Page 5 of Cash (Big Hot Alphas 4)

“You here with anyone?” he asks.

I detect a flicker of possessiveness in his eyes, which both surprises and amuses me.

“Nope,” I say. “It’s just me. On a vacation for one.” I pause. “You?”

“I’m here with my folks and my sister,” he says.

I’m sharply aware of how relieved I feel when he doesn’t addand my girlfriend.

Or, God forbid,and my wife.

“Listen, we were just going to grab some lunch,” he says. “Why don’t you join us?”

“Oh, I couldn’t,” I say. “You’re here with your family. I wouldn’t want to intrude.”

“We’ve spent the last five days with each other. Trust me, you aren’t intruding.”

I spend another second taking him all in—his disheveled hair, his insistent eyes, his perfect smile.

“Only if youreallydon’t think they’ll mind,” I say.

“Promise they won’t,” he says.

A few minutes later,when we show up at the restaurant that his parents and sister are already seated at, they all greet me warmly. I’ve always liked his family, and it doesn’t feel awkward to sit with them; in fact, it’s actually really nice. Cash’s mom asks me what I’ve been up to since high school, and I tell them about the men’s loungewear brand I’m a photo shoot producer for.

“Oh my God, that sounds like my dream job,” says Felicity. “You ever date any of the models?”

I smile. “No. Can’t say I ever have.”

“Damn, girl. How do you resist?”

I laugh and shrug. When I glance over at Cash, I see that flicker of possessiveness again in his eyes.

“So…what do you do?” I ask him.

“Voice-over work,” he says.

“Really? What kind of projects do you work on?”

“A little bit of everything. Corporate stuff. Commercials. Audiobooks.”

“Cash, that’s awesome.”

And the more I think about it, the more it seems perfect for him. Hedoeshave a great voice, after all—a soothing, commanding, sexy voice. I could listen to him talk forever.

The conversation keeps flowing as the meal goes on and night falls. As the meal is wrapping up, Cash leans over to me and asks if I want to keep hanging out for a while. I smile and nod. A few minutes later, when we’re all standing up and getting ready to leave, Cash announces that the two of us are going to grab a drink.

“Thanks so much for letting me join you for dinner,” I tell his family.

“Oh, of course, honey,” his mom says, smiling at us in a way that reminds me of the way she smiled at us when Cash and I went to our junior prom. “You two have fun.”

Cashand I find a tiki bar a short walk away from the restaurant and grab seats on two rattan stools. Lights are strung all around the bar, and soft ukulele music is playing overhead. After the bartender mixes our drinks, he gives us a little nod and steps away to busy himself at the other end of the bar.

“So tell me more about the voice-over stuff,” I say. “How does that work? Do you record in a studio?”

“I’ve got a setup in my apartment, actually,” says Cash. “It’s not ideal, but it gets the job done. If I ever buy a house, I’ll build something more robust.”

“Yeah? Are you house-hunting?”

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