I still haven’t managed to wake fully when he slides off me and rolls me onto my side to spoon me again. We say nothing as he cuddles into me, and I drift back off to sleep.
Much later, I wake to an empty bed.
My hand slides across the sheets, still warm where Colt’s body was. I blink, then roll toward the walk-in closet and catch sight of him moving around inside. For a split second, my chest tightens with the haunting echo of that nightmare—him packing, telling me to leave. My insecurities are still getting the better of me. But then he steps out and catches me watching him. The moment our eyes meet, his whole expression softens. He walks over, sits on the edge of the bed, and tucks a stray piece of hair behind my ear.
“Morning, Mrs. Slade,” he murmurs, brushing his lips over mine. “How’d you sleep?”
“Like a baby,” I say, stretching a little beneath the covers. “And that sleepy sex we had earlier? Yeah, we’re doing that again. Soon.”
He chuckles, the sound low and warm. “Definitely doing that again. No idea why we’ve been holding out on sleepy sex, it’s a game-changer.” He kisses me again before pushing to his feet and heading back into the closet.
“What time does our flight leave?” I ask, nerves already creeping in about the fifteen-hour trip ahead.
“In a few hours,” he replies, voice a little muffled. “Just finishing packing so we can grab some breakfast and maybe squeeze in a good shag before we go.”
I laugh.“Yeah, baby,”I say in my best Austin Powers voice.
“Beaches, cocktails, skinny dipping… can’t wait to get you to that resort,” he says, emerging again with a duffel in hand. “I booked the whole island. Just us and the staff. No fans. No drama. Just you and me.”
A relieved breath leaves me. The idea of crowds, of eyes on me, especially after everything, makes my stomach twist. It’ll be my first time in public since the accident, and I’m quietly dreading it. But I shove the fear down because I don’t want to dull Colt’s happiness with my anxious thoughts.
“I can’t wait to walk around topless all day,” I tease, trying to lighten the mood. “Just lounging by the pool, soaking up the sun with my sexy rock star husband beside me.”
His grin turns wicked. “Yeah? How ’bout a little preview? Just to tide me over.”
With a laugh, I lower the bed sheet and flash him, giving a playful bounce for good measure.
Colt whistles low. “Mmm… now that’s what I’m talkin’ about.” He prowls toward the bed, bends, and wraps his lips around my nipple. I giggle, squirming slightly as his beard scrapes my skin. He sucks hard, then moves up to kiss me again, slower this time, more deliberate. “Well,” he growls, eyes locked on mine. “Guess I’d better get that quick shag in now. Can’t waste a perfectly good hard-on.”
I raise a brow and nod thoughtfully. “Yeah, it’s a tough job, but someone’s gotta do it.”
He huffs a dark laugh and yanks the sheets down, revealing my naked body.
His gaze heats instantly. “Lucky me,” he mutters, then lunges at me.
***
Two hours later, we’re shagged, sated, and freshly showered just as the low rumble of the Hummer signals its arrival out front. I glance out the bedroom window and feel a strange cocktail of excitement and nerves swirl in my stomach.Honeymoon.It still feels surreal.
Thank God we’re taking the band’s jet. Everyone knows I hate flying, but it’s gotten easier over time, not like that first flight where I clung to Colt like a terrified koala. Still, I can’t do it without Tamara’s miracle tablets. I took one twenty minutes ago, and I’m already starting to feel the edge dull just enough.
I shove a corner of toast into my mouth while Colt lugs our suitcases down the stairs, his muscles flexing deliciously under his shirt. We debated bringing Princess with us, but with quarantine laws and paperwork nightmares, it was all too complicated. Thankfully, Joseph and Danny offered to take her when they left last night. She whined as they walked out the door, and I nearly cried, but I know she’s in good hands.
“You ready, baby?” Colt calls out from downstairs.
“Yep, coming!” I shout back, double-checking that everything’s turned off, and then hurry toward the front door, only to hear him chuckle.
“That’s what she said,” he mutters just as I appear, and I shoot him a look.
“What, are you… twelve?” I ask, deadpan.
He grins shamelessly, stealing a bite of my toast as I reach him.
“C’mon, we’ve gotta move. Apparently, the pilot’s sick of the band running late for every damn departure. And if there’s one guy you don’t want to piss off on a plane, it’s the guy flying it.”
I groan. “Right, plane jokes. Very funny. Tell them to your wife, who’s already halfway to a panic attack over flying, you absolute dumbass.”
He chuckles and snakes his arm around my waist as I lock the door behind us.
