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I blink. Who is this man, and what am I going to do about him?
His eyes move from my face to the full plate of food in front of me. “Now, eat your food,” he demands, spearing a piece of chicken and popping it into his mouth.
CHAPTER 26
ARCHER
“Doyou have any plans this weekend?” Winnie asks me during our typical morning walk.
It’s Friday, and I surprisingly didn’t have any meetings I had to rush to, so we’ve been leisurely strolling Central Park, even stopping to grab coffees to stay warm in the late November cold.
I look over at her, trying not to focus on how adorable she looks in a pair of puffy earmuffs. Never did I think that thought would cross my mind about anybody, but it’s something that’s crossed it multiple times this morning since she met me downstairs for our walk.
“You mean, dowehave any plans this weekend?” I respond, knowing it’d be better for me to put distance between us, considering she’s done nothing to show me that she’s wanting to talk about the little rule I’ve put in place for us. Meanwhile, all I’ve thought about in the last week was kissing her again, tasting her little moans as my hands explored her body.
“There’s kind of a lull since we already had Thanksgiving, but all of the Christmas events haven’t started up yet. So I was thinking we could go to the Hamptons with Beck and Margo…” she answers, holding the coffee close to her mouth to keep warm.
For the first time in a long time, I actually enjoyed Thanksgiving. We stayed inside, neither one of our families particularlydemanding that we attend it at their houses. The night before, we stopped by my family’s annual Thanksgiving dinner because it was the first time our families were to be seen together, but we were there all of an hour before we got to sneak out because they took all the photos needed.
It worked. Both Moore and Bishop Hotels are prospering at the union of our families. Honestly, marrying Winnie was the last thing I ever thought I’d do, but it’s turned out to be a smart business move. On the actual holiday, Winnie and I played board games before she forced me to watch cheesy Christmas movies I’d never seen and don’t intend to watch again.
“But if you have plans, don’t worry about it,” Winnie interrupts my thoughts when I don’t answer. She tries to mask the disappointment in her voice, but I still heard it.
“What makes you think I don’t want to spend the weekend with you?” I come to a stop, putting my body in front of hers so we can have this conversation face-to-face. Her cheeks are pink from the cold, making me fight the urge to tell her to pull her scarf up higher to get warmer.
“We’ve spent a lot of time together lately. And when Margo asked if we wanted to visit the Hamptons with them this weekend, I at first said I’d join but that you were busy. She said she really wanted it to be all of us so we could spend time together, so I told her I’d ask you. But really, I can go alone, and you can have your house to yourself for once, and it’ll be?—”
“Winnie,” I interrupt, completely cutting her off before she continues to ramble.
“Yeah?” God, the way she shows every single one of her emotions on her face might just undo me. I’ve never met someone who is okay with showing their vulnerabilities so much, but she wears them like a badge of honor. She watches me, her body tense like she’s bracing herself for me to let her down.
“If you want to head to the Hamptons this weekend with your friends, then we’ll go.”
“Really?”
My head cocks to the side. “Did you really expect me to say no?”
She shrugs, holding the coffee to her lips in an attempt to hide her shy smile. “I didn’t know if it’s something you’d want to do.”
“Go to the Hamptons?”
“Spend more time with me than necessary. I could easily tell everyone that you have to work this weekend.”
I’ve waited every single day for her to tell me that she trusts me. That she knows I don’t want to hurt her and that I won’t let her down like she has been before. Our family history—and her terrible taste in men—give her every reason to not trust me.
But I want to go against that. I want to give her all the reasonstotrust me. Even if I feel things for her I shouldn’t, even if I want her when I shouldn’t. I just don’t know if that’ll happen.
I reach to touch her, letting my fingers drift down the soft skin of her cheek. “I force my assistant to constantly shift my calendar because I refuse to miss our mornings together, Winnie.”
“You do?” she whispers as my thumb traces over her cheekbone.
“I do. So if you have any questions about whether or not I want to spend time with you, that should give you all the answers you need.”
She smiles so wide, so freely, that I ache to lean down and taste it. I want to feel those lips curve around mine, to feel her sighs against my skin. I ultimately just want to kiss her again, but I’m a man of my word. I want her to give in, to admit that our time could be put to much better use if we were to finish what we started in that room at the gym.
“Okay,” she finally manages to say. Her voice is breathy, like she’s coming to terms with what I said.
“You seemshocked,” I tease.
