Page 83 of Can't Get Enough

“Do you not see this door standing wide-open?” I firm my mouth, still swollen from his kisses. “Your ten minutes havebeenup.”

He walks over, stopping directly in front of me, frustration and something like longing in his stare. “If you don’t give us a chance, then how can you—”

“I don’t think we should talk anymore. Skipper and Bolt can handle correspondence for Aspire, if you ever did actually want to invest.” I narrow my eyes, one hand going to my hip. “Or was that just another way you thought you could ‘help’ meet my goals on the road to fucking me?”

He flinches, but smooths his features out, molds them into the mask he shows the world. “That’s really not fair and I think you know it.”

He leans toward me, and I stiffen but don’t push him away. He dips until his lips brush my ear with a whisper, sending shivers skittering down my spine.

“You know it’s real, Hendrix, and if you think anything you’ve said has changed my mind about us, I’m sorry to disappoint you.”

He drops a quick kiss on my mouth and draws back, resting a finger on my lips before I can voice any protest. He surprises me with a genuine smile, something like anticipation in his eyes. “Because I’m just getting started.”

CHAPTER 26

HENDRIX

So the theme is personal glamour?” Soledad asks, sitting cross-legged on the overstuffed bench in my closet. “That’s pretty broad.”

“It is,” I say absently, flicking through a few dresses I’ve never worn. “The invitation said interpret how you like, but you can best believe everyone will bring their A game. Heavy hitters in fashion and entertainment will be at Zere’s birthday party.”

Maverick won’t be there, though.

The thought has intruded on my peace of mind ever since he left my apartment last night. I practically kicked him out, but have been aching ever since. I stuff that unwanted emotion down and hold a sequined minidress against my chest, the electric blue almost hurting my eyes under the overhead lights.

“What do we think?” I ask, standing in a nude bra and underwear. “Too bright?”

Soledad squints exaggeratedly. “I think that dress took me down to twenty-fifty vision.”

“Shut up.” I laugh, tossing the dress on top of her head and turning back to my seemingly bottomless selection of clothes.

“You live in a loft apartment and your closet is bigger than mine in a six-bedroom house.”

“Well, this was originally a guest room, remember? I have more clothes than guests, so this room got remodeled to suit ya girl’s needs.” I study the glass-enclosed cubbies that hold my myriad shoes. “I needto find those Rene Caovilla sandals. These are alphabetized, but I don’t see the ones I’m looking for. Now where did I—”

My cell rings in my pocket before I can finish the thought. I pull it out and frown down at the screen.

“It’s the front desk. Probably those wings we ordered.”

“I could’ve made my famous pineapple habanero wings with my special sauce.” Soledad shimmies her shoulders and preens.

“All your food can’t be famous, and all your sauces can’t be special.”

“Have you ever tasted anything of mine that wasn’t special?” She folds her arms, her expression smug. “I’ll wait.”

“Lawd, spare me this woman and her culinary ego.” I answer the call. “Yes, hello.”

“Delivery for you, Ms. Barry,” the attendant says. “Buzz them up?”

“Of course. Thank you.” I replace the phone in my pocket and turn back to survey the dresses. “The party is next week so I want to figure this out in case I need to buy something new. I just have so many clothes I’ve never worn, I figured I’d start here.”

“No one would ever accuse you of being frugal,” Soledad drawls, rolling her eyes.

“They better not.” I affect being affronted. “And ruin my rich auntie rep?”

The doorbell sounds and Soledad hops up. “I’ll go get these subpar wings you insisted on subjecting us to.”

Chuckling, I dig through the stack of clothes piling up on the center table until I find my silk robe and slip it on.

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