Page 77 of Arranged Silverfox

Sebastian noticed that I’d gone quiet and placed a supportive hand on my shoulder.

“I know I probably shouldn’t speak ill of my mother-in-law, but your mom really sucks,” he said. I almost laughed at his attempt to be supportive.

“I’m sorry, you didn’t deserve that,” he added.

“It’s funny, I don’t think she’s that bad sometimes, but then I tell people about her, and I hear it out loud, and then it all comes rushing back to me that she’s a horrible person.”

“Well, let’s go find a not-horrible cake, and if she starts something, she’ll have to deal with me,” Sebastian promised.

I relaxed back into his arms momentarily before forcing myself up and out of bed.

“When we have kids, they’re never going on diets, okay?” I said.

Sebastian nodded vigorously. “I sort of thought that was already agreed upon, seeing as they’re children.”

I shook my head. “It should be. I blame old-money aristocrats who are used to guzzling diet pills. Did you know those things are basically speed? I was on a few when I was in high school, and for three months, I was absolutely out of my mind. Like, I could not stop moving. My resting heart rate was probably insane.”

Sebastian got up and wrapped his arms around my waist. “You never have to change anything about your body ever again, got it? You’re perfect.”

I shook my head and tried to free myself from his grasp, uncomfortable with the attention, but he pulled me back against his warm chest and kissed my neck before capturing my lips.

“You have to say that. You’re my fiancé,” I grumbled.

Sebastian smirked. “I don’t say things I don’t mean. Rebecca Elise Cavanaugh, you’re perfect. Your body is perfect. You’re brilliant. You have the best ass on planet Earth. Your tits are perfect,” he ran his hand over my boobs, “Your waist is perfect. Need I go on?”

I laughed. “No. We need to get ready. The only thing that will make this worse is if we’re late.” I dug through my closet and pulled out a light pink sundress with a modest neckline. The fabric scrunched up slightly around my knees, and I yanked it to cover them. My mother thought dresses that were above knee-length were reserved for, in her words, “streetwalkers and charlatans.”

I smoothed the fabric of the dress, which was tight around my midsection. I yanked it down again, hoping it only shrunk in the wash. I knew that weight gain was a common side effect of birth control, but I was still annoyed. Sebastian peeked his head out of the bathroom, toothbrush in hand, and saw me studying myself in the mirror.

“You look great!” he called.

I rolled my eyes. “Again, you have to say that.” I walked into the bathroom, brushed my teeth, and tied my hair up in a loose bun. I rummaged through my makeup bag and pulled out my tinted moisturizer, pumping some onto my hand before applying a thin layer on my nose and under my eyes. After this week, the bags under my eyes looked more like luggage.

“I’ll keep saying it until you believe it,” Sebastian said.

He moved to kiss my cheek, and I pulled away.

“You’ll ruin my makeup!” I squeaked.

Soon we were both ready for the day. I poured two to-go mugs full of cold brew and handed one to Sebastian. I’d brought home a container of cold brew from work last week once I realized that Eugenia was about to have me pulling twelve-hour days. I told myself it wasn’t stealing since I owned the business.

“Do you have any creamer?” Sebastian asked.

“I have oat milk,” I said, gesturing to the refrigerator.

Sebastian rolled his eyes, “Oat milk is hippie shit.”

“And creamer's nothing but chemicals and sludge, don't knock it until you try it,” I shot back.

Sebastian sighed and poured some into his coffee and took a sip, “I can understand why you would like plain coffee black, but cold brew? That’s hardcore.”

“I like what I like,” I said, slipping my feet into a pair of nude wedge heels. Sebastian slipped on his boat shoes.

“Oh, before we go! I know we’ll be tasting a lot of cake, but do you want a breakfast cookie? I made them the other night when I couldn’t sleep. It’s a new recipe. It’s got dark chocolate, oats, dried cherries, and peanut butter,” I said.

“Yeah, that sounds great, thank you,” Sebastian said. I walked over to the kitchen counter and grabbed two, plus a couple of napkins.

I handed one to Sebastian, and he took a bite, moaning with pleasure.

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