Page 82 of Billionaire Bachelor
I smile. “That’s the first time you’ve called me that.”
She opens one eye, looking up at me. “No, it’s not.”
“Uh,yeah, it is. Trust me, I would’ve remembered.”
Her lips press together as she thinks. Then she opens the other eye and says, “Huh. Well, I’ve said it inside my head a bunch.”
“Is that so?” I arch a brow. “Does that mean you want to officially be my girlfriend?”
Rosie twists her body until she’s sitting up beside me. “Doyouwant to officially be my boyfriend?”
“Hmm.” I stroke my beard in mock contemplation. “Jury’s still out.”
“Dick.” She smacks my arm, making me laugh.
I catch her wrist before she can pull away and yank her onto my lap.
I cradle her jaw and press our foreheads together. “I don’t know if those titles feel quite right.”
“Me neither.” Her nose scrunches. “But what else is there?”
I remind myself now is not the time to impulsively propose marriage just because I’d much rather be her husband.
“Ooh!” She holds up a finger. “You could be my loverboy. Or maybe boytoy. Wait…I know! We could be each other’sluv-ahs.” Rosie grins, as if she’s so proud of her smartassery.
I playfully bite the tip of her pointed finger. “Uh, no. I’m gonna veto all of those options.”
She sticks her tongue out. “Lame.”
“Significant other? Partner?” My lips twitch. “What about bae?”
“Ew.” She makes a face. “You’re really freaking bad at this, Logan. Like, terrible.”
“Christ, tell me how you really feel,” I joke, tickling her side. “I think what I came up with is a lot better thanboytoy, thank you very much.”
“Yeah, toyou,” she mutters.
I smile, unable to resist the urge to lean in for a quick kiss. “Rosie, if you want to call me your boyfriend, I’m fine with that. But if it doesn’t feel right, why do we need a label for somebody else’s benefit? I know you’re the only person I want to be with, and vice versa. I say we skip ’em and just be…together. What do you think?”
Rosie wriggles her butt, smiling when she feels my body responding to hers. “I’d be okay with that.”
“Well, then we’ll run with it.” I wrap my hands around her hips. “Are you sure you’re doing okay with this whole photo leak situation? I’m sorry I kissed you out in public like that. I know better, but it’s been so long since they’ve published a photo of me, and we’ve been a little more relaxed about being out together…I guess it slipped to the back of my mind.”
“Logan, Ireallydon’t care,” she assures me, beautiful brown eyes unwavering. “I’ve always known it was a possibility, and you have no reason to apologize. Sure, the timing sucks, and I’m not exactly thrilled they’ve resurrected thebillionaire bachelor.” I chuckle when Rosie rolls her eyes and frames those last two words with a set of air quotes.
“But I know how the cycle goes,” she continues. “The gossipmongers will get bored soon enough. If there’s no interest in gossip, there’s no demand for photos. If there’s no demand for photos, the paps aren’t going to waste their time. I’m a big girl, Logan. I can handle a few dickheads toting cameras, or keyboard warriors talking shit about someone they’ve never met.Weknow the truth, and that’s what matters to me.”
Just when I think she couldn’t possibly be more perfect for me, she proves me wrong.
Most of the women I’ve dated since my name started making headlines were all about the photo ops. I even discovered a few of them were tipping off the paps themselves. I already knew Rosie wasn’t that type of person, but it’s still nice to hear because I’ve always fucking hated the attention. I was more worried about her taking offense to something the internet assholes might say, but I should’ve known she’d brush it off without a second thought. Rosie gets paid to manage and shape a celebrity’s public image. She knows how this stuff works much better than I ever will.
I frame her face with my hands. “Rosalie Elena Morales, you’re fucking spectacular, you know that?”
Her pink lips curve into a crooked grin as she mirrors my pose. “Logan I-Don’t-Have-A-Middle-Name-Even-Though-That’s-Totally-Weird Edwards, you’re pretty fucking amazing yourself. But you know you’ve already got me, right? You can back off on the swoon a bit. Save some for later, so you don’t have to blow your whole load all at once. Ya know?”
“‘Back off on the swoon?’” I laugh. “You know, I’d like to think I’m fairly fluent in Rosie-speak, but I’m a little stumped on this one.”
“Oh, please.” She rolls her eyes as she sits back. “You know damn well what you do to me by being all sweet, and smolder-y, and sexy, one hundred percent of the time. Isn’t that exhausting?”
