Chapter 27
twenty-seven
JONATHAN
Mags was going to one of her sister’s gallery exhibits. Without him. With Eze. “Damn it,” Jonathan cursed. He had a project he should be working on for work and another project to look over for his father, but his concentration was shot.
Instead, he was brooding, staring blankly out the picture window of his and Daniels’ townhouse. Thankfully, Daniel was over helping Blair fix one of her plant trellises and wasn’t around to witness Jonathan’s moping about.
He felt some relief knowing that Eze was interested in someone besides Mags, but that didn’t mean the man couldn’t change his mind or that he might decide to hedge his bets and pursue two relationships at once. Granted, Eze didn’t appear to be a player, but Jonathan didn’t know him well.
Mags had agreed to try with him, so there was that. She wanted to go slow. Fine. He would give her complete control and gladly.
Unable to stop himself, he pulled out his phone and found her contact.
Jonathan: Send me a picture of you all dressed up.
He watched the waving dots with an intense focus that he should be expending on his work projects. “Damn,” he breathed as a video loaded.
Her dress was an aquamarine blue, some silky material that touched her nowhere and everywhere at once. It looked like an old-fashioned slip that women used to wear under their clothes, except hers wasn’t cotton and utilitarian.
She turned slowly in front of the full-length bathroom mirror, capturing the moment for the video, the soft fabric of her dress moving with her. Her hair was swept up in a loose bun at the nape of her neck, a few strands escaping just enough to make it look effortless.
Jonathan’s chest tightened as he watched.
He could picture it too clearly—him standing right behind her, close enough to feel the warmth of her skin, his hands settling at her waist. His mouth would find that delicate curve where her neck met her shoulder, pressing a slow, lingering kiss there before trailing upward, then down along the line of her collarbone.
The strappy sandals were playful, but it was her nod to jewelry that really drew his eyes. She wore a wide, embroidered wrist cuff. He paused the video and zoomed in on the piece. It was an ocean scene, a pirate ship and mermaid included.
Classic Mags. She never did anything by halves.
Jonathan: Stunning. You’ll have men falling all over themselves and women begging you to make them cuffs. I hope you get a bunch of new clients tonight. I also hope you ignore every man there, including your date.
He hated that he sounded insecure, but the reality was…well, that he was. Mags was the first woman he’d ever wanted to date where the next day mattered—and the next, and the next, days, weeks, and even months after mattered.
Mags: You’re being silly. I’m going to an art exhibition, not a dance club.
Jonathan: Let me pick you up after the event. Eze won’t mind.
Mags: Nasir had to go back to Nigeria. Eze is grumpy but needs attention.
Jonathan grimaced at the attention bit, but he was far from deterred.
Jonathan: How about I pick you both up, and we go for a drink at Gray Eyes and then you let me drop Eze off and come home with me. I promise not to keep you out too late.
Mags: Scrap Gray Eyes. Eze said he has a math formula he would like to “delve deeper” into when he gets home.
Jonathan: Let me pick you up.
“Don’t say no, Mags,” he pleaded in the silent living room.
Mags: 9:00