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“They’re drunk,” Cole said. He turned to me, eyes ablaze. “But enough about them—you are so hot when you fight for me, babe.”
“That wasn’t even a fight,” I said, tossing my hair. “If you want to see me throw down, just bring that bitch back here.”
Cole looked impressed. “That’s so hot—that’s thebride, Jenny. You gonna fight the bride for me?”
“I would, baby,” I cooed, pressing myself against him. We started seriously making out then, with Cole’s hands all over my ass. Almost getting into a fight with Evie had gotten me all hot and bothered. Howdareshe try and flirt with my man! Hot pride bloomed in my chest as his hands roamed over me. He deepened our kiss. I forgot all about James and Audrey, all about Evie, and all about batting billionaires around like cat toys.
Iwas being batted around, and I liked it.
As the night wore on, the party got increasingly louder. It seemed as though everybody was drinking a lot and having a good time. Todd and Evie were still dry-humping in their corner—I was pretty sure the uptight Preston family didn’t lovethat!
James and Audrey snuck out a little before midnight. Audrey winked at me, and I gave her a thumbs-up. Cole still had his hands on my ass, just where I liked them.
“Do you want to get out of here, too?” Cole whispered.
“You don’t have to ask me twice.”
Cole was toodrunk to drive. He called for a private car. Five minutes later, a black Escalade pulled in front of the restaurant. The driver hopped out, opened the door for us, and then whisked us off into the night.
Being a billionaire didn’t suck.
In the back of the Escalade, Cole threw his arm around me. I snuggled against him. He kissed the top of my head, then yawned. “It’s pretty late to head to the game. Some other ones are coming up, babe. Want to go to one of them instead?”
I’d forgotten all about theThunderand our box seats. The nine rum punches must’ve clouded my thoughts. I yawned, too. “Absofuckinglutely. It’s been a long day. A long one, but a good one.”
“I agree.” He kissed the top of my head again. “I agree.”
We stumbled into the Liberty, and I was relieved that the bitchy Windsor sisters were long gone. Up in the penthouse suite, I carefully stripped out of my dress, hung it up, washed off my makeup, and brushed my teeth. Then I climbed into bed next to Cole and sighed when I rested my head on his insanely soft pillows.
“This is nice, Coley. Real nice.”
He pulled me against his chest and kissed my forehead. “It’s the nicest, Jenny. Especially with you here.”
Cole promptly started snoring.
Sleep eluded me for a few minutes, and I wasn’t sure why. That is until I realized that I was listening to the beating of Cole’s heart and wondering if, just if, he meant what he’d said.It’s the nicest…especially with you here.
Forget about it, Jenny,I thought.He’s just a John.
As Audrey said earlier, I was smart. It was my secret weapon, and I was not above using it on myself.
COLE
Sleeping with Jenny was lovely,and I didn’t mean sleeping with her sleeping with her. I meant sleepingnextto her.
I never let the women I dated sleep over. As in, neverever. As soon as we finished having sex, I was out the door. If it were the unfortunate circumstance that we’d ended up at my place, I’d make some excuse about having to take meetings with my global business partners in the middle of the night. Then I’d call for a car and send the woman on her way.
I never called and asked for a second date. I never texted. I was, as Shirley had once said, about as emotionally unavailable as you could get. But this thing with Jenny was different. She was my paid roommate, so that made her presence “safe.” Having her in my bed was expected. It was part of the deal.
I was surprised, however, by just how much I enjoyed it.
The thing was, she snored. She splayed her legs out and took over more than her fair share of the bed. I usually couldn’t stand anyone touching me while I slept, but when she pressed up against me, I felt comfortable. Despite drinking way too much at the party, I’d slept great.
I was a chronically early riser. So when I woke up, Jenny was still asleep. Sunlight streamed through the windows andframed her pretty face. She looked so innocent, so vulnerable. Something unfurled inside my chest; some sort of grip loosened its hold. I didn’t know what that meant. But I did know that as I watched Jenny, I had this overwhelming urge to protect her. How was someone so sweet stuck working as an escort? How did that happen? I had no idea what her life was like. I just knew that she was funny and beautiful and that she stood up for herself.
She probably has to stand up for herself a lot.It was an unpleasant thought. I didn’t want to picture the dark side of what Jenny had to endure as part of her job.
Sighing, I climbed from the bed. I had a private chef who left meals prepared for me; I’d asked him to make double portions while Jenny was staying with me. I padded out to the kitchen, made myself a coffee, and pulled out breakfast from my enormous refrigerator. It was homemade waffles with berries, and it looked delicious.Yum. I plated everything, then went and watched the sun rise higher in the sky.