Page 79 of Failure to Match

“Jackson…”

“I know.”

“This is…”

“I know.”

I gaped at the colossal… palace. It was a full-onpalacestuffed into the empty suite down the hall from mine.

A palace made out of cardboard.

“Oh. My. Fucking. God,” I said again. Toebeans was going to lose his fucking mind.

“Yes,” Jackson purred. “She’s exquisite.”

My mouth was still hanging open. “How did you…”

“Money.”

“In less than six hours…”

“Money.”

“This is... holy shit, that’s a throne.” Which meant that by the end of today, Toebeans Maguire would have sat on three separate thrones, all of which had been custom-made just for him.

Jackson strutted into the suite, all arrogance. “Adderall might have built Cat a room full of intricate toys and accessories, but if Cat is anything like Harry, then he’s significantly more interested in the boxes those toys come in.”

“You know his name is Adrien.”

Jackson frowned at me. “Then why did you tell me it was Toebeans?”

I pinched the bridge of my nose as the laugh escaped. He had a very specific brand of humor—one thatshouldhave annoyed the hell out of me—and it was growing on me at an alarmingly rapid pace.

“I can’t believe…” I trailed off, unable to think of the right words.

It was incredible. There was a clock tower (with an actual working clock that doubled as a treat dispenser), stables (housing horse-shaped scratch posts), a dungeon (with cardboard mice trapped behind steel bars), and… and justso muchmore.

There was even art! Images and shapes that had been carefully carved into the cardboard walls, arched windows with stained glass, and a colorful little outdoor garden with battery-operated butterflies!

It was fucking magical.

“When did you even have the time to make this happen?” I asked.

“I was at my desk all afternoon. What else would I have been doing?”

I blinked up at him. “Working.”

“Don’t be ridiculous, Jamie.”

Jesus Christ. I really could not with this man.

But also, like, how genuinely sweet was this? I was trying really, very hard to stop my heart from melting over it, but I couldn’t help it. I wanted to hug him. I didn’t, but I wanted to.

Jackson rubbed his hands together. “Shall we bring Cat in? See what he thinks?”

I held up a palm to stop him. “A few questions before we do that.” Although I was honestly a little afraid to ask. “One, why does it smell like you in here?”

It was like someone had rubbed him all over this room.

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