Page 173 of Riding the Sugar High

“I love you,” I mumble into her mouth, our noses grazing. “I love you so much, Primrose. Reason number one why Iwoulddate you.”

She closes her eyes, pressing her forehead against mine. “Are you sure you’ll be okay? My apartment is a mess, and this city is chaotic. It smells, it’s loud, and people can be so rude.”

“I’ll be okay.” It might not be ideal, but being here for her doesn’t feel inconvenient. It feels right. “Take as long as you need, and I’ll be by your side every step of the way.” I gently put her down and smack her ass. “Now go get ’em. We’ll talk about everything else later.”

“Okay.” She reaches for my neck, so I lean down to kiss her. “I’ll see you soon. For real, this time—like in two hours.” Happiness is bursting out of her, and she breathes as if to expel some of her adrenaline. I call her name when reminded of my gift for her. “Yes?”

I wait until she spins around, then set the pink cowboy hat on her head with a wink. “Yee-haw, Barbie.”

epilogue

One year later

Logan

“You’re so fucking annoying.”

“Am I? Or are you mad because I’m right?”

I stare into Ian’s blue eyes and shake my head. “Hmm...no, you’re just annoying.”

He points at the crate of zucchini between us. “Look, I don’t know much about vegetables, but?—”

“Clearly.”

“But zucchini is one of the few green things I eat. And these don’t look good. Come on, look at them.” He grabs one and holds it close to my face. “They’re yellow.”

I know he’s a client, but this is it. I’ll smack him. “Youdoknow these are yellow zucchini, right?”

His eyes dart from me to the zucchini, then back to me. “Uh, what?”

Good god. “Why don’t you go back to marketing and have your wife, theactualchef, handle this?”

“Amelie is busy. We’re starting a new venture, and it’s been consuming a lot of our time.” When I blankly stare at him, he smiles wide. “Well, since you asked. Private chefs. I’m very excited about it—lots of new opportunities. In fact, we’re hiring. If you know of anyone who?—”

“Do you want the zucchini or not?” I hiss.

“Yes. But, Iwilltell Primrose that customer service has been lacking.”

“You do that,” I mumble as I gather my things.

Though I’m happy Barbie finally made friends in the area, did she have to get along with these people? I could even get on board with Shane and his wife, Heaven. Her name infuriates me, but when we had dinner at their place last week, Shane and Primrose spent most of the night talking, so I ended up with her and her kids. Cute little things, the two of them.

And Amelie isn’t that bad, either. She’s smart and knows to respect my silence. But this guy? He never,evershuts up. He never relents.

Unfortunately, Primrose is crazy about him.

“Do you want to come over for the game tonight?”

Game? What game?

I throw him a glance as I grab the pickup keys. “I’m busy. Taking out Barbie for our anniversary.”

“Oh, congrats.” He follows me to the back door of the restaurant. “Shane and I meet every Saturday. Neither of us gives much of a shit about the game, but that’s when the girls have their ‘kids and husband-free night,’ so we made it a thing.”

I think of Primrose scolding me for not giving Ian a chance, then nod. “Fine. Next Saturday.”

“Really?” Brows arched high, he smiles. “Nice. Amelie always leaves us snacks. I’ll make sure they’re vegan-friendly.”

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