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"Why didn't you wake me up?"
He kissed my forehead. "You're adorable when you're asleep, and I wore you out good."
I sighed. "That you did." I touched his chest and then his shoulders. He was tense, but I instinctively knew there wasn't anything I could do to truly help him relax. Not until the crisis was over.
"Want us to head back to the office?" I asked.
"No, there's no use. Everyone in bed right now, but we're meeting early tomorrow morning. The plan is to ambush Cyrus before handing him over to the commission."
"That sounds like a solid way to deal with it."
"I don't think I'll be able to sleep at all," he added.
"Hmm, what could we do for the rest of the night?" I asked. "Oh, I know. You brought all those marshmallows. We can't let them go to waste, can we?"
In the darkness, I felt him grin against my forehead. "No way, babe."
We dressed quickly and headed outside. I blushed furiously when we passed the staircase. I wasn't sure how I'd look at it again without remembering all the delicious things he did to me against that wooden pole.
He draped his jacket around my shoulders again as we stepped out. The fire was out, of course, but Chase stoked it backup in no time. He stepped behind me, curling his arms around my waist as I held the marshmallow stick over the fire, watching intently so it didn't burn.
"Why didn't you tell me you and my brothers were on to suspicious activity?" he asked.
"We wanted to make sure there was something there and that we didn't worry you for nothing."
"You don't need to protect me." His voice was a bit tight.
I turned around. "Hello, pot, I'm kettle. Didn't you just do the same with me?"
He growled. "That's different. You're mine to protect."
"Then the reverse is true as well."
He kissed my cheek, and I gasped as the marshmallows melted and fell off the stick.
"Oh no," I said, pushing him back playfully with my ass. "Look what you did."
He chuckled. "It's a good thing I brought a few bags."
"I agree."
We spent the next few hours roasting marshmallows and enjoying each other until the sun came up.
"It’s beautiful," I murmured as we sat on the back porch, watching the golden globe inch higher up in the sky.
Chase didn't reply at all. His chin was nestled in the crook of my neck, his arms wrapped around me.
I soaked in the peace and magic of the moment. We definitely needed it for the day ahead.
Chapter Thirty-Two
Chase
My brothers and I met at eight o'clock. Duncan had sent an email to Cyrus the night before, asking him to come into the meeting room. He’d made it sound as if we simply wanted to catch up with members of the management team.
I paced around the meeting room, glancing out the window. I couldn't believe Cyrus would do this. It was true we’d started on the wrong foot all those years back, when his company went bankrupt because most of his customers preferred us. We were modern, more daring, and brought better returns. But he'd been with us for years. We’d often butted heads and didn't see eye to eye on many things, but this was something else entirely. He was essentially framing us for insider trading.
There was a reason the SEC talked to each of us. We were their prime suspects.