Page 74 of Bargain With the Boss

I pushed myself up and looked down at his sleeping form. He’d propped his head up on one of the bolster pillows that we’d discarded. It looked incredibly uncomfortable, but he’d stayed.

“Don’t make me fall in love with you,” I whispered.

He moved a little but didn’t wake up, thankfully.

I didn’t need him to hear that little confession.

I quietly and slowly removed myself, and his legs instantly shifted and his arms crossed at his middle. His curls fell over his forehead and softened his features. Dammit, he was far too adorable.

And I couldn’t moon over him.

I quietly went back inside and cleaned up after our meals and straightened the bed. I gasped at the state of my hair when I caught my reflection. I tried to push it back, but spotted Xavier in the doorway in the same mirror.

He stretched out his arms, yawning hugely. His boxers rode low on his hips and his T-shirt was twisted.

I tried to push my hair back, but it was fairly hopeless.

Mid-yawn his face slid into a smile. “What time is it?”

“Late.”

He glanced down at my nightshirt. “I will forever love Sailor Moon.”

I flushed. “It’s soft.”

“It sure is.” He crossed the room. “I know firsthand.” He swept his hand down my back, dragging me against him.

I stiffened, unsure what to do with his easy affection. But he didn’t seem to notice, just slowly drew me into an unhurried box step. “What are you doing?”

“Finding a reason to touch you.”

“There’s no music.”

“Sure there is.” He maneuvered me until our legs were tangled. “Like a heartbeat.” He hummed lightly and widened the circle until we were dancing a bastardized waltz. “The one thing we have in common—knowing how to do this stupid dance.”

I laughed and let my feet fall into step with him. I didn’t have much cause to dance, but I’d been to enough charity functions that I knew the basics so that I wouldn’t stomp on an investor’s foot. Mostly I left the charm to my mother. She preferred it that way, but there was something to be said for the easy way Xavier held me.

Everything was easy for him. Charm came off him in a wave of pheromones. For once, I didn’t feel left behind.

And when he lowered his forehead to touch mine, I forgot the state of my hair and the ancient nightshirt I’d had since boarding school. I always packed it when I had to make a longer than overnight trip.

I had so few things that were a constant in my life other than work. Even my home was a sterile showcase for furniture that never quite made it to manufacturing. It was good enough to watch television for a few minutes while I shoveled in a premade meal from the cook my mother kept on retainer.

Not to care for me, but to keep my calorie count where she wanted.

“Where did you go?”

“Hmm?” I lifted my gaze to meet his. “Sorry.”

“Good side trip?” He lowered his mouth, teasing my lips with a barely there kiss.

“Better now.”

He smiled into the kiss and I let thoughts of home float away. If I only had one night to forget my directives and twisted family, I didn’t want to waste it.

I linked my arms around his neck and went on my toes so my breasts brushed his chest. The barely there material left my nipples sensitive and tight. His arm tightened around me as his other hand slid down to tease with the hem of the shirt, then he groaned as he noticed there was nothing beneath.

I sighed as he cupped my ass then lightly drew little circles along the slope up to the small of my back and slid his leg between mine until there was no space between us. It was easy where the other times had been overwhelming and drugging. Now, I let my fingers learn his body.