Page 43 of The Problem with Playboys

“Everything okay?” Chloe asked, poking her head out from the kitchen, holding a glass of wine, with bright eyes and a warm smile on her face. She looked like everything he hadn’t known he’d wanted.

He wasn’t about to throw that away. He wasn’t about to ruin their night, even when the message on his phone screamed for his attention. He suspected Little Black Book might be more bluster than bite. They’d tried to threaten Chloe with the photo in Miami, and nothing ever came of it. So maybe it was okay if he set this aside until tomorrow. And maybe it was better to ignore it altogether. Was he feeding the beast by engaging? His very hopeful heart said yes.

“Yeah. Yeah. Everything’s fine. Just a work thing.” He powered down his phone and left it on the table next to his laptop bag, then toted the Tiffany shopping bag to the kitchen. Holding it behind him, he first took his chance to get a kiss from her. “Hi. You look and smell amazing.” It was the truth, and he couldn’t help but let his lips travel along her jaw, then down one side of her neck. He was such a sucker for her and he knew it.

“Hi yourself.” She pecked him on the forehead then poured him a glass of wine. “What are you hiding behind your back?”

He proudly presented the iconic blue bag. “I bought you a gift.”

“Tiffany? You didn’t. What’s this for?” She was grinning from ear to ear as she eagerly took it from him.

“Open it.”

She reached inside and pulled out the square flat box, again in the signature Tiffany blue, tied with a white satin ribbon. As she tugged on the tie, her gaze connected with his, making him feel as though he’d made the right decision by giving her this gift. When she lifted the lid, her eyes nearly doubled in size. She took the necklace in her hand, admiring it in the light. “Oh, my God. It’s beautiful. Absolutely stunning. I love the rose gold.”

He took it from her and stepped behind her to put it on, noticing how his fingers were fumbling with the clasp. His heart, now twice its normal size, was hammering in his chest. It wasn’t because he’d worried about whether she’d like it. It was more nervousness over what it all meant to him. He wasn’t merely falling for her, he was flat-out head over heels. He knew it with everything in him. “The salesman said it would look pretty with your hair. Now I know he was right.” He stood back and took a sip of his wine, admiring her as her fingers ran over the pendant.

“I worry it’s too much,” she said.

“That’s not possible.”

“Is it because I did you the favor with Marcus today? Because I told you that I don’t expect anything in return. I only did it because I wanted to help.”

And I love you for it.The words were right there on his lips, ringing in his head, and running circles in his mind.I could buy you fifty necklaces and it wouldn’t be enough.Parker wondered how many more realizations he could handle in one night.The voice inside his head kept telling him to level up with Chloe. Yes, the necklace had been a lovely gesture, but what he really needed to do was tell her about the emotion behind the gift. “It’s not because of Marcus. It’s because of you. And the way you make me feel. It’s because of the last month. It’s been so incredible.”

Chloe tilted her head to one side, narrowing her sights on him. “It’s not like you to make grand statements, Parker. Everything is always so casual with you. Are you feeling okay? Did something happen?”

He reached for her hand. “I nearly called you my girlfriend when we were talking this morning. And I feel like an idiot for not just coming out with it, because the truth is that I think of you that way.” He sucked in a deep breath for courage. “This is going to sound crazy. And implausible. But I’m falling for you, Chloe. If I think about tomorrow, I want you there. And the day after that. And the day after that.”

For a moment, she stood frozen. The only movement was when she blinked. “I... I don’t know what to say.”

He sighed and pulled her closer. “It’s not what either of us planned. And I don’t want you to feel like you owe me anything, but I would like to know how you feel. It doesn’t have to be now. But I’d like to know at some point.”

She pulled her head back and looked up into his eyes, scanning his face like she was looking for answers. “My mom wants to know who you are.”

“What?”

“We talked today. She knows I’m involved with someone. She knows that there’s a man who’s taking up my time and she said she wants to know who he is. She wants to meet him.”

“Right.” There was the problem that had been before them all along. Their parents had given them two legacies, neither of which Parker nor Chloe could control. They’d set out a long string of bad examples when it came to love. And then to underscore how ill-equipped they were for commitment, they’d gone and gotten married, only to dissolve it less than a year later. Parker felt fairly sure that he could sway his dad to his side, make him see that what happened with Chloe was completely unplanned. But as for Chloe and her mom, Parker wasn’t sure. Chloe had always seemed certain her mother would draw a hard line in the sand. “And do you still feel the same way you felt before? That she’d never be able to get past it?”

A grimace crossed her face and worry made her forehead wrinkle. He hated it when she got stressed like this. He wanted to make it all go away. “Most likely, yes. But I won’t know for sure until I say something. Right? I’m having breakfast with her tomorrow.”

“You’ll tell her then?”

“I guess it’s time to just go for it and tell her that you’re the guy I’m spending so much time with.”

His heart felt as though it might leap out of his chest. “You’d do that for me?”

She nodded. “I don’t want to blow up what we have without at least trying to get through to her. She has a new boyfriend, so maybe there’s a chance she’ll be okay with it.”

“One can only hope.”

“And I know she wants me to be happy.”

“Do I make you happy, Chloe?”

Miraculously, her worried face from a few minutes ago disappeared, replaced by the glorious expression she wore when she was feeling upbeat and unburdened. “You do. You make me really happy.”