Page 12 of Marc (Men of Forbidden Temptation #2)

MARC

Sharing a bed with Staci is a dream come true, but I’ll never admit that out loud.

I tried to stay still and stick to my half of the bed, but once she fell asleep, she rolled over and pulled on my arm until I scooted closer to her in the middle of the king-sized bed.

She pressed her chest against my arm and wrapped her leg over mine.

The small sigh that came from her when she was wrapped all around me left my dick begging for attention.

But last night wasn’t about physical touch.

I would do anything to make Staci feel safe and protected, especially after the encounter with her ex-husband.

She was able to sleep soundly without any nightmares, so maybe coming here was one of my better ideas.

Staci pulls the cover over her head and stretches out her arms and legs. She almost grazes my morning wood with her leg.

She rolls over to face me. Her bright eyes bring a smile to my face.

“I don’t want to get out of bed. I know I need to because I am starving, but this bed is really nice and last night was probably the best night's sleep I’ve had in forever.”

I don’t want her getting out of bed either, but that’s for my own selfish reasons. But her confession about it being the best night's sleep boosts my ego a little.

“How about I order us some breakfast and we wait until after we’ve eaten to get out of bed?”

She sits up, crosses her legs, and says, “That sounds perfect. Like a dream come true. I love having breakfast in bed. In the meantime, I’ll find something for us to watch on the television.”

Turning on the television, she flips through the channels while I look at the breakfast menu.

I nudge her arm with my elbow. “Do you like pancakes or waffles more?”

She slowly turns towards me. “Uh, both. They are practically the same thing.”

I narrow my eyes at her.

Her eyes widen as confusion sets in. “What’s that look for?”

“Pancakes and waffles are not the same thing.”

That’s like saying chocolate and vanilla are the same and we all know that they aren’t .

She tilts her head towards me and shrugs her right shoulder. “Practically.”

I give her a pointed look and wait for her to explain her reasoning.

“Sure, they are different shapes, but waffles are just pancakes that go to the gym and workout.”

It takes a few moments to understand the analogy she just used.

A smile forms on my face and I let out a loud laugh as I imagine a pancake working out to bulk up and become a waffle.

When I stop laughing, I say, “They are totally different. One uses oil and the other one doesn’t.”

“But you oil the pan, so technically, they both use oil.”

She does have a point, albeit wrong, but I don’t want to spend the morning debating pancakes and waffles.

“Well, which one would you prefer to eat this morning?”

She thinks for a moment, presumably weighing both delicious options, before saying, “How about we order pancakes today?”

“Perfect.” I reply as I pick up the phone that is on my end table and dial the number for room service.

The same woman from last night answers after the second ring and immediately asks for my room number and our breakfast order.

I give her our room number and order pancakes for Staci and me, as well as a side of sausage links, bacon, hash browns, and coffee for two.

She recites the order back to me, and when I confirm it is correct, she says it will be twenty to thirty minutes.

Staci’s mouth falls open when I hang up the phone.

I know I ordered a lot of food for the two of us, but we are both pretty hungry and on vacation.

“What?” I ask when she continues to stare at me.

“You ordered coffee for two. I thought you didn’t like the bitter taste of coffee.”

“I don’t, but I figured I could use the caffeine this morning.”

Since I can’t stick to my normal routine and make a protein shake and workout, I might as well mix it up and have a cup of coffee with Staci.

She stops flipping through the channels when she stumbles on a house renovation show.

I might not have been in her house long, but I don’t remember seeing any need for major renovations. “Are you thinking about renovating your house, or do you just enjoy watching these types of shows?”

“I love watching these shows, but I’m not sure about renovating. Especially now that Jared knows where I live. Renovating is a lot of work, but it’s nice to have an updated house that feels brand new. Maybe I will just sell the house and start over.”

She frowns and looks sad at the thought of selling her house .

“I thought you loved living there?”

“I do. I love living next door to Miss Edith, and I love my house. Sure, it doesn’t have my dream bathroom or a huge kitchen island that I can fit a huge Thanksgiving meal on, but it is mine and it is home. Selling and starting over might be what I need, though.”

I stare at her. “Is that what you really want? Do you really want to sell your house and start over?”

“Not really, but as long as Jared knows where I am, then I’m not safe in my house.”

My heart aches knowing that her ex-husband is causing her this much trouble. She doesn’t deserve to feel like she is.

She doesn’t deserve any of this.

“We will take care of Jared and give you the freedom you deserve so you can feel safe and secure.”

One way or another, I will make sure of it.

She throws her hands up in exasperation.

“How? The only option I seem to have is to move to a different county, maybe even further away in another state. I’ll have to move the studio as well. I need to be far away from Jared. I need peace and safety.”

All of that sounds horrible.

I don’t want her moving to a different state and I don’t want her to move her studio. That would essentially end my modeling career and our budding friendship.

I place my hand on hers to calm her down. “ Whoa. Just relax. You don’t have to make any rash decisions right now. We can figure things out together when we are back home.”

Her voice is soft and full of uncertainty. “Together?”

“That’s what boyfriends are for, right?”

As soon as the word is out of my mouth, my heart pounds in my chest.

Boyfriend.

I love the way that sounds.

A little too much, if I’m being honest.

It leaves me wanting more than we agreed to. I’ve wanted to be her boyfriend since the day I met her, but she has bigger issues to focus on right now.

She doesn’t need to worry about my unresolved feelings.

I give her hand a light squeeze. “How about we worry less this weekend and just enjoy the new scenery away from work? We will have plenty of time to worry and come up with a solution when we return home.”

Her stomach lets out a loud growl. “Yeah, that sounds great. I should enjoy the vacation and leave the worrying to next week.”

We turn our attention back to the show that is currently showing the end results of the house renovations.

Pointing at the bathroom that is being shown on the television, I say, “I really like the bright white tile in the shower.”

I love my darker tile better, but for a small space like theirs, the white really pops and helps make the bathroom appear bigger.

She nods. “Yeah, I was hesitant about the large hexagon floor tiles because it’s such a different shape, but it looks really elegant.”

I wouldn’t choose a large tile for a small bathroom, let alone a hexagon shaped tile, but they made it look really nice. “I agree.”

A loud knock sounds on the hotel door.

I throw the covers off of my legs and stand. “I’ll get the door. It should be room service.”

After looking through the peephole, I open the door and greet the room service attendant.

“Good morning. Thank you so much.”

I take the tray full of covered plates, a carafe of coffee, and two coffee mugs before closing and locking the door.

I place the tray on the cover in front of Staci before getting back under the covers on my side of the bed.

“That smells delicious.” Staci says, while pouring two cups of coffee.

She hands me one of the cups before placing the other one on her end table.

“Thank you,” I say when I turn back around.

She nods and gives me a smile in return as her stomach lets out an aggressive growl.

I laugh and say, “I better feed you before that thing attacks me.”

She chuckles, “I’m not normally this hungry this early in the day. I guess being able to actually sleep all night and relax has helped my appetite.”

I want to relish the fact that she feels so comfortable with me, but I don’t want to keep her waiting any longer.

I remove the plate covers and we each take a stack of pancakes before grabbing some bacon, sausage and hash browns.

She tries a nibble of bacon before asking, “I know you said you have a sister. Is she your only sibling?”

I love that she wants to know more about me. It feels almost like a real relationship with both of us wanting to learn things about each other.

“Yeah, my parents were happy with only having two kids, especially one of each. They keep nagging my sister for grandkids, though.”

The slice of bacon dangles in front of her mouth as her eyes widen in surprise. “And not you?”

“Well, my sister is four years older, so they expect her to have kids before me. Plus, they know I am busy with modeling as well as helping in my dad’s office and don’t really have the time to truly focus on a wife and kids at the moment.”

They also know that I’m not dating anyone and haven’t since my ex.

“You can have one without the other.”

I can’t imagine having kids without being married. Maybe I am just old-fashioned that way, but that doesn’t appeal to me. Plus, it sounds like more work and lots of schedule conflicts .

“I know, but if I have kids, I’d like them to be with a wife. I want a family like I had growing up.”

“So, two kids and a white picket fence?”

“That is the American dream, isn’t it? Although there aren’t any white picket fences around home. We have lots of electric fences, though.”

We share a chuckle as we eat our breakfast.

Staci’s voice is low. “I think it is great that you have a plan for your future, so to speak. You know what you want and you know the time commitment it will take.”

Something stirs inside of me and compels me to ask, “What about you? Do you want kids in the future?”

She drops her fork to the plate and sighs. “To be honest, I’m not sure. My marriage with Jared changed me a lot. Sure, I crave companionship and want to be in a real relationship. I just don’t know if kids are in my future.”

I raise my eyebrow at her. I would never have expected her to not want kids. She is so patient and caring towards all the models that I just assumed she’d want to be a mom one day.

I can picture her surrounded by laughing kids.

She sits up straighter. “No offense to what we have going on right now with our fake relationship, but I’m just saying that I want a normal life, and I just don’t know if I am ready for marriage and kids.”

“I can understand that. Your last relationship, well, marriage, although short, was intense in all the wrong ways. You need time to heal and move on. That is normal, and I would be worried if you jumped straight into another marriage.”

Her laugh is care free and light. “There definitely won’t be any jumping into a marriage or relationship, more like easing one toe in at a time. Plus, with my family the way it is, I don’t want to deny any future kids love from their grandparents.”

So, because her family is a bunch of assholes, she might not have kids?

Family is more than just blood relatives.

Family is who loves you, supports you, and shows up for you no matter what.

“Your future kids don’t need fake toxic love. Plus, I’m pretty sure whether you stay in your house or move, Miss Edith will be a grandma to your kids.”

The edges of her eyes crinkle as she smiles. “That is true. She would love to spoil any and all kids.”

“What about your sister? You said you two were best friends growing up, but you haven’t mentioned her once since. Is she part of the family that disowned you?”

If she was as close to her sister as she said, why hasn’t she mentioned her sister again?

And if they were close, would her sister really disown her over her life decisions?

I guess it is a possibility since her parents did, even though I can’t imagine my parents disowning me because they don’t agree with my life choices .

Staci’s smile disappears as her gaze drops to her plate. Her mood completely changes and I regret asking about her sister.

It’s too late to take it back, but I would if I could turn back time. This weekend was supposed to be fun and relaxing, not sad and regretful.

She swallows loudly as her eyes get watery with tears.

Damn it. I really fucked up.

“Staci, I’m really sorry. I didn’t mean to pry or upset you. Please just ignore me and my stupid questions.”

She doesn’t look up at me when she whispers, “You didn’t upset me. To answer your question, no, my sister didn’t disown me. She died before I met Jared.”