
“Where the hell did Ethan go?” I heard Cross’s voice ring outside the door, and we both laughed out of our kiss. “The car is waiting!” he yelled, which only made us laugh harder.
“We’re coming,” I called out, loud enough that he could hear me.
“Yeah, I’ll bet,” I heard him grumble.
We chuckled again before I gently lowered Alex to her feet, helping to clean her up as best I could before we got dressed.
“How’s my hair?” she asked, hurriedly running her fingers through it.
I playfully cringed at the slight mess it was in, and she gasped, a blush rising to her cheeks. “Omigod, they’re going to know.”
“Baby,” I said, smiling down at her. “They already know.”
She shook her head, her face falling into her hands. “I’m so bad for you,” she said.
I furrowed my brow, reaching to peel her hands from her face. “What do you mean?”
She shrugged. “Wanting you so bad I stole you away from your friends and fucked you in a public place.”
God, her mouth.
“I fucked you,” I countered. “And I don’t give a shit if they heard us.”
“Still, this is your poker weekend. I shouldn’t have taken you away. What if someone was watching? Like those paparazzi that follow you around sometimes? What if someone recorded you coming in here with me and then another video came out? I should’ve thought about that before—”
“Alexandra,” I said, cutting off her panicked ramble as I cradled her face. “You are the best thing that’s ever happened to me. No one was recording us, but even if they were, I don’t care. They would’ve seen me going into a room with the woman I love. You don’t have to worry about me like that.”
“But I do,” she argued. “I have to worry.” She chewed on her bottom lip. “I’ve been worrying about it. Worrying about how I might make you look in the media if we really do this.”
“I don’t care how I look in the media—”
“But you do,” she said. “You almost lost your team because of people recording you. What if I mess up and make you look bad?”
“That could never happen,” I said, and she looked like she was going to argue, so I shook my head, trailing my thumb over her bottom lip. “You love me?”
“Yes,” she whispered.
“And I love you.”
Her eyes glittered with unshed tears. “Really?”
“Yes,” I said. “And you know my history. You know I don’t say that lightly.”
She nodded.
“So, don’t worry about the rest of it, okay? We’ll figure it all out. One step at a time. Okay?”
“Okay,” she breathed the word, the tension melting out of her as she wrapped her arms around me.
“Dinner!” Crossland yelled from outside. “I’m starving.”
We both laughed, but I glanced down at her with a studying gaze. I could see the worry behind the humor in her eyes, but she didn’t say anything as she spun around and unlocked the door before stepping into the hallway.
“Sorry, Cross,” she said. “Wardrobe malfunction.”
“Uh huh,” he said, smiling at her. “I don’t care. I just need food.”
Two hours later, I was practically fucking glowing, and it had nothing to do with the amazing dinner we’d just eaten or the race cars we’d driven earlier. It had everything to do with the fact that I was in love with Alex. The woman who sat by my side and joked with my friends and loved me for the flawed individual I was.
She was my world.
I’d given her my heart, and she’d taken it without hesitation. Sure, she had her worries, but those would fade over time.
Everything was perfect.
“Have I told you how beautiful you look tonight?” I asked, one arm looped around her as we waited for our car outside the restaurant.
“Still trying to get me to fall for you?” she teased.
“Always,” I said.
“It’s working.” She gripped the lapels of my suit jacket, drawing me down to her level for a kiss.
My phone vibrated in my pocket and I grabbed it, glancing down at the text from Cross. “Shit,” I said. “I left my sunglasses at the table.” I kissed Alex quickly. “Be right back.”
“No worries,” she called after me as I headed back into the restaurant, an unmovable smile on my lips.
CHAPTER 16
Alexandra
A light breeze rippled by as I waited outside the restaurant for Ethan to get back. Traffic was a crowded mess, so we already knew the driver was going to be a bit, and knowing the guys, I’m sure they’d keep Ethan at the dinner table longer than necessary to pick up his glasses.
Knowing that, I walked down the sidewalk a bit, window shopping the stores sandwiching the restaurant. I was gazing longingly at a pair of heels, contemplating how many coaching sessions it would take to buy them—
