Total pages in book: 90
Estimated words: 87298 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 436(@200wpm)___ 349(@250wpm)___ 291(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 87298 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 436(@200wpm)___ 349(@250wpm)___ 291(@300wpm)
Unable to help myself, I reach over and place my hand on her bare thigh. Her jean shorts are so damn short they leave me plenty of smooth skin to grip beneath my palm. “For you. I could tell that you were really uncomfortable at the start of all of this. I wanted you to know that you had that control.”
“It’s sexy,” she says softly.
“Of course it is. It’s you.”
“Deacon…” She breathes my name. It’s a sound I want to hear with her lying beneath me or even straddling my thighs. I’m not picky. Not when it comes to Ramsey.
“You’re beautiful.” That light pink that I love so much coats her cheeks. “If you see one that you don’t want to be shared, you tell me. I’ll take care of telling Palmer.”
“Okay.”
Slowly, I begin to click through the images once more. She’s right, they’re sexy as fuck, and I agree with Palmer. It’s going to be hard to sell this as a stranger photo shoot. The chemistry between us is glaringly obvious.
These images only prove what I’ve been feeling since that day, is real. The connection between us isn’t some made-up notion from a fun day at the park. From dinner earlier this week to the shared looks and the kiss goodnight last night, all of it is more than what I ever could have considered would happen when I agreed to do this. Now, here I am, sitting next to the woman who I’m positive that I want to make mine. I don’t know how she feels about it, and then there’s my sister and my best friend to consider.
“Wow,” Ramsey breathes. It’s the shot of us kissing. I have one arm around her waist while my other hand is resting against her cheek.
“You like this one?”
“My first,” she mumbles.
I freeze. No way did I hear her correctly. “What was that?”
“Nothing. It was nothing.”
“Hey.” Palmer comes rushing back into the room. I forgot she was here. She holds up her phone. “I forgot I have a wedding consult that I need to get to. I’m going to go.”
“Wait!” Ramsey calls out. “You’re my ride. I’ll go with you.”
“No.” Palmer quickly shakes her head. “It would look unprofessional. Besides, you’re not done looking,” she says, peering down at the iPad.
“I can give her a ride home.”
“You don’t have to do that,” Ramsey speaks up.
“We have to get through all of these,” I tell her, holding up the iPad. I watch as she wavers with herself. “Besides, I have burgers ready for the grill, and I can’t eat them all on my own.”
“How about this? How about you two do your thing,” Palmer points at the iPad, “I’ll go do the consult and come back? I’ll text you when I’m on my way, and you can fire up the grill,” she tells me.
I want to say no. I am perfectly capable of taking Ramsey home, but this needs to be Ramsey’s decision. She’s the one who will be here alone with me. “Ramsey?”
“Are you sure you don’t mind if I stay?” Her voice is quiet, as if she’s not sure asking is the right thing to do.
“Absolutely.”
“Perfect. I’ll see you later.” Palmer waves over her shoulder and rushes out the door.
Ramsey is shaking her head, and I wish more than anything that I could read her mind. “What’s going on in that pretty head of yours?”
“Nothing.” She waves me off.
“Hey.” My hand settles back on her thigh. “Tell me.”
She hesitates before saying, “I think she made it up.”
“Made what up?”
“The client consult for a wedding. Palmer is meticulous with her schedule. She either made it up or planned this all along. She chose the time for our meeting.”
“I hadn’t really thought about it.” I was too busy thinking about kissing her. “But you’re probably right. She doesn’t lie, so my guess is she planned to leave you here. She decided on the time and that she was picking you up.”
“Yeah,” she agrees.
“How do you feel about that? Being stuck here with me?”
“We do have to finish looking at all of the pictures.”
“Here.” I hand her the iPad. She takes it while giving me a confused look. “You flip through them. I’ve only got one hand.” As if she needs a reminder, my thumb traces the silky soft skin of her outer thigh.
She swallows hard and begins to slowly flip through each image. My thumb continues to caress her thigh. When she wiggles in her seat, I know I should ease up, but I don’t. Instead, I turn and place my lips just below her ear.
“Deacon.” There’s a quiver in her voice.
I immediately pull away and find her eyes. “I’m sorry. I should have warned you.” I start to move my hand, but she places hers on top of mine, preventing me from moving.