Page 95 of The Cupcake Standard

Instantly going into panic mode, I bolted upright. “An hour? I have to pack and shower and—”

“Relax,” Derek said, chuckling. “We have the room another night. I wanted to make sure we had plenty of quality time together.” His gaze drifted down my bare body, completely exposed now that I’d sat up. “As soon as I was sent out of town, I extended the reservation.” He adjusted himself, the evidence of his attraction showing.

I bit my lip. “How fancy is this brunch?”

“Casual,” he bit out between gritted teeth, not taking his eyes off me.

I crawled my way toward him. “And how far away is it?”

“Right here.” His voice was practically a growl.

I was nearly purring. “Then I think we have some time.” I barely finished my sentence before he pounced.

As it turned out, we were a little late. I blamed Gina for not packing me the right clothes. I had only brought enough for one night, not realizing I’d be here any longer, so she’d added to my bag on Derek’s request. But she’d mostly put in things unsuitable for wearing outside the hotel room. Things that made Derek’s eyes widen the more I flung out of the bag and made me swear the more I dug.

I’d finally found a pair of jeans at the bottom along with a plain black T-shirt which I paired with one of Derek’s button downs, knotted in the front. It would have to do.

We’d rented the event room for today too, anticipating a late night and the need to tear down. Derek’s presents sat on the table, all unopened. The staff had done a good job cleaning up almost everything, but there were still some decorations and personal items I had to take care of.

Liam met us at the door.

I gave him a big hug. “Thanks for everything last night. You were a huge help putting it all together, and it turned out great.” I beamed up at him, my smile dimming as I walked in, meeting Piper’s icy gaze.

She sniffed, shaking her head at me. All the ice melted as her eyes flew to Derek’s, then it was full-on charm. “There he is! Hey, D, you didn’t open any presents last night. At least, open mine.” She latched on to his arm, trying to drag him over to the table of gifts.

His laugh was a little strained. “Piper, chill. I’m starving. Let’s eat first, then open gifts.” Those blue eyes found mine, and he winked. “Someone kept me up late last night.”

“Yeah, we burned some calories, didn’t we, Captain?” We shared an intimate laugh as he crossed the room, returning to my side, even pulling out my chair for me.

Liam just rolled his eyes. “Ugh, let me get some food in my stomach, so at least I have something to throw up.”

The door opened, and in came Rhonda. “Morning, everyone.”

A small buffet was set up against one wall. There were two staff members at our disposal, taking drinks, clearing plates, stocking food.

“So, whose brilliant idea was this?” I asked between bites.

Rhonda beamed. “Oh, it was mine. I didn’t have time to get you a birthday present what with hunting Roy down, so ta-da.”

“Food for my birthday?” I grinned at her. “You know me well.”

Piper snorted into her napkin, trying to disguise it with a cough but failing.

I ignored her attempt at an insult, instead asking Rhonda, “What’s up with the two-for-one celebrity deal?”

Piper giggled, beaming at Derek, taking another opportunity to run her hand down my boyfriend’s arm. “Oh, I was at Roy’s when he got the call. When I heard it was Derek’s birthday, I just had to come. For old time’s sake.” She fluttered her eyelashes at him.

Rhonda rolled her eyes, giving me a look to say she’d tell me more later.

So I turned to Liam. “How’d the rest of the party go? I haven’t had a chance to talk to Gina yet.”

He grinned after swallowing a mouthful of food. “It was a blast! Everyone ate too much, drank too much. Princess here was the life of the party. Roy signed autographs. It was the bash of the century.”

Piper trailed a finger along Derek’s exposed wrist. “Too bad you had to leave so early. Not one of those guys danced like you do.”

Derek shifted out of her reach with an uncomfortable smile.

The ball was back in my court. “He sure can dance, can’t he? Did you teach him that?”

---