Page 39 of Fake Out Hearts

My cock twitches as her gaze drops again before she drags it away. I clear my throat, willing my body not to respond to her attention or the filthy memories flooding my mind.

“You’re welcome to do yoga wherever you want,” I tell her. “But I forgot to mention during the tour yesterday, I actually have a home gym that you’re welcome to use. It’s upstairs.”

“Oh. Thanks.” Becca gives me a funny look, then chuckles.

“What?” I ask.

“Nothing.” She crosses her arms over her chest. “It’s just funny. The whole time I dated Shawn, he never once made me feel at home in his space. And I’ve only been fake married to you for like a week, and living with you for a day, but I already feel more welcome with you than I ever did with him.”

I’m sure she doesn’t mean for it to, but anger flares up in me anyway. I walk closer to her, and she watches me intently.

“I understand why you’d make those kind of comparisons,” I tell her in a low voice. “But you’re not with Shawn anymore. And if I have one goal in this marriage, it’s to make sure that yourealize a fuckhead like that was never worthy of you. Because you’re worth so much more.”

Becca chews her lip, her body swaying forward a little. For a second, I swear she’s about to lean in to kiss me. We’re so close that I can feel the warmth of her body radiating into mine. She smells intoxicating, a sweet mixture of vanilla and lavender that makes me want to bury my face in her hair and inhale deeply.

My breathing picks up along with my pulse, and I can tell from the blood pumping in my ears that my boxers are leaving nothing to the imagination. I know I’m getting hard, but there’s no way I could hide it now even if I tried.

Becca’s throat moves as she swallows, then she steps back and leans down to start rolling up her mat. “Um, I’ll check out the gym tomorrow. I was just finishing up for today anyway.”

“Okay.” I nod, trying to ignore the sudden hoarseness of my voice. “Well, I was gonna make myself some breakfast, and I’d bet you could use some carbs after that workout. Can I make you something?”

She glances up at me, a tiny smile tugging at her lips. She doesn’t even have to say it, but I’m positive Shawn never fucking cooked for her.

“Sure,” she says. “If you’ll have enough of whatever you’re making, I’ll have some.”

“Great.” I chuckle. “Just as a warning, I’m not the world’s best cook. But basic breakfast stuff, I can handle.”

“Thanks. I’m going to go get cleaned up then,” she says and leaves with her mat tucked under her arm.

I wait until I hear the shower running in her bathroom, then run back upstairs to put some clothes on. If I were by myself, I wouldn’t bother, but especially after the charged moment we just had, I figure it’s for the best.

Back in the kitchen, I crack several eggs into a bowl and whisk them up with some salt, pepper, and my secret ingredient:tajin seasoning. When they’re ready, I heat a pan on the induction stove and pour the mix in. The surface gets hot almost immediately, so I get to scrambling them and drop the heat as low as it’ll go so I can toast some bread in the countertop oven by the stove.

I’m just pulling the toast out—and burning myself in the process—when Becca comes back into the kitchen. Her hair’s still wet, and she’s changed into a plain, loose-fitting set of pink sweats, but she still looks great. Unfortunately, I realize when I check the butter dish on the counter that I’m completely out of it. I glance at her over my shoulder to where she sits at the kitchen island on one of the high-top, cushioned stools.

“Looks like I’m out of butter, but I think I have some avocado if you’d rather have that on your toast.”

“Sounds good,” she says, smiling, so I snag one out of a little dish I keep on the island and pull a cutting board from a custom-made slot built into the island’s side. The knives hang magnetically from a strip next to the stove, so I grab one of those and get to work slicing up the avocado.

“So have you, uh, told anyone yet? About us, I mean?” Becca asks while she watches me.

“I told Noah, but he’d already figured it out anyway,” I admit, and although she doesn’t look thrilled about it, she nods.

“That was probably inevitable. I bet you spend more time with him and the other Aces than anyone else.”

“Exactly. They were gonna find out one way or another, so I figured it was probably best to rip the bandage off quick.”

Becca reaches over the counter to steal a slice of the avocado and takes a little bite. It’s adorable. “Mm, right. What about your parents?”

“Not yet. I’ll have to tell them at some point, obviously, but I’m still trying to figure out the right time.” I grab a bowl out of one of the cabinets and drop the slices of avocado into it, thensmush them together with the back of the wooden spoon I’ve been using to scramble the eggs.

“Yeah, it’s big news. You don’t want to give anyone a heart attack. Especially since they wouldn’t even know I existed until after we were already married.”

“Ugh, yeah, I’m not looking forward to it. But it’ll be fine. I’m close with my parents, so I’m sure they’ll understand, even if they’re concerned at first. What about you? Have you told anyone yet?”

Becca shakes her head. “Not a soul.”

“Really? Not even your mom?”

---