Chapter Eight
CHAPTER EIGHT
Stevie
“I f this is a dream, I don’t ever want to wake up.”
Valerie sighed in awe as she drank her Monday morning cup of coffee and stared out the floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the Hudson River. I understood her amazement because I was still trying to wrap my own mind around the fact that my sister and I were living at The Cortland, in a luxurious and spacious two-bedroom residence with the kind of comforts and amenities far beyond our budgets. I was starting to feel as though I was living in a Pretty Woman movie.
“No, it’s not a dream, but it’s not our reality, either,” I reminded my sister as I joined her in the living room with my own mug of coffee, silently agreeing that our multi-million-dollar view was spectacular—and yes, I’d googled the cost of one of these apartments and nearly had a heart attack. “This arrangement with Caleb is temporary, as you know.”
Valerie glanced at me with a smile, looking more relaxed and, dare I say, happy than I’d seen her since her split with Mark. “Yes, I know, but damn, let me enjoy every single second of living like the other one percent.”
I laughed, unable to begrudge her that.
Last night, after Caleb got us settled into our new apartment and ordered us more groceries than I’d ever had at one time delivered to stock the cupboards and refrigerator, I’d sat down with Valerie and told her everything. From how Alyssa had deliberately arrived early to drop off Owen, to how I now held the title of Caleb’s girlfriend.
She’d found the whole arrangement amusing, while I was still finding it difficult to process how in just twenty-four hours my life had completely changed into one I didn’t recognize. It wasn’t easy accepting all this from Caleb, even for a short time, but I understood why it was important—for the sake of appearances and so Alyssa didn’t have any leverage to use over Caleb for the custody case. And for Valerie’s safety, too, for which I was grateful, because there was no way of Mark knowing where Valerie was living now, since we hadn’t left a forwarding address.
As much as I’d initially fought Caleb’s offer to move us into The Cortland because I wasn’t one to take handouts, I was relieved, mostly for my sister’s sake. I told myself living in this apartment for two months wasn’t charity. It was part of the deal I’d made with Caleb and as long as I remembered that, I’d be fine.
A knock on the door surprised us both. Even though it was mid-morning, I knew it could only be one of two people—Caleb or Cara since they both lived in the building—and I hadn’t yet had a chance to put anyone on my “approved” list of guests with the doorman.
I headed into the foyer and looked through the peephole. Seeing Caleb standing on the other side, I opened the door.
“Hi,” I said breathlessly, feeling a little hot and bothered at how gorgeous he looked in his work suit. Dark gray and fitting his body to tailored perfection, staring at him was equivalent to a woman’s version of looking at porn because that whole executive, big dick energy radiating from him was arousing as hell.
He grinned, looking genuinely happy to see me. “I brought fresh, hot donuts, which I picked up after dropping Owen off at school,” he said, lifting a box imprinted with a name of some fancy shop in the area. “I thought you two might enjoy them with your morning coffee.”
“Oh, my God, come in already,” Valerie called out from behind me. “You had me at fresh, hot donuts.”
I rolled my eyes at my sister’s enthusiasm, but I was smiling as I stepped aside to give Caleb room to enter. He walked past me, and a whiff of his expensive cologne had me weak in the knees because like Pavlov’s dog, the arousing scent immediately took me back to Saturday night, and sex with him.
Stifling a groan, I followed him into the kitchen where he put the box on the counter. Valerie didn’t waste any time diving in and selecting a chocolate cruller for herself.
“Thank you for the donuts, and not to sound ungrateful, but what are you doing here?” I asked him. It was a Monday morning. I’d expected him to be at the office.
He shrugged. “I wanted to check in with you two, see how last night was, and how you’re settling in.”
“I slept like a baby after a bath in that deep soaking tub in my bathroom,” Valerie chimed in before I could answer. “It’s so quiet here and my bed is like sleeping on a soft cloud.”
Caleb chuckled. “I’m glad you slept well,” he said, then shifted his gaze to me for an answer.
“Same,” I replied, agreeing with my sister. Without any outside noise, no weird sounds from the park next to our complex, or neighbor dogs barking interrupting my sleep, I’d crashed hard last night. “I’m very well rested, thank you.”
“Good. I also wanted to let you know that your key card gives you access to all the building’s amenities, so feel free to take advantage of the pool and sauna and yoga studio. And there’s also a rooftop terrace you can enjoy, as well.” He slid his hands into the front pockets of his slacks. “So, what are you two up to today?” he asked, changing the subject.
“Finishing unpacking,” Valerie said, more chatty than I’d seen her in weeks. “And I’m submitting my résumé to Dare PR, so fingers crossed that works out.”
“Good luck,” Caleb said with a grin, then glanced at me again. “And what about you?”
I leaned my hip against the counter. “I need to finish writing a paper for one of my classes, along with studying for an upcoming test I have in macroeconomics. And I have a shift tonight at The Back Door.”
That easygoing smile on his face faded a bit. “Are you going to take a leave like we discussed?”
“Yes, but I need to talk to Raven,” I told him. “I’m not just leaving her shorthanded, so it might take a week or two until she can fully cover my shifts.”
I saw his jaw tighten and his eye twitch, and raised a brow at him. “Why do you look like you’re going to have an aneurysm?”
Valerie snickered, clearly seeing the shift in Caleb’s mood, too.
“I don’t,” he insisted.
“Yes, you do,” I argued, pretty sure I knew the cause of his displeasure.
“Yeah, this is my cue to leave and go finish unpacking my things,” Valerie said, sounding amused. She grabbed another donut and disappeared down the hallway and into one of the bedrooms.
Once she was gone, I crossed my arms over my chest and returned my attention back to Caleb—a man clearly used to getting his way—and who still wore a disgruntled expression. “Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Like what?” he replied, his tone gruff.
“With that furrow between your brows like you’re not happy about something, and that little vein popping out near your temple is a dead giveaway, too.” That I could read him so well already was shocking.
His stiff shoulders relaxed, and the look on his face turned to concern. “I would just feel better if you didn’t have to work at The Back Door in the evenings.”
I’d never had a man be so protective over me, and as much as I appreciated the gesture—and even secretly liked it—I wasn’t some delicate, weak female who needed to depend on a man, for anything. “Raven works there in the evenings,” I pointed out.
“And so does Remy,” he shot back, jamming his hands on his hips. “He’s there to take her home every night and make sure she gets there safely.”
“Oh, my God,” I said incredulously, and tossed my hands up in the air in frustration. “You’re being a caveman, Caleb.”
The man had the nerve to smirk, his entire demeanor shifting as he braced his hands on either side of my hips against the counter and leaned in close. “How about you come up to my place with me right now and I’ll show you just how much of a caveman I can be?”
Feeling the light press of his body against mine, a tantalizing tease, I shivered, my nipples tightening and heat settling low in my belly. It was crazy to me how he could flip my own annoyance into arousal so easily.
Trying to distract myself, I reached over to the donut box and took a powdered, pillowy one that looked like it was filled with something. “Don’t you have to go to work?” I asked, and took a small bite of the donut, the powdered sugar sprinkling everywhere—my lips, my chin, and probably the front of my T-shirt, too.
“I’m a partner,” he murmured, his gaze falling to my mouth as though he was imagining licking away the confectioner’s sugar. “My hours are flexible. I can take hours off if I want to.”
His insinuation was clear and God he was so damned tempting. I wasn’t going to pretend that I didn’t want him. That there wouldn’t be sex between us during our two-month situationship because I knew resisting him was going to be impossible. But I wasn’t about to crumble and follow him up to his apartment right on the heels of him trying to make some kind of point.
I was making a point, too, and I wouldn’t be swayed by amazing sex or the promise of orgasms.
So, instead, I bit deeper into the donut, purposefully making the Bavarian cream ooze out near the corner of my mouth. A groan rumbled in his chest as I slowly, seductively, licked the dollop of cream away in a very suggestive manner, distracting him from the ridiculous conversation, and also feeling his dick hardening against me.
“Go to work, Caleb,” I said huskily. Before I take you up on your offer. “I have schoolwork to get done.”
He reluctantly pushed away and straightened, desire still darkening his eyes. “Fine, but we’ll talk later.”
I had no doubt that we would.