“Who glued my eyes shut?” She forced one open. “Hey, we’re in bed.”
“Excellent observation.”
“How’d we get here?”
“Beats the hell out of me.”
“Maybe I carried you in before I had my wicked way with you. Again.”
He grinned. “That’s entirely possible.”
“Is it just me?” She hesitated, an innate wariness flickering like a warning light. “Or did something peculiar happen to us last night? Even more peculiar than The Inferno, Imean. Although how that’s even possible is beyond me.”
He framed her face, tracing the delicate bone structure with his fingertips until the shape and texture became as familiar to him as his own. The need to remain in physical contact with her had become an urge he no longer bothered resisting. The Inferno hadwon.
“I believe we both realized the truth last night,” he admitted.
She regarded him with some reservation. “Which is?”
“This isn’t going away.” He lifted her left hand and studied the engagement ring she wore. The inner fire seemed to erupt from the center of the diamond, fiercer than he’d ever seen it before. “Maybe we should consider making this permanent.”
He absorbed her jerk of surprise, felt her heart rate kick up a notch. “Are you serious?”
“I think it’s worth discussing, don’t you?”
A small smile played at the corners of her mouth. It grew until her entire face radiated with it. “I wouldn’t mind,” she admitted softly.
On the nightstand table, his cell emitted a soft buzz and Sev swore beneath his breath. “I should have left the damn thing in the other room.”
She jackknifed upward and snatched a swift kiss. “Go ahead and take it while I get cleaned up.”
“You sure?”
“Positive.”
She bounced off the bed and darted into the bathroom. Her muffled shriek of dismay put a grin on his face. Something told him she’d just discovered a mirror. He snagged the phone and took the call. “This better be good,” he growled.
“It’s Lazz. And it’s not good. In fact, it’s an effing mess. If you’d bothered to come to work this morning—”
“Get to the point,” Sev interrupted.
“Seriously, bro, what the hell are you doing and why aren’t you here? There is a fan sitting on my desk cranked to high and you can’t believe what just hit it.”
“What’s wrong?”
“It’s Francesca.”
Hell.He glanced toward the bathroom. Water ran in the sink and he could hear her humming, the sound light and happy and slightly off-key. “What’s the problem?”
“Bloom’s rep called. They’ve decided to go with Timeless.”
“Not good, but we knew winning that account would be a long shot. What’s it got to do with Francesca?”
At the sound of her name, she appeared in the doorway. She’d tamed her hair, much to his disappointment and, even more disappointing, slipped on one of his shirts. She shot him a questioning look as she rolled up the sleeves, an incandescent happiness pouring off her in waves. After the meeting with Kurt, he didn’t think she’d ever find joy again. But she had, and it humbled him that she found it in hisarms.
“Francesca’s the one who convinced Bloom to go with TH,” Lazzsaid.
Sev shot off the bed. “Not a chance.”
