Page 134 of here

“In a minute. Can we… stay like this? For a bit?”

“As long as you need, cupcake.”

We stand there, her heartbeat steady against my chest as my fingers trace patterns on her skin. For once, everything feels right. Complete.

“Missed this,” I tell her. “Missed you.”

“I missed you, too.”

“What are you doing tomorrow?”

“Waking up in your bed.”

I chuckle, joy bubbling up in my chest. “That a promise?”

“Yes.” She withdraws to look at me. “But I need a shower first.”

“I have one of those.” My fingers trail to her thigh. “And clean sheets.”

“And breakfast in the morning?”

“Anything you want.” My heart does that thing it only does for her.

“Brandon?”

“Hmm?”

“We’re together now. For real. Aren’t we?”

“We are.” I lift her up, and her legs wrap around me as I carry her outside. Finally fucking right.

“Show-off,” she mutters against my neck.

“You love it.” And she does. I can feel it in the way she holds onto me, trust me, chooses me. My fierce little cupcake, finally home where she belongs.

TWENTY-NINE

NAOMI

The boutique smells like money, freshly steamed bills, I mean silk, and the kind of perfume that comes in bottles too pretty to open. Mirrors stretch from floor to ceiling, multiplying my reflection into infinity, each version more uncertain than the last.

“Welcome to Élysée. Mr. and Mrs. Milton.” A woman in a gray pencil dress approaches, her heels clicking against marble floors. “I’m Marina. Your husband called ahead.”

“Mrs. Milton?” I shoot daggers at Brandon with my eyes.

His fingers skim my lower back before resting there, light but firm. “My wife needs a new wardrobe. Everything.”

“I don’t.”

“Everything that actually fits.” His voice hardens. “No more of these torture devices you call dresses.”

The audacity of this man. “Excuse me?”

“I trust you can help us?” He ignores me completely.

So that’s why he asked about my plans today.

“Of course.” Marina’s eyes sweep over my current outfit, another too-tight dress that digs into my ribs with every breath. “Let’s start with measurements, shall we?”

---