Page 32 of Phoenix

“You okay over there?” she asks.

Fuck. Think fast, Carmichael. Don’t let her know you’re a fucking creep.

“Uh, yeah, just bloated.” I pat my stomach and immediately curse myself.

Bloated? Are you fucking kidding me right now? What the fuck are you thinking? You want to be celibate forever, don’t you? You want to send her running for the hills?

“Oh, well, that sucks.” Then she laughs, and it’s the most beautiful sound in the world. “It was probably all that air you sucked in from backtracking so fast.”

She is on to me. Fuck it, just roll with it.

I glance up to the main area of the truck. Grayson and Amelia are lost in conversation, so they aren’t paying us any mind. I pull out my cell phone and send her a text message.

Me:You caught me, all right? You’re hot and you’re teasing me with the tongue and the lips...so I groaned.

She smiles when she reads the message on her phone.

Nora:How was I teasing you? I was just reading a book!

Me:You really don’t know, do you?

Nora:Know what?

Me:How goddamn beautiful you are.

She looks my way and just smiles, shaking her head.

Me:You should just trust me.

Nora:Can I?

Me:Without question. I am a good guy, ya know?

Nora:Prove it.

Me:Let me.

Nora:We’ll see. ??

How can a winky face be so alluring?

“We’re here!” Amelia calls from the front seat.

“Oh wow,” Nora says, as she finally takes in the Atlanta skyline. It’s not New York City or Los Angeles, but it is something.

It’s one of my favorite cities in the world.

I point out different buildings to her, different landmarks, from baseball stadiums, to the Olympic Park, and everything in between, as Grayson drives to the hotel the magazine Amelia may work for put us up in for the weekend.

“The Four Seasons?” Nora asks. “Holy shit.”

“I know, right? They don’t mess around.”

Grayson pulls through to the front entrance, and we all get out to check in while our bags are unloaded and valet takes the truck.

The building is enormous and when I walk in, I feel like I'm stepping into something entirely too fancy for our blue-collared taste.

We are greeted immediately by a large staircase that leads both to the right, and to the left, with guestrooms on either side.

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