Page 67 of A Little Naughty

I look up, and when our eyes meet, anger mixes with confusion in his gaze. “Is this about that asshole from Branson?”

My ears are hot, and I look down again. “No! He was never my boyfriend.”

“Look at me.” He gives me a little shake, and when I look up, his eyes are deadly serious. “I would never hurt you, Jemima Dixon, and I’d kill anyone who did, including him. In fact, I like this arrangement. If that guy does show up at your place again, I’ll be there to teach him a lesson.”

A surge of energy tingles in my stomach, and I exhale softly. “That sounds good to me.” His jaw is tight, and I really like this side of him. Sliding my hair behind my shoulder, I throw a little sass. “You sound like my kind of bad boy.”

“Don’t get it twisted.” He leans forward, speaking in my ear. “I’ll still spank your ass if it gets you off.”

The tingle in my stomach shoots lower, making my pussy wet. “I think it might.”

“I figured as much.” He releases me, catching my hand in his. “You’re a bad girl.”

“You’re a tease.” I skip closer, holding his arm in my hand.

“I wasn’t teasing.”

Our fingers thread, and he leads me to the road, where we left the bike. I’m a little timid to ask my last question, but I guess if I’m ever going to do it, I’d better do it now.

“I know it’s not a real marriage, but… will you cheat on me?”

He stops walking and gives my hand a tug so I’m back in his arms, flush against his chest. Then he kisses my lips softly. “Never.”

Our eyes are locked, and I believe him. Every word. “That’s all I need to know, I guess.”

“Well, I’d better get you back. You’ve got a little girl to put to bed, and I’ve got a pig to process.”

The whole ride back, my cheek is pressed against his shoulder, and I’m smiling, staring dreamily at the sky full of stars. Even if it’s not a real marriage, even if he’s only doing it to help me adopt Nikki and there’s a deadline on our arrangement, I’m so happy.

It’s like I’ve found something I didn’t know I lost. My arms are clasped tightly around his waist, and when his hand covers mine, I feel so safe and protected.

He waits for me to walk up the steps to my little house where Monay is staying with Nikki, but I hesitate on the top step, not really wanting him to go.

“Thanks for the hunting lesson.”

His blue eyes shine from beneath the helmet with the visor pushed up. He rolls back, but I can tell he’s smiling.

I don’t miss his parting words, “See you soon, Mrs. Jones.”

* * *

“You’ve got that look again.”Monay is sitting on the couch when I walk through the door. “I thought you said this was a work trip.”

“It was, look!” I hop onto the couch beside her.

Her eyes narrow, but I pull out my phone, scrolling through pictures of Raif looking super hot in his hunting gear, him walking out to the site, the tree where we waited, and the final kill.

“Look at that. Raif and Jemima, sitting in a tree.” She’s still suspicious in her sky-high Dolly wig and flowery blouse. “And you expect me to believe there was no K-I-S-S-I-N-G?”

“We had to be very quiet so we didn’t scare away the hogs.”

“So I guess this glow means you really like hunting?”

I squeeze my lips so I don’t laugh and glance around the room. “Where’s Nikki?”

“She’s upstairs. It’s not a school night, so I figured she could stay up a little later.”

“Hang on. Wait right here.” I scrub Angie Dickinson’s pink head then jog up the stairs.

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