Page 42 of Bad Boy in Her Bed

Birch adjusted hishold on the overflowing vase in his arm as the elevator doors opened.Stepping into the hallway, his sour mood from faking nice with Ryder evaporated as soon as he saw Jocelyn leaning in her doorway.

“This morning probably would have been a good time for me to ask what your favorite flower is.”He grinned and handed her the bouquet.“I was like a goddamn lost puppy following the florist around.”

A wariness flashed across her face before her eyes lit up and she examined the selection of white and blue flowers he finally chose.“Hydrangeas!”She smiled and pointed to the largest blooms next to the white roses, the only ones he could identify.“They’re perfect and stunning and you’re amazing and thank you.”

He toed his shoes off and followed her into the room, wondering why he’d even bothered to sit in his truck in front of the florist for twenty minutes debating the idea.Jocelyn was almost giddy as she placed the vase on the coffee table and opened the curtains to let the evening sun in.

And he was the reason.

Him, with all the baggage she was sifting through on her desk, with the brothers who came with the package, with the prison record following him through town.

He made Jocelyn fucking Carter giddy.

“I hope you don’t mind I put in an order with the restaurant downstairs,” she called over her shoulder as she leaned forward to smell the roses.“It should be here soon.”

Unable to wait any longer for her to come to him, he crossed the floor and wrapped his arms around her, kissing the lips he’d been daydreaming about all day.“Oh no, my woman’s making decisions without my input,” he murmured against her mouth.“I’m gonna have to go hunt for my balls in your purse later.”

She laughed as he nipped at her neck.“Your woman?”

“If you want the position, it’s open,” he ventured, his pulse racing when he realized how much he wanted to hear a yes and how little he cared about how that yes would work.

Her fingers grazed his jaw as she looked up at him, all playfulness gone.“Is it an exclusive position?”

“So exclusive it was created with you in mind.”

Biting her lip, she slid her hand along the back of his neck and it sent a shiver through him.“What happens when I finish work here?Or is there a termination clause built into the position?”

He felt wholly exposed.His overactive self-preservation told him to walk away, to slam the walls up before there were none left to raise.His next words would determine a path he hadn’t examined, hadn’t wanted to study for fear he would be faced to choose a road without her.Taking a deep breath, he took the jump.“No termination clause, no end date circled on the calendar.When you wrap up your work, we’ll figure it out together.”

*

With her physicalneed sated, Jocelyn rolled onto Birch and straddled him, placing her hands on his bare chest as she returned to the next pressing issue.“It wouldn’t make sense to uproot you.You have Grey to think about.And a house.And a shop.Plus, here you’re close to Winter.Closer to River.I can work from anywhere.”

He shifted his hips beneath her, letting her know under no uncertain terms he was angling for Round Two already.“I’m just saying, if Ryder’s bullshit shuts Serpent’s Tongue down, there isn’t much tying me here.Houses can be sold.Grey can live in the dorms.River is already four states away.And Winter doesn’t want visitors anyways.Besides, it might be nice to live someplace where the cops don’t pull me over every week and every stupid crime spree doesn’t result in the police at my door wanting to search my house for stolen goods.”

“You’re kidding,” she gasped, sitting up straight.“They don’t do that.”

“I was pulled over at a check stop on my way to the florist today,” he stated as he trailed his hands up her thighs.“Except the check stop didn’t check anyone else and the cops left after they searched my truck.”

Shaking her head, she crawled off of him, taking the blanket with her as she paced the floor.“They can’t just search you whenever they feel like it, Birch.It’s not legal.”

“Next time they do it, I’ll call the cops,” he replied with a chuckle while he reached for the comforter and tugged her back to the bed.“It’s not a big deal.They don’t find anything, no one gets hurt, and I’m on my way in fifteen minutes flat.”

Still frustrated he was so flippant about it, she crossed her arms and stood beside him as he sat up and pulled her between his legs.“This discussion isn’t over.”

He eased the blanket off of her and palmed her breast before leaning forward to flick his tongue across her nipple.“All I’m saying is my life here doesn’t override your life in Jersey, so I don’t want you thinking you have to give up what you have there because of what you think is keeping me here.I want to be where you are.The rest will fall into place.”

Running her hands through his hair, she closed her eyes.“If we do this.If, if, if.”

“When,” he muttered under his breath.

“If, when, whatever.All I have in New Jersey is an apartment and a defunct dating app.”When he growled, she smiled.“Which has long since been deleted and forgotten.”

“Better be.”He used the blanket still slack along her hips to pull her onto him as he fell back on the bed.“If you decide to stay, my place has five bedrooms.No expectations, no pressure.Though I should warn you I’m in one of them and my mattress is definitely the most comfortable.”

She gripped his hard length, pumping it a few times before lining it up and lowering herself onto him.“We’ll talk about this when you aren’t rock hard and thinking with the wrong head.”

Chapter Nineteen

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