“Oh, baby.” I inch my hand between his legs, and he releases a strained breath through his teeth at the promise and sultry tone in my voice. “Good boys get rewarded.”
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
A THURSDAY IN OCTOBER
Iget back to the apartment around ten in the morning, Kirstin having let me off early. She was acting suspicious, unable to fully look at me without smiling, so she had hidden behind her computer most of the morning. I decided not to think too much about it, my gut already telling me something was waiting for me at home.
And as I unlock the door and push it open, I discover I was right.
Levi is sitting on the couch, one hand resting along the back with his feet kicked up as he watches the television. Kicking off my shoes, I set my bag down on the kitchen table and walk into the living room, leaning against the wall with my arms folded over my chest.
“I’d ask how you got in here, but I’m sure Blue had something to do with it,” I say in way of greeting.
Levi grabs the remote and mutes the television, turning to me with a half-smile. “What can I say? I’m very convincing when I need to be.”
“Not that I’m not thrilled to see you—” my eyes suddenly catch on two suitcases and a duffel bag in the corner. “What are those?”
“I believe those are suitcases,” he states, pushing himself up to his feet. “They’re this thing that you put your clothes and toiletries in so you can go places without them getting dirty or ruined.”
I roll my eyes as he saunters towards me. “Thank you for that vocab lesson. I meant, why are there two packed bags sitting in my living room?”
“Ah.” He rests his hands on my hips once he’s within reach, and I loop my arms around his neck. “It’s a surprise.”
“I hate surprises,” I remind him, tilting my head to the side.
It’s Levi’s turn to roll his eyes before he rests his forehead against mine. “Can’t you just go along with it this one time?”
“Not if it involves us going somewhere without my child.” I pull back and look up at him. “Kind of need to know what the plan is.”
“Okay, fine,” he sighs, grabbing my hands and dragging me over to sit next to him on the couch. “I wanted to take you somewhere for your birthday, and after talking with your best friend, we settled on Montana. I want to show you where I grew up, and I know you want to get out of the city.”
A light blush creeps into my cheeks. “That’s very sweet of you. What about Claire?”
“Blue is going to take care of her. And she took Winston, too. We leave in a few hours and come back on Sunday.”
“You mean I get you alone for almost four days with no interruptions?” I slowly run a hand up his thigh. “What ever will we do?”
Levi swoops in, catching me off guard as he frantically presses his lips against mine. I greedily return the kiss, sweeping my tongue against his lips, and he grants me access. My fingers fist in his hair, and a low groan escapes him as he pulls back slightly.
“I think now is probably the time to tell you I planned on us staying on the ranch.” He brings a hand up and gently tucks some of my hair behind my ear. “So, you’ll meet my aunt and my cousins, but we’ll have the privacy of the guest house.”
I plant a quick, appreciative kiss on his lips. “That sounds perfect.”
After a brief make-out session that ended with both of us hot and bothered, Levi grabbed our bags and led us out the door. A thirty-two-minute car ride later and we were pulling up outside of the airport.
The airport wasn’t too busy, which made getting through security a breeze. Levi insisted on rolling our bags to the gate, making a quick pit stop on the way to get something to drink. Before I knew it, we were boarding the plane and up in the air, heading to Montana for my thirtieth birthday.
Five hours and a lot of reading later, we were landing in Bozeman. I follow behind him to the car rental counter and patiently wait as he gets our vehicle. Heading out into the parking garage, Levi throws the suitcases into the bed of a black Ford pickup truck.
“Can take the boy out of the country, but can’t take the country out of the boy,” I tease as he helps me up into the passenger seat.
He leans over to buckle me in, despite my protest. “Make fun all you want, but if I roll up in anything other than a pickup truck, the boys will be giving me shit all weekend.”
“Oh, heaven forbid.” Levi hops behind the wheel and gives me an incredulous look, causing me to chuckle. “I’m sorry, I’ll stop. So, how far is the drive?”
“It’s about two and a half hours,” he informs me as he starts up the truck. “It’s a bit past Dillon. Feel free to take a nap or read to pass the time.”
I nod, tucking my sweater under my head between the window and the headrest. Smiling gently to myself, I watch the sun casting a glow between the buildings in the city before I doze off.
