Brennan Riley was in the process of saving her life. And in another day or so she was going to disappear on him. And he would go on with his entire luxurious, carefree life without ever having any idea that he’d given hereverything.
She looked in the mirror. Sure enough, the makeup was gone, and the bruises glared back at her. The ones on her biceps from being shaken within an inch of her life the day before were dark and tender. She couldn’t see her back, but she knew they were there, too. And she was going to have to be extremely careful in order to keep all that from being seen.
She’d just have to make sure she got up early and dressed and made-up before Brennan woke in the morning. There could be no daytime sex. The following night would have to be shrouded in darkness as well. And the only way for her to get away with all of this was to make it a playful, mysterious game.
She tapped her nails on the door. “Breenn-aaaan…” she sing-songed.
He chuckled. “Skyy-yye…” he called back, matching her inflection.
“Are the lights still off?”
“No, honey, but I can turn them back off if you want, and we’ll eat this stuff in the dark.”
“Mmmm…I would love it if you did that for me.”
“And I would doanythingfor you, darlin’.”
She nearly snorted.Yeah right.
“I’ll make it worth your while, too, you sexy, delicious man.”
He gave a hearty laugh, and then footsteps thumped across the room. After that, a couple of faint clicks. “I turned off the hall light, too. Just for you.”
“Ooohhh…” she moaned seductively. “You’re soextra.”
“You’re adorable. Come on out. You can even blindfold me again so I really can’t see you.”
She smirked and then it forced itself into a smile. Brennan not only accommodated her request, but also found it charming.
Yep, this guy should one-hundred-percent be illegal.
She turned off the bathroom light and slipped out.
The moonlight was enough for her to make her way to the bed. Only Brennan’s form was visible on the bed as he reclined against the headboard, one knee bent while his other leg stretched out in front of him, his large, sculpted shoulders cast in deep blue shadows. It was dark enough to obscure any real details, so she was probably safe. She slipped under the sheet on his right side—just to make sure he couldn’t see her battered left cheek being up close—and pulled up the sheet around her.
He held up the ice cream and offered her a spoon. “After you.”
She took it and scooped some, holding it in front of his mouth. “Say ah.”
He took half a bite, and then held her hand to turn the spoon toward her mouth, and she took the rest. He licked his bottom lip, and she pushed the ice cream aside to kiss him. The shock of cold on his tongue colliding with hers was panty-melting, not to mention all of it was so damn wholesome that she almost didn’t believe it was real.
“So what’s with the darkness?” Brennan asked, scooping more ice cream and offering it to her.
Skye slid her mouth over the spoon and shrugged as she swallowed. “I think I look better in the dark.”
“You are quite ethereal in the dark,” he agreed. Who even said things likeethereal? Brennan must’ve gone to college, too. Becauseobviously. “But you’re pretty damn captivating in the light, too.”
“And I bet you say that to all the tourists you bring home with you.”
He kissed her cheek. “Only the ones who insist on eating ice cream in the dark.”
She offered a small, genuine laugh. “You’re funny. And sweet.” And then she couldn’t help adding, “I’m glad I bumped into you.”
“Me too, and I like that it was literal bumping into me.” There was a smile in his voice. “I’ve never seen an adult woman spinning on a barstool.”
She laughed again and shrugged. “I guess I’m just a kid at heart.”
Brennan kissed her head and then spooned more ice cream into her mouth. “I can see that. I like it.”
