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Flicking on the bedside lamp, I grin broadly when Nolan strides in, wearing nothing but a pair of boxer briefs that fit him like a second skin. He’s holding two steaming mugs, but my eyes are more fixated on the package between his powerful, muscle-bound thighs.
Well hello, morning wood.
“Hi,” he says, amused by the way I’m ogling him.
“Hi.” My cheeks burn from all this blushing.“What…?” I ask as he stands at the foot of the bed, staring.
He shakes his head as if snapping out of a trance. “Laying there on my bed, you’re drop dead gorgeous. It makes my heart stop. I can’t even believe this is real.”
I hide my face behind my palm. “Stop. I must look like a mess.”
He gently pries my hand away and looks into my eyes. “Gorgeous,” he says simply. “Drop dead gorgeous.”
I don’t know how to stop blushing. If my cheeks get any hotter, they’ll set off the smoke detector. I’ve always secretly wished Nolan would be attracted to me. But now that I’m experiencing it in real life, I’m realizing that my nervous system may not be up to the challenge. This is overwhelming.
He reaches out, handing me a cup of coffee. “Bacon okay?”
I sit up to grab the warm mug. “Bacon?” My stomach rumbles in response.
“Yeah. I got our coffee made, but now I’m going to finish up breakfast.”
“Breakfast?” I repeat again, pulling the bedspread higher up over my breasts. “Won’t Stella be home soon?”
Considering he’s walking around the house half-naked, I’m guessing that Stella is still over at her grandmother’s trailer across the yard.
“We have time,” he tells me. “Gen texted and offered to keep her a little while longer this morning.” He smirks. “I’m guessing she heard all the ruckus you were making all night.”
“Oh god…” I slap my hands over my face.
Genevieve is probably having a field day, knowing what Nolan and I were up to in here. But I refuse to dwell on that right now. I’m a grown woman. Nolan is a divorced man. And Genevieve seems to want whatever’s best for her granddaughter and her ex-son-in-law. So I push my guilt and embarrassment aside.
“Anyway, breakfast sounds amazing.” I smile at him. He smiles back.
Wow. None of this feels real. I’m still having a hard time wrapping my head around it.
“You good?”His voice is so tender, full of affection. My cheeks grow hotter as his eyes search mine.
“Mmm-hm. I’ll just…um…” I look around the room. “Hang out here?”
With its stained glass ceiling fan and its whimsical pastel wallpaper, Nolan’s bedroom is the perfect early morning retro hideaway. The Number One Dad trophy on the nightstand and Stella’s artwork collection on the wall are sweet reminders of what’s most important to him in this world.
He points a finger at me, slowly backing away. “Yes. Don’t you move a muscle. I’m coming back with food.”
I laugh as I watch him retreat back down the hall.
Before I can take my first sip from my mug, I hear the familiar ding of my phone. I glance around the room and find my purse sitting on the floor beside the bed. Nolan must have brought it in here for me at some point during the night. My chest aches. How is he always doing these considerate things for me? Wonderful, confusing man.
I reach into my bag and I have so much shit in there that I can’t even find my phone. I’m talking, body lotions, hairbrushes, bracelets, lip balms, ponytail holders. I have to dump half of my girlie stuff onto Nolan’s night stand before I can finally fish out my device.
On the screen, I find a notification for a new email. I settle back against my pillow, getting comfy with my coffee and opening up my email app.
I see that I’ve had an influx of new messages in the hours since my interview with Sabrina aired last night. Crap.
What did I expect? After opening myself up to the world like that, of course everyone has an opinion about me. And they all think they’re well within their right to tell me all about it.
Taking a huge breath to prepare myself, I open up my inbox and start going through my emails.
But—wait one freaking second.
