Page 14 of Never Less

I raise an eyebrow. “Can you, now?”

“Not before you said it, but now I do, yeah. It brings out the warmth in your eyes.”

“I, um… often go for cooler colors for that exact reason.”

My throat tightens. I’m not used to being in such close proximity to Marcus for more than a couple seconds. He’s drinking in my reflection like he’ll never get enough of it.

His fingers brush across my hip, coasting over the material. “Breathable fabric, too. Nice.”

“Yeah,” I manage. “I took one step outside this morning and thought I was gonna die from the heat.”

At the mention of our conversation over breakfast, Marcus’s eyes darken. He works his jaw, but he doesn’t say anything.

“Thank you, by the way,” I say softly. “For trying to get Nate to prioritize me.”

“I’m just sorry it didn’t work.” He places one of his hands on my shoulder and spins me around. “Drink?”

Nodding, I lean forward and take a sip of my smoothie. The sweet, strong citrus flavors explode on my tongue, and I moan with contentment. “It gets better with every sip.”

Marcus smiles. “Good.”

This close, his cologne invades my senses. Between the spicy, musky scent, how close we are, and the way he’s towering over me, what I felt last night in the pool washes over me again.

Desire quickly doused in bitterness.

“You should get the dress,” he says, his eyes dipping to my breasts. “It really does look good on you.”

“I still have a few others to try on.”

“I’ll happily wait—as long as you show me the ones you like.”

With a laugh, I take another sip of my smoothie. “I think I can manage that.”

Out of the three other dresses I picked out, only two of them flatter my body type, and somehow Marcus convinces me to buy both of them plus the first dress. We have to make a stop by the shoe department, where I find a nice pair of sandals. The entire time, Marcus is nothing but patient. In fact, I think he might even be enjoying himself.

As we’re heading for the checkout counter, I stop. “Oh! I’m sorry, I just need to make a quick stop in one more department.”

“No worries. We’ve got plenty of time.” He stops and turns to face me. “Where to?”

“Makeup department. I thought we were gonna be hanging around the house all week, so I only brought the bare essentials. I just need to grab a few things.”

“Lead the way.”

It only takes a minute to find what I need. With it being so hot, I don’t want too much product on my face, and a more natural look will be best with the mint dress. The only thing I get stuck on is lipstick. There are a couple shades that would work well, and I really like them both.

“Which one do you think?” I ask Marcus, holding out the two lipsticks I have in my hands.

He gives me a bewildered look. “You want my input? I called your dark mint dress green five minutes ago.”

“Either of them will work, I just need help deciding. I’m worried I’ll pick the wrong one.” I let out a sigh as Nate’s voice filters through my mind.

You’re overthinking again. Just make a damn decision.

Does it actually matter that much?

No one is going to care what shade your lipstick is, babe.

“How about this one.” Marcus taps on the one I’m holding in my right hand.

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