Total pages in book: 49
Estimated words: 46152 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 231(@200wpm)___ 185(@250wpm)___ 154(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 46152 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 231(@200wpm)___ 185(@250wpm)___ 154(@300wpm)
She drops her fork to the plate and looks at me with a tear in her eye. “You love me?”
My mouth falls open. What the fuck? Surely, I’ve told her I love her. I know I have. I think back to the last time I said it, and I can’t remember. I can’t fucking remember. Oh my God. “Nat, honey, of course I love you. I obviously haven’t said it enough, but I’m going to fix that now.” I get up and move around the table and get on one knee in front of her. I cup her face in my hands. “Honey, I love you more than anything. I’m sorry that I haven’t said it, and I’m sorry that you obviously have doubted my love for you, but I do. I’m going to say it… fuck, I’m going to show you. You’ll never doubt me again.”
Her arms go around my neck, and I kiss her, putting every emotion I have into our lips meshing together. How did I fuck this up so badly? I’m not sure, but I know I’m going to fix it.
When a table from across the room starts whistling, I know I’ve taken it too far, so I pull back, smiling. “You okay?”
She laughs. “You lay that kiss on me and then ask if I’m okay?” She curls her hand into the shirt on my chest. “Yeah, I’m good. I’m better than good.”
I get off my knee and make my way back to my seat. “So eat up. We need to get to the book fair before it closes.”
She nods, and when she reaches for the apple fritter and takes a big bite, I know for the first time in a long time that I’ve done something right.
Chapter 10
Natalie
I’m standing in the aisle at the book fair, and to anyone else, I look as if I’m enthralled by the shelf of books in front of me. However, they are all a blur because I’m not thinking about books right now. No, I’m thinking about my husband and the fact that he told me he loved me in a room full of people. I shouldn’t be surprised, but I am. He never, I mean ever, publicly displays affection, so the fact that he did has me second-guessing everything.
“Do you see any you like?”
Beau’s voice is deep, and he’s standing right over my shoulder. I act as if I’ve been debating on which book to look at and grab the first one I touch. My face is red when I pull the book out and look at the cover. The shirtless man has his hand around the neck of an almost naked woman. I’ve read the book before and loved it. Heck, I love all this author’s books, but I usually read them on my Kindle to keep the cover to myself.
Beau clears his throat, and without looking at him, I know he’s pushing his glasses up his nose. I try to be quick and put the book away, but he covers my hand with his. “Wait.”
His breath is hot on my neck, and I close my eyes, wishing the ground would open up and swallow me whole. He pulls the book back out of the stack and holds it up in front of me. He moves his body so that my back is pressed to his front. He lifts his other arm and encircles me in his arms with the book still held out in front of us. His voice has deepened. “What do you think this book is about?”
“Fantasies… she has fantasies, and she wants him to fulfill them.”
His hips lift, and I feel his growing bulge pressed into my backside. “What kind of fantasies?”
I close my eyes, debating on answering.
When his lips press against my bare neck, I whisper to him, “They’re married, and they act as if they’ve never met before. He picks her up in the bar of a hotel and they uh, make love.”
“Hmmmm,” he says while his hand that’s not holding the book presses against my belly. “That’s quite a fantasy. I guess you’ve read this book?”
I nod my head because I don’t quite trust my voice.
He rubs the stubble of his chin across my neck, and it sends goosebumps across my arms. “And is that a fantasy you’ve had?”
I lift my shoulders, and he turns me in his arms so I have no choice but to look at him. He’s bending down, searching my eyes. “Tell me, Nat. Have you thought about that? Would you like for me to pick you up at a hotel bar? We could act like we don’t know each other, and I can convince you that spending the night in my arms is where you’re meant to be.”
I take a deep, shuddering breath. The way he describes it has me shifting my thighs together. There's a tug in my lower belly as I imagine the scenario. I’ve never seen this side of Beau, and I’ve never felt comfortable talking to him about my fantasies before. I lean my head against his chest instead of answering, and he groans in my ear. “You like that, don’t you, Nat?”