Page 24 of Rosé with My Fake Fiancé
“I don’t... I’m not out of your league,” I say with vehemence. “Regardless, I didn’t mean it. You aren’t embarrassing me. It’s just my behavior.” I feel like an idiot, and Luc’s probably glad I’m only here for a weekend.
With that thought, I remember that it’s my last night in Paris, and my stupid mouth, usually controlled and well-behaved, ruined it.
Luc’s mouth tightens for a moment, and Emma, Jade, and Sara take a few steps away to give us privacy.
“I am so sorry I dragged you into all this and said those things. You’ve been so kind to me this weekend, and that’s no way to treat a friend—especially not a fake fiancé.” He watches me for a few heartbeats before the lines around his mouth ease. I like those lines a lot better when it’s his infectious smile causing them.
I reach for his hand, and he gives me it. “I’m sorry.”
Luc tugs hard enough that I fall forward, a hand on his chest as he catches me. “Thank you,” he says in French. His voice is low and in my ear, causing a shiver to roll up my spine. “For what it’s worth, you handled the situation with grace. You didn’t make a scene; you didn’t confront him. He did it to himself. You were much more mature than most people would have been in that situation.”
I smile at the compliment and drop his hand. I press both my palms to his chest between us and look up at him. We may have been faking our relationship and kissing for show, but I know that I’ll kick myself if I don’t take a chance to enjoy myself with this kind, flirty man.
Dancing with Luc was so fun. So many guys I’ve dated are uptight about dancing. James was like that, unable to get his hips to relax and feel the music. But Luc slipped right in, and we quickly found a rhythm together, bodies moving with the beat, his hand on my waist, pressing his whole body and grinding against me while protectively surrounding me.
Luc is not my typical kind of guy. But his flirting and his dancing have me wondering what it would be like to go back to his place and have a wild, out-of-character night before I fly to Portugal and am out of his life.
I’ve never dated someone much younger than me, and I can’t help but think about how women peak sexually later in life. Is it possible to have the best sex of your life in your forties? The thought makes me shiver.
Perhaps this is an opportunity for me to find out.
I gaze up at Luc. “I want to invite you home with me tonight. However, I do have three roommates.” I dramatically glance over at my friends, all of whom quickly glance away, and Luc’s chuckle reverberates in his chest.
He looks down at me with a lopsided smile full of affection, which makes my heart swell. All forgiven.
But then he sighs and rakes a hand through his hair, the death blow to his styled hair that’s made it through a sweaty dance floor, and I wonder if I’m not so easily forgiven.
“My flat is...” He cringes. “Not very nice.”
“Oh, Luc,” I say, pulling him against me. “I want to be with you. I promise you; your place doesn’t matter. Maybe this is a good lesson for us to learn,” I say, tilting my head toward my friends. “Ifsomeone,”—I cough with faux-discretion — “Jade,”—cough, cough. Luc laughs—“were to bring a man home, then perhaps we should book two hotel rooms for our weekend getaways.”
“Connected rooms!” Jade shouts, proving they’ve been eavesdropping.
“All right,” Luc says, and he smiles down at me.
I raise my voice, and the ladies wander back toward us. “I’m going with Luc.”
“We’re going to head back to the hotel,” Sara says. My friends take turns hugging me.
“You know how to get back?” Luc asks.
Jade pats his cheek. “Yes. Give her a good time.” She winks before sauntering in the direction of the metro station.
Sara yawns and kisses my cheek. “Proud of you tonight,” she whispers in my ear. “I like the boost of confidence you had tonight. I wonder where that came from.” She looks pointedly at Luc and smirks at me.
Emma looks pointedly at Luc. “Where do you live?”
Luc rattles off his address, and Emma types it into her phone. She points two fingers at her eyes and then at his. “Consider this your warning.”
Luc just nods, and we wave goodbye to them. “What exactly was Emma’s warning?” He pulls out his phone and orders a rideshare while I press my body up against his. “She’s threatening to lie in bed worrying about me, call the cops in the morning if she hasn’t heard from me by nine, and then she’d unleash Jade on you.”
Luc shivers, but I’m pretty sure it’s because I’ve pressed my lips to the hollow of his throat and not because he’s worried about Emma’s threats. I follow the kiss with a lick. He’s salty and musky, and I’m sure we both would appreciate a shower before we tumble into bed.
“Two minutes for our car,” he says, putting his phone back in his pocket. “What can we do for two minutes?”
Without hesitation, Luc pulls me to him, and his mouth is on mine again. I nearly stumble in his eagerness, and his lips pressed against mine twist in amusement while he firms his grip. I don’t have time to think about the party we’ve left behind or the kisses in the hallway before I’m drowning in the here and now of kissing a man who’s so enthusiastic about going home with me.
11
