Chapter 13
Chapter Thirteen
STELLA
S omeone is touching me.
Not just touching me, but touching me.
It’s pitch-black as I shoot out of a deep, dreamless sleep, snuggled down in Gray’s big bed. I feel his hand moving from my breast, down my stomach, and to my core, sending me straight into desire.
I turn onto my back and spread my legs in invitation. Without a word, his finger gently tickles over my lips, through my slit, and slides right inside of me.
I gasp, still hovering in that half-in and half-out-of sleep space that feels so damn good while Gray’s finger does things to me that might be illegal in this state.
“I wake up wanting you,” he whispers, his lips right up against my ear. He adds another finger, and they slide over me and then back inside.
My hips move, up and down, begging for more.
He doesn’t climb on top of me or nudge me onto my stomach.
No, he lifts my leg and scoots closer, easily slipping right inside. And with long, slow strokes, he makes love to me in the dark with just our breaths and sighs filling the space around us.
My muscles quiver and tighten around him, and as my back arches up off the mattress, Gray nibbles on the ball of my shoulder and pushes his fingertips against my clit. I see stars explode around us.
“Fuck,” I whisper, convulsing as the orgasm moves through me.
“Shit,” he says, and after two more thrusts, empties himself into me.
“What time is it?” I ask as I try to catch my breath, and he returns from the bathroom with a wet rag.
“I have no idea,” he says as he cleans me up. “Not time to get up. Go back to sleep, baby.”
“I’m just saying, for the record,” I say as I curl up next to him. “That is not a bad way to wake up.”
I feel him smile against my forehead before he kisses me there and wraps his arms around me, settling us both in to go back to sleep.
“I couldn’t resist you,” he says quietly. “I can never resist you.”
“Don’t be nervous,” I say to Gray as we walk around the block to the entrance of my parents’ building. “They’re really nice people. You’ll like them.”
“I’m sure it’ll be just fine,” he says, but his jaw tenses as he reaches for the door and opens it for me.
The thing is, I know they’ll both like Gray. Even my dad, if he just chills out and gives Gray a chance.
When we get in the elevator, I take his hand and squeeze it.
“So, you grew up in this condo?” he asks me.
“I did. Mom got rid of my bedroom years ago and made it into a yoga studio.”
He grins as the doors open. I lead him down the hall to my parents’ door, ring the bell, and then let myself in.
“We’re here,” I call out when I don’t see anyone in the kitchen or living room. “I smell the grill.”
“Looks like they’re out on the deck.” Gray gestures with his chin, and I follow his gaze. Sure enough, Mom and Dad are on the deck with my dad standing by the open and smoking grill.
“That would explain the smell.” I snatch a cracker and a slice of cheese off a charcuterie platter sitting on the kitchen counter as we walk through to the sliding glass door that leads outside. “Smells good, you guys. We’re here.”
“Oh, hey,” Mom says with a wide smile and jumps up to give me a hug. “I haven’t seen you in too long. I don’t like that you have a life of your own that doesn’t involve hanging out with me.”
I laugh and hug her back tightly. “I know. We really need to get all the old ladies together for a girls’ night sometime soon. But first, I’d like you to meet Gray.”
“It’s about time,” Mom says as Gray takes her hand. “I feel like I’m the last one to meet you. Nate said he ran into you at the gym the other day.”
“He did,” Gray confirms and nods at my dad, who’s been watching us with a stony expression and his arms folded over his chest. “It’s good to see you again, Mr. McKenna.”
“How do you take your steak, Gray?” Dad asks.
“Medium rare.”
Dad just nods and turns back to the grill, and Mom and I share a look. She shrugs. I roll my eyes.
We’ve always been able to have these silent conversations.
“Oh, I’m going to go grab that charcuterie board and bring it out here if you’d like to sit outside for a while. It’s not too cold today.”
“I’ll help you,” I offer and only feel slightly guilty for abandoning Gray and leaving him with my dad for a few minutes. He should be okay. Dad probably won’t kill him.
Once the door is closed, Mom turns to me with wide blue eyes. “Hubba hubba.”
“Right? He’s a total hottie. And he’s so nice. He’s really, really good to me, Mom.”
“He’d better be, or your dad will murder-death-kill him,” Mom replies and nods toward a bowl of dip that didn’t fit on the board. “Will you please grab that for me?”
“Sure.”
“You’d better invite him to Iceland for Christmas.”
I frown over at her. “Are we still doing that?”
“Of course, we are. The whole family is going, and you should invite Gray to join us.”
“I’ll mention it to him. Let’s go out there and rescue him from Dad.” But before we can turn and go back outside, the guys come in . “So, no sitting outside?”
“The sky just opened up,” Dad says, shaking his head. “It’s cooling things off fast. I’ll just grab the steaks in a few.”
“Well, then, let’s get cozy,” Mom says and gestures to the snacks on the kitchen island. “Have some appetizers, please. There’s enough food here to feed an army.”
“Or, you know, Uncle Will.”
Even dad’s lips twitch at that little joke, and my shoulders relax a little.
“So, I hear you’re an attorney,” Mom says to Gray as she pops a green olive into her mouth. “What kind of attorney?”
“I mostly work with corporate law,” Gray replies.
“How did you meet Stella?” Dad asks, and I feel my heart rate kick up.
“So, that’s a funny story,” I jump in with a bright smile. “Do you remember when I went to Vegas with Danny for his bachelorette party?”
“Did you get arrested in Nevada?” Dad asks, narrowing his eyes. “You and Danny can’t be trusted together.”
Gray snorts beside me, and I press my lips together. “No. It wasn’t anything like that. Um, Danny and I got a little tipsy one night and thought it would be hilarious to go to one of those little chapel places and get married by Elvis.”
“Oh, Stella, you didn’t.” Mom groans, closing her eyes.
“As it turns out, it was a real wedding place, and when Danny went to get his marriage license with Brandon, he couldn’t do that because he was already married. To me. Because…drunk Las Vegas.”
I watch my dad’s face and expect him to get pissed, but he just watches me for a moment and then bursts into laughter.
I share a look of surprise with my mom.
“So, Brandon and Gray are partners at the law firm, and Gray agreed to help us annul the marriage so the happy couple can get their license.”
“And then Stella walked into my office,” Gray says as he smiles down at me. “I knew that my life would never be the same, no matter what happened next.”
“Okay, that’s sweet,” Mom says.
“It’s true.” Gray looks over at my father. “And how did you and Mrs. McKenna meet?”
“Please, call me Jules,” Mom says.
“We worked together,” Dad says. “And it wasn’t exactly allowed in our office.”
“Nonfraternization policy,” Mom adds.
“And I said, ‘fuck that’ and pursued her anyway,” Dad continues. “Because she was immediately the light of my life, and I knew that I couldn’t be without her.”
“They say mushy stuff like that all the time,” I inform Gray.
“I don’t think it’s mushy,” Gray says, slowly shaking his head. “I think it’s just facts.”
“I like him,” Mom announces as Dad stands and hurries out to take the steaks off the grill. “He can stay.”
Dad slips back through the door, a platter full of steaming steaks in his hand.
“Dinner’s ready,” Dad says, and we move to the table to dish up and eat.
“Where are you from?” Dad asks Gray, and for the next thirty minutes, we eat and talk about his family, northern Idaho, and our family.
We laugh about the shenanigans the cousins have pulled.
“Speaking of cousins,” I say as I bite a stalk of asparagus. “Who told you?”
“Told me what?” Dad asks.
“That I was dating Gray. Obviously, you heard through the grapevine. And since Gray’s only met the cousins, it had to be one of them. So, who was it? I need to know who to torture.”
“I feel like I should protect my sources,” Dad says thoughtfully. “Besides, I want to talk about something a bit more serious. Like this age gap.”
“Are you kidding me?” I ask as I lift my glass of wine and take a sip.
“Not at all,” Dad replies. “My daughter is twenty-five, and you’re clearly much older than that.”
“Thirty-four,” Gray confirms.
“He’s not old ,” I add. “He’s not old enough to be my father.”
Dad’s eyes narrow, and Mom hides a laugh behind her napkin.
“Stella is an adult,” Gray says. “She’s a successful businesswoman and an intelligent, vibrant, funny person. I’d think she could date whomever she chooses.”
“I didn’t say otherwise,” Dad replies easily. “I simply pointed out there is an age difference.”
“I don’t think it’s a big deal,” Mom says, shaking her head. “It’s not like he’s in his nineties and in a wheelchair, for God’s sake. He’s a handsome, smart man who knows value when he sees it. Besides, you’re seven years older than me.”
Dad narrows his eyes on my mom. “We’re not talking about us.”
“But your relationship has survived more than a quarter of a century, and you’re still ridiculously in love,” I point out. “You buy Mom croissants at her favorite market just because she likes them. And you’re really gross with the PDA.”
“Sometimes, age doesn’t really factor in,” Mom agrees and gives my dad a look that says: Drop it.
“What’s for dessert?” I ask.
“Chocolate cheesecake, of course.”
“So, it wasn’t a complete disaster,” Danny says the following morning as he slouches in the chair by my desk.
“No. And my dad could have been way worse. You should have seen how he treated my senior prom date. I thought for sure the poor kid was going to pee himself. Why does he have to be so… alpha ?”
“Because he just is ,” Danny says reasonably. “Some men are like that. B is, too. And Gray, of course.”
I look at my friend as if he’s lost his marbles. “Gray is not alpha.”
“Oh, honey, you need to open those pretty blue eyes of yours. Gray is absolutely an alpha male. He’s bossy and in control and very protective. How have you not noticed that by now?”
My jaw drops open, and then I close it again and stare through my office window, thinking it over.
Gray can be intense. I guess it never occurred to me to label him as an alpha man.
“Huh,” is all I say when my computer pings with an incoming email. “Shit, this is from Florence.”
“Oh, the ice queen. Is it just me, or does she seem like that character from The Devil Wears Prada ?”
“Miranda Priestly?” I ask with a laugh. “Oh my gosh, that’s exactly who she’s like. ‘I’m so disappointed.’ She even purses her lips in the same way. That’s hilarious. Now, I have to open this email.”
“You’ve got this, babe,” Danny says as he rounds the desk to read over my shoulder.
“I sent her some new drawings for the master bedroom. I thought I’d start with an easy room, just to get a feel for what she wants. I studied for hours , looking through photos of her on red carpets and stuff to get a feel for her style.”
“She’s very black and white,” Danny murmurs as we scan the email. “And she seems to like your design.”
All that’s written is a very simple: That’s better.
“She’s a woman of few words,” I mutter in annoyance. “It’s better, but not great. So, what doesn’t she like? What does she want me to change or add?”
“Honey, she’s a gazillionaire. She doesn’t have time for that. That’s what she has you for.”
“Yeah, well, we did it that way once, and she hated every single thing.”
He shrugs, and I sigh in frustration.
“I’m not too proud to admit that this has me scared. If she hates it again, the firm will fire me. Camille already pulled me into her office and gave me a tongue-lashing for fucking up so royally.”
“She’s a bitch,” Danny whispers. “She’s all about the bottom line and doesn’t give a shit about the people who work here.”
“Still, it’s a well-respected company, and I like working here. I don’t have to deal with Camille often. But she made it clear that I’ve already screwed up and I’d better fix it—or I’m out.”
“Would that be a bad thing?” he asks, surprising me.
“Would losing my job be a bad thing? Oh, I don’t know, let me think. Yes. Yes, it would. I need to work, Danny. And I like it.”
“That’s not what I meant. I don’t expect you to be a kept woman. That’s not your style. But if you left this firm, you could always start one of your own.”
“I don’t have enough years under my belt. And if I leave with a shitty recommendation from both Camille and Miranda Priestly, aka Florence, I’m finished.”
“Okay, I’m the only one who gets to be a drama queen around here,” Danny says and rolls his eyes. “You’re not finished , darling. You have a lot of amazing things in your portfolio and plenty of clients who would give you a glowing recommendation. So one design didn’t hit the mark. It’s not the end of the world.”
I stare at him again. “Did I mention this was a million-dollar project?”
His confidence doesn’t waver. “All I’m saying is, you’ve got this. No matter how it shakes out, you’ve got it covered because you’re a fucking badass who knows her job. I saw that design. It was brilliant. Keep those photos for your resume because it definitely isn’t your fault that Florence doesn’t have any taste.”
“I really love you. You know that, right?”
He grins. “You love me so much that you married me.”