Page 47 of Loving Her Enemy

Silence fell between them, except for the music playing softly through the overhead speakers and the sound of the waterfall on the side of the pool. Though she loved New York and liked Atlanta, Halayna could totally see herself living in Hawaii year-round.

“Have you thought of any perfume names yet?” Sloane asked. “Especially for my favorite fragrance. Once that one hits the market, I’m planning to buy several cases for my beautiful wife.”

Halayna laughed and nudged his arm. “Funny. No, I haven’t settled on a name for that one yet. But you’ll be the first to know when I do. One of the problems with coming up with perfume names, everything I’ve thought of has already been used.”

“Well, I have a name you should consider for the one I really like, and it’s Miss Tanaka.”

Halayna’s mouth dropped open, and then she squealed. “Oh, my goodness, Sloane, I love that!” She threw her arms around his neck, and he pulled her on top of him.

“Good. That can be the first one you produce, and I’d like some type of finder’s fee. Something like you naked in the middle of our bed every night for sixty days.”

She laughed. “Yeah, I guess just paying you with cash is out of the question since you have more money than most humans. So yeah. Once the perfume has been finalized and ready to be marketed, that’ll be your finder’s fee.”

“Nice. I’ll have to see what other names I can come up with,” he said, giving her a noisy kiss on the cheek.

God, it felt so good to be wrapped in his strong arms.

As if a magnetic force was tugging her to his mouth, Halayna covered his lips with hers. She hated always comparing what the two of them shared with what she’d had with Owen since there was no comparison, but sometimes it was hard not to.

Sloane kissed her with such passion and desire. So much so, she felt the kiss to the depth of her soul. And when he squeezed her butt and had her moaning and grinding on top of him, the way he was doing now, she wanted more.

If she wasn’t a little sore in her nether regions from all the sexual activities they’d experienced over the last few days, she’d suggest they take this to the bedroom. But before her thoughts could go further down that road, Sloane eased his mouth from hers.

“I think you’re trying to get something started when we agreed to take a break tonight,” he said and gave her a quick peck on the lips. “Though I want you more than I want my next breath, I don’t want you any sorer than you already are.”

Before she could protest, he rolled her back onto the lounger but kept his arm around her.

Halayna sighed, but he was right. He’d been giving her a serious workout since they’d gotten married, and one night of no sex wouldn’t kill her. Or at least she hoped it wouldn’t.

“I know we have a few more days here, but what happens when we return home.”

Home. How quickly she’d claimed Atlanta, specifically Sloane’s house, as home. But if she was honest, before getting married, it had started to feel like home. Which made her think it was the people who made a place feel like home. Not necessarily a physical location.

“We’ve been summoned to my parents’ home for family dinner the day after we return. I’ve stalled my mother as long as I could.”

Halayna smiled. “Yeah, we probably should get this over with. Do they know about our marriage yet?”

“I don’t think so. I’m sure if my mother knew, she would’ve been blowing up my phone. Especially since we didn’t include her and my dad.”

Halayna cringed. She knew enough about Mrs. Davidson to know the news wouldn’t go over well when she found out. From what Halayna remembered of the woman, she was not only a snob, but she was also entitled and controlling.

Halayna was so not looking forward to the visit.

Sloane placed a kiss on her forehead. “Don’t worry about my parents. I’ll be there to protect you, and if my mother gets out of line, we’ll leave.”

Halayna nodded. “Okay. Or if she gets out of line, I can leave and wait for you in the car or come back for you.”

He chuckled. “Nah, sweetie, it doesn’t work like that. You and I are a team. We go together. We leave together.”

She liked that. Before Owen, she spent a lot of time by herself, and if she needed help with anything, she reached out to her dad or Bristol. It was nice to know she now had several people she could count on.

Still, Halayna wasn’t looking forward to spending time with the Davidsons.

Chapter Twenty-One

After Conner, their driver for the evening, checked in with the security guard at the front gate, he drove along the winding, tree-lined driveway of Sloane’s parents’ Johns Creek estate. Sloane was starting to second guess his decision to bring Halayna to family dinner.

He didn’t attend often, maybe once a quarter, and that was only to keep his mother off his back. It hadn’t always been like that. There’d been a time he didn’t mind coming to dinner. When both his paternal and maternal grandparents were alive, it would be just the immediate family. Other times, it could be him, Bristol, and their parents. But in the last few years, his mother invited some of her and his dad’s friends.