Chapter 23
Chapter Twenty-Three
Lucas
I woke with Valerie in my arms. She was sound asleep, and I wasn’t surprised. I kept her up until the early hours this morning. My mind was calm, but my body wanted more of her. Hell, it never wanted to let her go. I glanced at the clock.
Seven. My natural wake up time, no matter what. Carefully, I untangled myself from Valerie. I grabbed some clothes out of my bag and slipped into the bathroom. I cleaned up and dressed, then quietly left the suite.
Once in the lobby, I smiled at the woman behind the desk.
“Good morning,” she said, smoothing her blonde hair.
“Morning. Is there a restaurant close by that I can arrange delivery of breakfast?”
“Yes, the restaurant across the street works with us all the time.”
“Perfect. Thank you.” I jogged across to the quaint building. Ten minutes later, I was stepping into our suite. Valerie was just sitting up in bed.
“Good morning.” Lord, this woman was beautiful when she woke up with drowsy eyes and her face soft. Walking to the bed, I bent and brushed a soft kiss over her lips.
“Ugh.” She pulled back. “I have morning breath.”
“I happen to like your morning breath.” With her, I didn’t care.
She rolled her eyes.
“Did you just roll your eyes at me?” I kept my tone light.
“Yes. You are silly.”
I stared at her. “Hmmm, maybe I need to show you how I feel about you rolling your eyes.” I placed my knee on the bed.
“Uncle.” There was laughter in her voice as she scooted away from me.
She was such a brat, and I wanted to pursue this, but there wasn’t time before our food got here. “Breakfast is coming.”
“Oh?”
“You’ll have a few minutes to dress before food arrives. We’ll have breakfast, go back to the Christmas shop, and get whatever you want.”
She paused in the process of getting off the bed. “What?”
“I know you want that stained glass of the wolves, so we’re going to go get it. Because if you don’t, you’ll regret it.”
“You’re too damn observant,” she muttered, grabbing her robe.
“Only with you.” I frowned as she covered up, but then again, if she didn’t, we wouldn’t have breakfast anytime soon.
She rolled her eyes again before moving into the bathroom and closing the door behind her.
I shook my head. How I’d missed this banter between us.
Moving across the room, I opened the balcony doors.
The air was crisp, but not too cold, and Valerie loved sitting outside no matter the weather.
It wasn’t a huge balcony, but it would work.
I moved the chairs and table where I wanted them.
A knock sounded. Breakfast. “Good morning, Mr. Bryer,” the young man said as I opened the door. “I have your food.” He held up a two big insulated bags and a coffee caddy.
“Perfect. Please come on in.”
“Where would you like everything?”
“Why don’t you put it in the kitchen area?” While I planned on having us having coffee and eating on the balcony, I didn’t want our food to get cold.
“Very good, sir.” He walked into the kitchen area, took the containers out of the bags and set the coffee on the counter.
I glanced at the bathroom door. There was water running, but I hadn’t seen Valerie take any clothes with her. Not that I wanted her to, but I was possessive and didn’t want the man delivering the food to see her in a robe.
“All done.”
“Thank you.” I handed him a twenty and shut the door behind him.
“I heard voices,” Valerie said, coming around the corner still in her robe.
“Yes. Why don’t you go out onto the balcony?”
She stared at me. “What have you done?”
“Such suspicion. Go.” I gestured to the open patio door and patted her ass to get her moving. She glared at me over her shoulder.
I poured cups of coffee and made hers the way she liked it. The croissants were still warm, and I added butter and jam to the tray before picking it up and taking it out to where she sat.
“I didn’t realize we had such a beautiful view.” She gestured to the mountains.
“One of the reasons I picked this hotel.” I placed the tray on the table. “Here’s your coffee,” I said as I handed her the mug.
“Nectar of the Gods.” She took it and then took a little sip and looked up at me.
I groaned, loving the way her eyes widened when she took that first sip. How I missed her expressive face. Uncovering the croissants, I put one on her plate. “These are still warm.”
“Give me.” She snatched the plate I held out to her and took a big bite of the croissant. “So buttery and soft.”
My cock jumped at her words. Damn, this woman aroused me so easily. I took my seat and picked up my mug. We both sat silently in the tranquil morning.
“What do you have planned for today?” Valerie asked me after several minutes.
“Once we finish breakfast, I’m thinking round two.”
“Aren’t we on round five?” She tilted her head.
“Who’s counting?” I grinned. If I had my way, we wouldn’t leave the bed until we had to check out.
It was almost one before we finally left the hotel room. I stowed our bags in the SUV and took Valerie’s hand for the walk to the Christmas shop.
“I really don’t need anything,” she said.
Squeezing her hand, I opened the door to the shop. “If you don’t get what you want, you’ll regret it.” How could I convince her to buy the stained-glass wolves? I’d seen the longing in her eyes as she glanced at it.
“Welcome back,” one of the clerks said. “Can I help you find something?”
Valerie sighed. “The stained-glass wolves, how much is it?”
I was pretty sure she’d already looked at the price. Was she double checking?
“It’s a hundred and ten dollars.”
Valerie bit her lip and looked up at the item hanging on the wall. “She’ll take it.” Everything inside me cried out for Valerie to have the beautiful stained-glass wolves.
“I’ll go get it.” The woman walked away.
“I’m not sure I should be spending that much,” Valerie whispered.
“I’d offer to buy it for you, but I know you won’t accept.” Hell, I’d buy her everything in the store if she’d let me. “When was the last time you bought something just for you?”
“The hoodie yesterday.” She flashed me a smug smile.
“Before that?” She was silent. “There’s nothing wrong with wanting something beautiful that you’ll cherish.”
Her gaze softened. “You’re right, and I know the perfect spot for it.”
My heart quickened. “That’s my girl.” I put my arm around her waist and squeezed. Twenty minutes later, we were on the road home with the stained glass securely stored in the back of the SUV.
“Thank you,” Valerie said.
“For what?” I glanced at her before turning my attention back to the road.
“For everything. The weekend and for convincing me to buy the wolves.”
“You don’t have to thank me. Besides, I think we both had fun.” I took a deep breath. “We’re starting anew.” How did she feel about that? We hadn’t talked a lot after our lovemaking, either last night or this morning. I knew how I was feeling. Elated and eager to show her how much she meant to me.
“Yes, we are.” She put her hand on my thigh, and my dick flexed. We did need to talk. Was this the time? No, it wasn’t. My cock hardened as she traced up and down my leg. This was going to be a long drive home.