Page 126 of Boyfriend of the Hour

Nathan’s eyes met mine, large and mournful, as his fingers tickled my nape. “It’s not something I like to talk about when it happens. It’s rare, but it’s always a risk.”

“Who was it, another mommy makeover?” Carrick snickered. “It’s gotta get old staring at so many saggy tits, man.”

I glared at him. Asshole.

Carrick seemed to think that was even funnier.

“Cosmetic surgeries are only about half of what I do, as I’ve told you several times.” Nathan’s tone was cold, but his hand clutched mine hard, full of heat. “Most of my days are spent dealing with burn victims.”

I looked up at him again. “Really?”

His eyes warmed when they met mine. “Really. I specialize in reconstruction.”

Another piece of the puzzle that was Nathan Hunt clicked into place. The fact that he didn’t just spend every day enabling women like me to get bigger breasts for bigger tips, but actually helped people recover from major trauma, made a lot more sense, given his personality.

But it still didn’t explain why he had chosen this path rather than following the one his family had set out for him. The one they still wanted him to follow.

“How long ago was that?” Carrick asked as he slouched back in his chair.

“Almost five months,” I supplied cheerily since, apparently, we were telling the truth. “If you count the first four after we met when we barely spoke.”

“Fivemonths?” Carrick looked between us, glass halfway to his mouth. “And she’s already moved in?”

Nathan shrugged. “Neither of us has a lot of free time, so when her living situation fell through and Aiden moved out, it made sense for her to be here. I like having her around.”

I grinned up at him. “Aw, babe, I like being around you too.”

I found myself searching for the lie. For any sign that it was just an act. Because itwasan act. I had to keep telling myself that.

Nathan’s full mouth curled in a mischievous half-smile, as if he was enjoying playing this game as much as I was.

Unthinking, I toyed with the hem of his shirt, playing my fingertips over the ridges of his lower stomach. It was nothing I wouldn’t have done in a typical relationship, but it clearly caught him by surprise as the muscles contracted immediately under my touch.

Nathan leaned down to put his mouth by my ear and speak in a gruff, low voice. “Unless you want me to molest you in front of my brother, you need to stop doing that immediately.”

I froze and pulled my hand away. “Oh. Sorry.”

His other hand closed over mine again, keeping it where it was—on top of his clothes but still on his person. “Don’t be.”

We blinked at each other for a moment.

On impulse, I kissed him. Just a stamp, barely a peck, but the hand at my nape threaded into my hair and held me a second longer than I planned.

His tongue touched mine, but only just. When I pulled back, my face was heated. His cheeks were also pinked.

We both turned back to find Carrick watching us. Unfortunately, he looked more suspicious than ever.

Was it that strange to be seeing his brother kissing a girl?

“Sounds like you’re positively stewing in domestic bliss, brother,” he said as he rotated his glass in his hand. “And what do you guys like to do with all this ‘free time’ you have together now?”

“Reading,” Nathan said at the same time I spouted, “Netflix and chill.”

Our eyes met in a collision of awkward.

“Um, right,” I amended. “Yeah. Reading. Love it.”

Under my hand, Nathan chuffed like a tiger. He knewexactlyhow much I liked to read.