Page 65 of Bossy Wicked Prince

I don’t think anyone has worked this hard to make me feel special. I can imagine Nate going to the coffeeshop next door and picking out a muffin for me, since he definitely doesn’t keep baked goods in his dead-empty kitchen. Then he came down and tiptoed around to leave me the note without waking me.

Snapping a photo of the now-empty muffin wrapper, I text it to Nate.

Cat

I’m awake, and the muffin has been devoured, as you instructed.

His response comes back almost immediately.

Nate

Good. Enjoy your day off, Kitten.

Every time he uses that nickname, it makes my heart thud in my chest. Granted, he usually calls me Kitten right before he makes me come so hard, my knees give out.

But I think I like it even better when he uses it like this, casually. A reminder that he thinks about me when I’m not actively kissing him.

My appetite for breakfast might be satisfied, but I’m so, so freaking starving for more of Nate. I’m going to make tonight’s dinner one to remember. First stop: Nate’s shower. Then, my favorite French bakery to get fresh bread for croque monsieurs and macarons for dessert. With a nice bottle of Bordeaux, it’ll be the perfect romantic night.

Though I have to say, eating plain old take-out pizza at Nate’s desk was pretty damn magical, too.

“Let me help you, miss,”the doorman says, hurrying to open the building door for me.

I shoot him a grateful smile, since my arms are full of bags. I might have gotten a little carried away shopping. Not only do I have cooking supplies, macarons, and two bottles of wine, I even picked up some candles to set the mood. I also stopped by my favorite flower cart for a big bouquet of pink peony tulips to put on the table.

I’m not sure I’ll ever look at anything that’s the color pink the same again.

The doorman walks me over to the private elevator, flashing his own security card so I don’t have to dig in my purse for mine. Nate must have told them to let me up. I like the idea of the building staff knowing Nate and I are together.

Except, we’re not together—not really. We’re just fooling around, which is completely fine. Great, actually, since anything more would cause problems for both of us. Him, with the board, and me with my job volunteering at the shelter.

This doesn’t have to be anything serious—just a chance to relax and enjoy myself with a guy who makes me feel so good. What was that Pippa said about getting railed in a luxury bed?

We don’t have to put a label on it. It can just be…fun. I don’t need commitment.

I repeat it to myself a few times until it feels true.

I shuffle my bags around so I can pull out my phone and send Nate a text.

Cat

On my way up to your place!

Nate

I’ll be there in less than an hour. I’ll help you cook.

Cat

Absolutely not. Maybe I can trust you to open the wine, though.

Nate

Looking forward to proving myself.

I realize that I’m grinning at my phone like a maniac. It’s so rare to get Nate to joke around, it makes me feel like I’ve unlocked something special.

The elevator doors open to the apartment that’s so familiar to me now. I walk straight to the kitchen to set my bags down on the counter when I spot someone out of the corner of my eye.