Page 73 of Untethered Heart
“You were being nosy.”
“Okay, fine, I was being nosy. Were you with Lex?”
I arch an eyebrow at his keen assessment.
“Oh, come on. No one would believe she was just your client after she came in the other week. She’s different.”
I lean back in my chair. “You’re right. She is different. She’s my girlfriend.”
Riley slaps his cheeks and gasps in the most over-the-top way, that my eyes roll back so far in my head I can see brain matter. He hurries to drop into the seat in front of me.
“Girlfriend? Girlfriend! Okay, so are we thinking, like, a June wedding? It’s only six months away, but with your bank account, we can make it happen.”
I laugh and shake my head. “Go get my coffee, would ya? I’ve got work to catch up on.”
His smile turns gentle as he crosses back towards the door without a word. He stops just at the threshold, turning back to me. “You didn’t reject that idea.”
I stare at him, unable to admit the words out loud, that the thought of tethering myself to Lex fills me with uplifting pride. The idea of her being my wife.My wife.Fuck, that makes me a little hard. Quite impressive considering the number of times I had her last night.
“I’m happy for you, boss,” Riley says. “I’ll be sure to schedule all your meetings for after ten going forward. Since it’s such a struggle to leave the future Mrs Heart’s bed.”
“Coffee, Riley!”
Chapter thirty-five
There’s a smile on my face and a limp in my walk as I pull my sunglasses on top of my head and step inside Sweet Escape.
I’m meeting Claire for coffee since I haven’t spoken to her properly in forty-eight hours. I saw her briefly before my shift last night, but when I knocked off at two in the morning, Caleb was waiting for me. He took me straight back to his penthouse, which I barely saw since he hijacked my lips the moment we walked through the door. He got me in the shower, washed my body, made me come on his tongue, then carried me to his bed where he held me all night.
He’d promised his brother, Mason, that he’d look at a house with him this morning, which is the only reason he let me out of his sight. A fact he was most grumpy about since I’m working again tonight, but tomorrow he wants to take me out on our first official date.
I scan the line for a head of blonde hair, not finding Claire in the mix.
“Lex!”
My best friend sits in the back corner of the bakery, two coffees and a plate of treats in front of her. I kiss her cheek once I reach the table and plop down in the seat opposite her.
“What are we trying today?” I ask, surveying the plate between us.
Macarons, cannolis, and a pink sugared doughnut are placed around a plate, but Claire remains quiet. I look back up and find her mouth dropped open with amusement.
“What?”
“Why are you limping?”
I duck my head as I feel my cheeks heat with embarrassment. “Oh my god, is it that obvious?”
“Only for us nosy bitches. Spill.”
Claire’s arms are circled protectively around a mug of black coffee. I drag the tall glass of iced coffee toward me and take a sip before offering any details from the last two nights I’ve spent with Caleb.
“So, there’s been some developments on the Caleb front.”
She sits her chin in her palms and grins. “I feel like I’m going to approve of this story.”
I recap everything that’s happened since Thursday night when I found Caleb sitting on our beach. She already knew we had been chatting as friends, and since she’s happily shacked up with her contractor, she was all for it.
My coffee is almost gone by the time I get to the last of the details, which was leaving Caleb’s place this morning to come here.
