Page 12 of Contentious

She removed his shirt and the T-shirt under it and then wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her head on his chest. “Let it all go for a few hours.”

He held her close and breathed in the scent that’d become so familiar to him in recent weeks, a bewitching combination of elements… A hint of roses, maybe, on top of her own essence. Whatever it was, he couldn’t get enough of it. Julian closed his eyes and focused on breathing and existing in this moment with her.

Nothing could get to him there, not now, anyway.

He had no doubt it’d be waiting for him in the morning, but for now, he was determined to enjoy this rare time alone with her. “What do you think about running away?”

“I’ll do whatever you want to, but this feels like one of those ‘you can run, but you cannot hide’ situations.”

“It is, but if I run away, I won’t have to see him at work and be forced to pretend everything is fine when it isn’t.”

“That’s true. Where would you want to go?”

“Anywhere but here. Where have you always wanted to go?”

“Italy, but we don’t have passports.”

“We’ll do that someday soon. What’s your second choice?”

“Is Ojai an option? The kids haven’t stopped talking about the animals since we were there.”

“That’s definitely an option, but it may not be far enough away from here.”

“It could be if we turn off our phones and leave the world behind for a few days.”

“That sounds perfect.” His siblings would never forgive him, but he’d worry about that later. “I need a day at work to handle the pressing stuff, but after that, let’s run away.”

“I’m with you, love.”

“That’s all I need.”

Chapter Four

“What’s wrong?” Carson asked when he noticed that Cresley seemed anxious all of a sudden.

“I’m thinking about Marlon and the custody hearing.”

“He doesn’t have a chance in hell of getting access to Ty.”

“If only that were true. Anything can happen, and you know that as well as I do.”

“Anything can happen, but Julian will make sure it doesn’t. He’s the best lawyer you could have on your side for this. Between his legal skills and my surveillance reports, Marlon will be burnt toast.”

Cresley laughed.

“What’s so funny?”

“I’m picturing Marlon’s pretty face turned to burnt toast.”

“You think his face is pretty?” Carson asked, curling his lip.

“Not as pretty as your face, but he’s not hideous, and I have to say that because Ty resembles him.”

“No way. Ty is all you. He’s got none of that guy in him.”

“If you’d seen pictures of Marlon as a kid, you’d see the resemblance.”

“I’ve seen every picture I could find of him, and I see no resemblance whatsoever.”