Page 57 of Consummation (The Josh & Kat Trilogy #3)

Thirty-Seven

Josh

“Oooooh, a white limo,” Kat says, settling herself into the backseat. She shoots me a snarky smile. “Just like in the final scene of Pretty Woman. ”

“Ssh,” I say, pulling the skirt of Kat’s gown out from under my thigh as I scoot closer to her in the back seat. “This is my top fantasy—not yours, baby. You’re here to react, not to try to figure things out.”

“Okay, well, my reaction is, ‘Hey, you arranged a white limo just like that awesome final scene in Pretty Woman. ’”

I roll my eyes. “Smart-ass.”

Kat grins.

I glance through the rear window of the limo just in time to see our driver closing the trunk. My stomach somersaults with excitement. This is it.

The driver walks along the length of the limo and settles into his seat up front.

“You got everything into the trunk?” I ask, referring to more than just our overnight bags.

“Yes, sir,” the driver says. “Everything’s there.” He winks.

“Fantastic,” I say. “Let’s blow this popsicle stand.”

The limo begins to pull away.

“Where are we going?” Kat asks, looking out the car window at the small airport we’re leaving behind.

“Are you hungry, Party Girl?” I ask, completely ignoring her question. “There’s a platter here—fruit, cheese, tapenade, crackers, prosciutto.”

“Oh, God, yes. Thank you. I’m starving .” Kat begins literally stuffing food into her mouth like her very life depends on it. After a moment, she giggles at herself. “Dude, I’m in full Homer-Simpson mode,” she says. “Nom nom nom. I can’t control myself.”

“The kumquat’s really hungry, huh?” I ask.

“Pretty much all the time these days. She’s a demanding little thing.”

I open my mouth to make a snarky comment but Kat holds up her hand.

“Don’t say it,” she says, mock-glaring at me.

I smash my lips together and we both laugh.

“You know, the two of us are really not behaving in a way becoming of people dressed in formalwear,” Kat says, chomping on a piece of cheese.

“Thank God,” I say.

“Yeah, sure, it’s all fun and games for us , but definitely not for the flight attendant,” Kat says. “It really wasn’t that big a plane, poor thing.”

“Oh, she’ll survive. We can’t possibly be the first people to fuck like rabbits on a private plane.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure,” Kat says. She giggles. “Surely other people fuck, but not like that —that was pretty enthusiastic , even for us, Josh. Dressed in a gown like this, I really should have acted much more like a proper young lady on that plane. Tsk, tsk.”

I lean forward and touch Kat’s chin. “Promise me something, babe,” I say.

“Anything, my love.”

“Promise me, no matter what, you’ll never, ever act like a proper young lady as long as we both shall live.”

A lovely smile spreads across Kat’s face. “I promise.”

“Thank you.”

A few minutes later, after Kat’s finished eating like a truck driver suffering from mad cow disease, she scoots closer to me on the car seat and rests her head on my shoulder. “Thank you for this amazing day, Josh,” she says. “This is the best day of my life.” She clasps her fingers in mine.

“That’s sweet,” I say nonchalantly. “But your feelings are completely irrelevant, since today is for my benefit and not yours.”

Kat giggles. “You’re so full of shit.”

We silently watch the passing scenery through the car window for several minutes, the Southern California ocean glimmering in the late-afternoon light. “I’ve never been to San Diego,” Kat says. “It’s beautiful here.”

“Yeah, I love it here,” I say. “I usually make it down here a couple times a year during racing season. I’ve got several good friends who own racehorses.”

“Of course, you do. I’m shocked you don’t own a couple yourself.”

“Meh. I did a few years ago. But it turns out racehorses are fucking money pits to own—a lot more fun when someone else is paying the bills.”

“God, ain’t that the truth,” Kat says, squeezing my hand. “It’s what I always say.”

We look out at the passing scenery again, our hands clasped comfortably.

“I love the ocean,” Kat says. “Especially at this time of day when the light is soft and golden.”

Just like your hair , I think, stroking the full length of her soft, golden mane—but, of course, I keep that thought to myself.

There’s only so much poetic babbling a guy can do in one day and I’ve got to rest up for all the poetic babbling that lies ahead.

I stare at the passing scenery for a long minute, stroking Kat’s glorious hair, breathing in the scent of her, thinking about what I’m gonna say to her when we reach our destination.

“Staring at the ocean always makes me feel small, but in a good way,” Kat says quietly, looking out the window.

“Me, too,” I say. “Like my problems don’t matter in the grand scheme of things.”

“You have problems?” she asks.

I kiss the top of her head. “Not anymore.”

Kat nuzzles into me. “I wish I had something amazing to give you—the male equivalent of a Carolina Herrera gown and diamonds, whatever that would be—so you could feel the way I do right now.”

“Well, the male equivalent of a Carolina Herrera dress and diamonds would be an Italian sports car—which I already have. But, don’t worry, you’ve already given me something ten times better than that.”

Kat lifts her head, apparently about to say something, but yawns, instead.

“Damn, you’re hard to impress,” I say .

She giggles. “Sorry. It’s been an exciting day. I’m duly impressed, I assure you.”

I open my arms to her and pat my heart. “Lay your cheek right here, beautiful. Close your eyes for a bit.”

Kat nuzzles into my chest. “Where are we headed?” she asks groggily.

“God, you’re a terrible listener,” I say, stroking her hair.

Kat purrs like a kitten against my chest and in less than a minute, her head droops like a dead weight. I shift in my seat, trying to make her more comfortable, but, inadvertently startle her awake, instead.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” I say. “I was trying to make you more comfortable. Go back to sleep, babe. I won’t move.”

“How long ’til we get wherever we’re going?” she asks, her voice thick with drowsiness. “Do I have time to sleep?”

“How much longer ’til we reach our destination?” I ask the limo driver.

“About thirty minutes, sir, depending on traffic,” the driver says.

“Plenty of time for a little nap, hot momma,” I say. “Go for it.”

Kat rests her cheek against me again. “I think I will, if that’s okay—just for a few minutes.”

Twenty seconds later, Kat’s out like a light, passed out with her cheek against my heart, her little belly underneath her red gown rising and falling evenly with every breath she takes.

When I’m sure Kat’s deeply asleep, I tilt her face up to mine and stare at her stunning features, marveling at God’s handiwork.

I trace the line of one of her bold eyebrows with my fingertip, brush the back of my hand against her cheekbone, stare for a long moment at her perfectly formed lips.

As evil as Kat’s startling beauty is when she’s awake, her face is actually quite angelic when she sleeps.

This isn’t the face of a woman who’d blindside me, is it?

After everything that’s passed between Kat and me since my first god-awful proposal, Kat wouldn’t shatter me by turning me down for a second time, would she?

My stomach flips over. If by some shocking turn of events Kat was actually telling the truth when she said she wouldn’t marry me if I were the last man on earth, if she truly doesn’t want all the “hoopla” of a wedding, if marriage truly isn’t something she yearns for in the depths of her soul—or, at least, not marriage with me —then I truly don’t think I’d survive the rejection .

My phone buzzes with an incoming text and I pull it out of my pocket.

“The eagle has landed,” Henn writes. “The fucker’s at his house. Go straight there. No Plan B required.”

“Well, how considerate of him to be home in time for my visit,” I write.

“Can you talk?” Henn writes.

I look down at Kat. Her mouth is hanging open and she’s drooling. “Calling now,” I write.

“Yo,” Henn says when he picks up my call.

“Nice of the bastard to be sitting at home, waiting for me,” I reply softly.

“He’s always home at this time of day after a round of golf at the country club. But just to make double-damn sure he was gonna be there for you today, he might have received a VIP-invitation to a live chat with his favorite porn star. Wink .”

“Fucking genius.”

“So I’ve been told. How close are you?”

I glance at Kat, making sure she’s not overhearing any of this, and she’s snoozing like she’s been cold-cocked. “We’re in the limo now,” I say quietly. “I’d say we’re about fifteen minutes out.”

“Cool. The dude’s not going anywhere. He’s watching a gangbang- bukkake -porno on his iPad while simultaneously live-chatting with a porn star on his laptop.”

“He’s double-fisting porn?” I ask.

Henn laughs. “I think he might have an addiction.”

“Ya think?” I say.

“So, hey, I went through the dude’s computer like you asked me to,” Henn says. “You were right—he’s totally cheating on his wife. Like, compulsively.”

“Yeah, I figured. A leopard doesn’t change his spots.”

“The guy’s a scumbag,” Henn says. “I literally hate him.”

“Welcome to the club,” I say.

“I went through his wife’s phone and laptop just to get the lay of the land and she’s a total sweetheart—a genuinely good person. Clearly, she’s got no idea who she’s married to.”

“Not surprised at all.”

“So are you gonna rat him out? ”

“I wish I could so badly—but, no, I wasn’t planning to, for the sake of the wife.”

“Yeah, I guess that’s the right call. It’s not really our place to ruin her life. But it kills me. They’re trying to have a baby—doing hard-core fertility treatments. I hope one way or another she finds out she’s married to a cheating scumbag before she gets pregnant with the guy’s kid.”

“So you think we should rat him out, after all?” I ask.

“No,” Henn says. “It’s really not our place, man. That’s not the mission.”

I sigh. “Damn. I would have loved to decimate that cocksucker in every conceivable way.”