Page 32 of The Billionaire's Naughty List

Tiny snowflakes flutter by the window and while we’re no longer snowed in, it feels cozy.

“Colt said he and the boys are on their way,” I tell her. I offered to pick them up at the airport but I haven’t heard back yet.

My nerves are surprisingly settled because there’s nothing I wouldn’t do for this woman. Like she said yesterday, she’s mine and I’m hers and that’s how it is now. That’s how it’s going to be.

Mostly, I’m eager to learn about the mystery woman he’s seeing.

That’s news to me. He hasn’t dated anyone in years. Says he doesn’t have time to, which is only partly true, especially now that the boys are grown and helping around the ranch.

“Okay,” she murmurs, back to gluing the walls of the gingerbread house together with a thick white paste.

I circle the island and wrap my arms around her middle. “You don’t sound excited. Are you worried?”

“A little.”

“Don’t be.”

“How can I not be? What if he’s mad and you guys fight? I don’t want to cause a rift.”

“If he’s mad, I’ll handle it.” Gently, I take the bag of frosting from her and set it to the side. “Look at me, Lily.”

She turns immediately.

“I can’t promise you that it’ll be smooth sailing, but I can promise we’ll get through it together. Nothing could change my mind about us. Because we’re,” I wave a finger back and forth between us, “an us from now on.”

She slides her hands up my chest and nods. “You’re right. I know all that. I just?—”

I duck my head to meet her eyes. “You what?”

“This feels fast and I don’t want you to ever regret—” she waves her hand at herself.

I grunt a laugh. “Never happen.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“Let’s look at the facts. I’ve never been interested in settling down before. And I’ve been thinking about you every day for the last year, wasting away from my own asinine reluctance. If anything, I’m worried you’ll regret being with me.”

Her brows lift as her jaw drops. “What? Why?”

“I’m older, for starters?—”

“Not that much older,” she contradicts. But we both know the math.

“I’m on the verge of needing reading glasses,” I tease.

“That is old.” She gives my nose a playful tap that makes me grin.

“Thanks. My life is busy and my time isn’t always my own. The tech news probably won’t care about our relationship, but the regular media might. Especially once they learn about…”

She nods and takes a deep breath. “I don’t care about that.”

“I don’t either. We know the truth.”

“That I’m crazy about you? You bet.”

The brown of her eyes is warm, alight with love, and happy crinkles frame them. I hope we can always find ourselves back to this sort of happiness, where the world doesn’t matter as long as we’re together.

“And I’m crazy about you.”

---