Page 99 of Entirely Yours
“We are supposed to go celebrate!” I reply. “Cole! You’ve been avoiding me!”
“Birthdays are stupid.” She’s still staring daggers at Ben.
“Eloquent, as always, my dear.”
I raise a brow at Cole, mouthing“My dear?”but she’s not looking at me.
Ben is unperturbed. “Collette and I are?—”
“No!” She pushes up from her chair, both hands planted firmly on the table.
Just then, Bex bursts back through the kitchen door. “Luci’s engaged!”
“So,” Ben calls out, “are we!” He tips his glass toward a fuming Cole, who has a death grip on her butter knife.
Jules reaches over and carefully removes the knife from Cole’s hand, the rest of us too stunned to move.
Gabe doesn’t say a word as he pushes back from the table and walks out. Every Bardot in the room winces. “Probably should have done that differently,” Bex says, shooting Anders a frantic look.
He passes the baby to Elaine and tells her, “I got it, Baby Bardot. He just needs a minute.” He then follows Gabe out of the room.
We sit in silence for a beat before Bex registers what Ben said. “Wait, you two are also engaged?” She points between Ben and Cole, confusion coloring her tone.
“No,” Cole says at the same time Ben says, “Yes!”
“Benjamin!” Her eyes narrow. “I wouldnevermarry you.”
“That’s not what you said last night, Red.” He looks extremely pleased with this barb, and after one look at Cole, he seems to have severely miscalculated. She shoves her chair back, storming to the doorway. Once she’s there, she stops, taking a deep breath before turning around.
“I apologize for my swift exit, Mr. and Mrs. Bardot. I’ll call you tomorrow”—she points at me before turning to Ben—“and fuck you.” Then she’s gone.
Ben finishes his drink. “I love when she’s feisty,” he declares before he, too, leaves.
The rest of us stare at each other in silence, unsure what to do next. “Y’all really know how to clear a room,” Dad says, taking a sip of his beer, and effectively breaking the tension.
Hugo laughs. “Never a dull moment. But it has been a long day for a lot of people,” he replies, eyeing Jules knowingly. “Let’s clean up and then return the Rose-Bardot home to its natural state.”
“Which really is onlyslightlyless chaotic than its current state.” Cat jumps into the middle of the table to punctuate my point.
It’s another hour before everyone is gone, Chloe has gone through her bedtime routine, and Jules and I are finally alone.
We fall into bed, exhausted and yet utterly insatiable. Jules peppers kisses up and down my body, over my swollen belly, down to where I really want him. After an entire dinner of unintentional foreplay, it won’t take me long to explode. His stubble scratches at my inner thighs as he licks and sucks and drives me fuckingwild. I have a single thought before I fall into oblivion:How did I manage to getthisfor the rest of my life?
Jules lets me ride the waves then turns me onto all fours and slides in from behind. He curls over the top of me, keeping a steady pace as he traces my shoulder blades with his lips. “I love you, Rosie girl,” he whispers into my spine before sitting up,gripping my hips, and pounding me until I see stars. He comes with a muffled grunt, falling onto the bed next to me afterwards.
“I love you, too,” I say, kissing his sweaty forehead.
“Fuck, I like hearing that. Been waiting an eternity,” he pants.
“An eternity, huh?”
“Yes, Thea.” He gives me a serious look. “From the moment I first saw you in those red cowboy boots—we need to pull those back out, by the way?—”
“They don’t fit anymore,” I whine, cursing my swollen feet.
“I’ll buy you new ones. From the moment I stepped into that bar,” he continues, “I was a goner.”
Jules traces my body with his hand, from my shoulders down to my hips. “I still can’t believe you’re mine.”
