Chapter 31
THIRTY-ONE
NICO
Waking up with Scarlett in my arms is a feeling I never could’ve prepared myself for. Especially when I look down and see her smiling in her sleep.
I pull her closer, feeling a rush of relief that she didn’t leave early like last time.
“Has anyone ever told you you’re an incredibly cuddly sleeper?” comes her muffled, sleepy voice.
I grin even though she can’t see me. “Has anyone ever told you that you snore like a cartoon character?”
She freezes. “You’re lying.”
I muffle my laughter. I am lying. “Nope. You had both the big snorts and cute little wheezes down pat.”
Another pause.
And then she rolls onto her back with a sigh. “Welp, I guess it can’t be worse than the sound of me vomiting for hours.”
I snicker down at her as I lift onto one elbow. I love that she’s comfortable enough to joke about imperfections now. “To be fair, not much would be worse than that.”
Finally, she lets a smile emerge. She stares at me, and I stare back.
“So…what do we do now?” she asks.
I grin. “Now…I feed you.” Scooping her into my arms, I jump from bed and stride down the hallway to the kitchen. “Eggs and bacon okay? Or do you have a breakfast food request? They usually only stock the fighter fridges with basic food, but I can go out to get something if you want.”
“Eggs would be great,” she says with a smile as I set her on the barstool. “Thank you.”
I smack a kiss to her cheek before turning to the oven and grabbing the skillet. “So polite. Now, how do you like your eggs?”
“Scrambled, please.”
“Do you want toast with it? I think they put some bread in here—”
“No toast.”
Her answer is so flat and instantaneous that I find myself turning around with raised eyebrows. Scarlett looks just as surprised by the speed of her answer.
“Umm, no toast, please,” she rephrases carefully. “I’m still full from that burger last night.”
Baby steps, I guess.
Once the pan is hissing with the eggs I dumped in it, I decide… Fuck it, I’m just going to ask.
“So, are you busy today? Or can you hang out for a little bit?”
Translation: are you working today?
Her hesitation makes me tense up. But then she says, “I’m not busy. At all, actually.”
I paste a charming smile on my face that even Lucas would be proud of and turn around. “Want to come with me to a suit fitting then?”
She blinks at me. “Uhh…sure.” Then she shakes her head and asks, “You have the most random ideas for dates, Nico.”
I lean back against the counter with a grin. “Who said it was a date?”
But when I see a flash of doubt in her eyes, I quickly step forward to lean across the counter and take her lips in a kiss. “You should assume everything is a date from here on out,” I murmur.
I love the way she relaxes at that. So much so that I kiss her again.
“So, what’s the suit for?” she asks when I go back to an almost-burnt breakfast.
I quickly scoop the scrambled eggs out of the skillet. “I have this gala I have to go to for the UFC. Figured it’s a good time to get a new suit.”
Then something occurs to me, and I spin around.
“Come with me,” I blurt out.
Her eyes widen. “What?”
Suddenly giddy about the idea, I tug her off the barstool and into my arms. “Come with me. Be my date.”
Her confusion shifts to nervousness. “Nico…I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“Why not? They’re not that bad. And it will be way more fun with you there.” But when her tension finally registers, I try to dial back my excitement. “What’s wrong?”
She can’t meet my eyes. “I just…I don’t think you should be seen with an escort.”
I blink at her.
“Okay, first of all, you’re not an escort when you’re with me.” We’ll deal with the unspoken part of that statement later. “Second of all, why would anyone think you’re an escort?” I narrow my eyes playfully at her. “Are you telling me I couldn’t pull a woman as hot as you?”
It successfully breaks the tension, thank God. Her lips lift in a small smile.
But then reality intrudes, and it drops from her face. “I’m just saying, at a place like a gala, there’s a chance we run into someone who knows I’m an escort. I want to go, but it’s too risky.”
“So I’m supposed to just hide you away for the rest of my life? Excuse my language, but fuck that. I’m not okay with that.”
She sighs and pushes away from me. “You can say that all you want, but that’s just not the world we live in, Nico. People are going to judge you for being with me.”
“So I don’t get a say in this?” I demand, my voice tinged with frustration. “If it’s my risk then I’m the one who gets to take it.”
“Of course it’s your decision. I just—” She lets out a frustrated exhale of her own. “I hate the idea of hurting you or your career.”
Immediately, all fight goes out of me. A warm feeling starts to grow in my chest.
Taking her in my arms again, I tilt her face up and press a light kiss to her mouth. “You’re sweet for worrying. But let’s leave that to me, okay? Let me handle that if it comes up.”
She still looks skeptical, but eventually I get a small nod. It makes me grin and kiss her again, this one more forceful.
“So…suit shopping?” she asks when I sit her back on the barstool.
“We could go dress shopping, too,” I offer as I plate our breakfasts. “If you want.”
I have no idea where her head is at while she mulls it over. After a moment, she says, “A new dress is probably a good idea. But I’m not dress shopping with you.”
I give her an affronted look. “Why not?”
She shrugs, smiling slightly. “Because it would take away from the big reveal. And a lady always makes an entrance.”
I want to argue with her about the way she worded that, but suddenly all I can think about is Scarlett doing a grand dress reveal.
I have to clear my throat once, twice, before I’m capable of speaking. “Whatever you think is best.”
Before I can say anything else, I notice her eyes dropping to my chest. I’m shirtless, wearing only joggers, so her gaze travels over my muscles, heat flaring in them with every inch. I quirk an eyebrow and wait for her to voice her thoughts.
“I wonder if you’ll look hotter in a suit than you do right now.”
I almost choke on my own spit. Scarlett flirting isn’t anything new, but there’s something new about this. She seems…liberated. Comfortable.
“You think I’m hot, Red?” I ask casually, wondering where she’s about to take this.
Her eyes lift to meet mine. “I think you’re the hottest man I’ve ever met. I always have.”
A breath whooshes out of me. This is definitely something new.
I know I’m right when she stands and slowly walks around the counter, her eyes never leaving mine. When she stops in front of me, I’m barely breathing.
And then she leans forward to press a kiss to my chest, and I stop breathing entirely.
“Normally,” she starts with a hum, “your jeans and a black t-shirt is my favorite look.” I watch in awe as she places her finger to the place she just kissed and slowly starts to drag it down my body, over every ridge of every muscle.
“But I’ll admit…this casual shirtless and barefoot in the kitchen look is much more appealing than I anticipated. ”
I swallow roughly. “Yeah? If I had known that’s all it would take to get you in my kitchen, I would’ve done it a lot sooner.”
She lets out a tinkling laugh, the sound sweeter than this moment feels. Especially considering she’s not looking at me, but following the path of her finger as it finally reaches my joggers.
“I had no idea it would,” she says. Finally, she tilts her head up to meet my eyes.
Her pupils have blown completely black.
“I think it’s the kitchen,” she says, a tinge of breathlessness in her words. “You in the kitchen. You making me breakfast, taking care of me…” I watch her throat flex with a swallow. “I’ve never… I mean, I never wanted to…here.”
It takes me a second to decipher what she’s saying. But then it clicks.
She’s never had sex in a kitchen.
I wonder if she’s ever had sex—real sex, not sex with clients or shitty ex-husbands—anywhere but a bedroom.
And as I look down at her, as I take in every detail of her heated gaze—the pulse pounding in her neck, her chest moving with rapid breaths—I realize I was right about this feeling different. She does seem liberated. And comfortable enough with me to ask for something new.
I brush a strand of loose hair away from her face, letting out a thoughtful hum. Because I am nothing if not willing to give Scarlett anything she asks for.
“Then we should…here.”