“What do you mean?”
“I mean, I get that we’re all friends and we kind of play it fast and loose with the schedule—like there are no normal hours. Not really. However, we’re entitled to lunch breaks where no one bothers us.”
He nodded.
“I know for a fact that Harlow and Walker have asked not to be disturbed during lunch, and so have Axel and Maisie. And what I find funny about both situations is that they all live together! I mean, not all four of them, but…”
“I get what you’re saying, and you’re right. So if they’re entitled to some private time mid-day, so are we.”
Lifting her head, she grinned. “Exactly.”
Reaching up, Connor caressed her cheek. “I like the way you think.”
“Well…it was either come up with a solution or miss out on more of this. And this was far too good to have to wait weeks for it to happen again. I’m afraid you may have created a monster.”
That seemed to please him. “A monster, huh?”
She nodded. “Yup. And weeks are just not going to cut it. I’m not saying we have to lock ourselves in one of our cabins every single day, but I also want to be able to have that option if we want it.”
“Um…if that option’s on the table, then I’m going to want it.”
The giggle was out before she could stop it. “Me too.”
His smile turned sexy. “We don’t have to wait weeks or even for a lunch break right now. We still have eight hours to ourselves. Let’s not waste any of it.” Slowly, he rolled her beneath him and kissed her.
And as she wrapped herself around him once again, she happily gave herself over to the moment.
Chapter Seven
If it weren’t for those boundary-setting lunch breaks, Connor would have surely lost his mind over the next two weeks.
Getting his kitchen staff ready, preparing for the wedding, and being fully present for Annabeth were exhausting him. But for an hour every day, he had Lexi all to himself, and it was a time to just shut out the rest of the world and pretend that nothing else mattered but the two of them.
It was refreshing, exhilarating, and beyond sexually satisfying.
Sometimes he’d show up at her cabin, and she’d be wearing nothing except her robe. He loved unwrapping her like a present.
Other times, she’d show up at his cabin and he'd sprawl her out on the dining room table and treat her like she was his lunch.
Those days were his favorite.
Today, they were meeting at her cabin, and he was desperately trying to leave to meet her, but his sous chef and fry cook were arguing over counter space, and he was doing everything possible to keep the conversation from turning ugly. When his phone vibrated in his pocket, he knew it was going to be Lexi asking where he was.
Lexi: Lunch is getting cold.
Lexi: And by lunch, I mean me
Then there was a picture of her bare leg sticking out of her pink robe, and he groaned before sliding the phone back into his pocket.
“Okay!” he snapped. “That’s enough. Dan, you have an entire workstation next to the deep fryer that provides more than enough space for you. I understand that you’re plating stuff over here next to Scott, but once the resort opens, you’re both going to have to stick to your sections.”
“Yes, Chef,” Scott murmured before giving Dan a smug look.
“That’s not how we work here,” he quickly admonished. “We need to respect one another because we’re a team. Now I am taking my lunch break because I desperately need it, and so should all of you. And when I get back, I want us to go over the dinner menus. I’m not completely sold on our fish selections.” Tossing his chef’s coat on the workstation, he called out, “See you all in an hour!”
Then, he grabbed the cooler bag with their lunch in it on his way out the door. Outside, he jogged down the back stairs, across the parking lot, and down the path to Lexi’s cabin. He hated how breathless he was when he got there, but when she greeted him at the door, he knew he’d run a damn marathon to get to her.
Without a word, he crowded her, dropping the bag on the floor before he cupped her face and kissed her as if his life depended on it. After that, it was just chaotic choreography to get them across the room and into her bedroom. It was nothing but breathy sighs, pleasurable moans, and a battle for who was going to be on top.
