Page 83 of Stolen Kisses

"Want to go up on the roof?" His eyes glinted.

What is he planning?

"Sure."

Was this really happening? I was here with this handsome man who was far more romantic than I thought back when I met his grumpy ass at the airport. He led me up the staircase,through the bedroom. It was white, just like the furniture downstairs. There was a second door next to the dresser that probably went onto the rooftop. We stepped through it, and I couldn't help but smile.

"Chase, I can't believe you live here."

This was amazing and unbelievably cozy. The view to the ocean was unobstructed. He had a huge couch with striped pillows, and there was an umbrella with matching stripes, too, although it wasn't open now. There were also two heaters spaced out, both on, which was probably a good thing because I didn’t have a jacket.

"What's that?" I pointed to some sort of table in front of the couch. It had a hole in the middle.

"It's an electric firepit. We can light it after dinner if you want."

"Are we ordering in?"

A smile played on his lips. His eyes glinted again. "You didn't notice it, did you?"

"What?"

He was looking at something behind me. I turned around, and my eyes bulged. There was a grill there, with chopped veggies and meat covered with cellophane on a table next to it.

"Wait, are my eyes playing tricks on me?" I said and practically darted toward it. Chase followed and wrapped both arms around me from behind, resting one on my waist and the other on my chest. I liked this bear hug. I could get lost in this man forever.

"But you said you had a meeting before,” I reminded him.

"I have ways of arranging stuff."

"Yeah, but this is notstuff," I said. "I only just told you at lunch that this is my favorite dinner."

"Yes. And I listened, and I acted."

There was a bottle of champagne there too.

"Chase, how did this happen?"

"Private concierge."

" I haven't heard of anyone actually having one, but now I can see how it can come in handy. Is he or she going to cook too?"

"No. That's where I come in," he said.

Chase kissed the side of my neck and then let go of me. "I was lucky you said you love barbecue most. If you'd said something more complicated, then I would've been in real trouble. I would’ve brought a chef in.”

I couldn't help but laugh.

"What?" he asked.

"Nothing, just something your brother said about you being over the top is now making sense. In a good way.”

I grinned, walking behind him and wrapping my hands around his middle, resting my cheek against his back. He was pure muscle everywhere, I swear.

"All right, let's get started," he said.

I stepped to one side, watching him put on a leather apron that was hanging next to the grill and tie it behind his back. Then he took off his cuff links and rolled his sleeves up past his elbows.

"Here's an idea," I said. "You could take off your shirt so you don't accidentally drip something on it."

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