Page 14 of Stuck with a Billionaire Rockstar

What the hell am I thinking?

Julia’s cheeks turn a pretty shade of pink, and she brushes a strand of hair behind her ear. “Uh, thanks, Brent.” She fidgets in her seat, a sign of her nerves, and glances around the restaurant as if she’s going to find something more entertaining to focus on. I watch her gaze come back to me, though, and we stare into each other’s eyes, an emotion mirroring the other’s that has my heart softening.

This is not the time.

I need to remind myself that this is a fake date, no matter the slight feeling that it’s not, and I will not be messing it up by making a move on her.

What would she do if I kissed her goodnight before dropping her off in front of her suite? Does that go against the whole fake dating, flirting lessons, and situation we have going on? She’s got the lip gloss on that makes her lips look fuller and soft; all I want to do is brush my own across them to see if they feel the same way.

I could tell her it’s practice for when she needs to do this on a real date.

At least there’s one bright side to this night – Julia hasn’t been as tense since we started talking, which means she’s getting comfortable. That’s exactly what I wanted for her. I was more than willing to help her get the experience she’s craving, but after hearing what her ex did it makes this that much more important. She deserves to feel better about herself rather than someone who’s only good for what she offers.

I’m going to kiss her tonight.

***

Julia leans back in her chair with a groan, her hand coming over her belly to rub small circles, and she chuckles softly. “God, there’s nothing like good resort food. I feel like I’ll barely be able to walk.”

I smile. “You enjoyed yourself, then?”

She nods slowly. “Honestly? Yeah, I did. Thank you, Brent.”

“Ready to head out?” I’m already dipping my hand into the back pocket of my jeans when Julia pulls out a few bills from hers. I frown at the cash now lying on the table. “Uh, what is that?”

“Money?”

I roll my eyes. “Obviously, Buttercup, but why is it sitting there?”

“Because I need to pay for my food,” she says slowly, no doubt wondering if I’m going insane.

“Julia. Put the money back in your wallet.” When she doesn’t make a move to do as I say, I lean forward and push it toward her with narrowed eyes. “I’m not such a dick that I’d make you pay for your meal during a date that I asked you on. This is on me, so put it back.” She taps her fingers over the cash slowly, then reluctantly pulls it from the table and shoves it into her wallet. “The guy always pays for the food. If he doesn’t, there should never be a second date.”

She nods, taking in my words, and clears her throat. “Got it.”

After I’ve got the cash put into the black book with our receipt, I walk over to Julia’s chair and help her out of it with a smile. There’s a few eyes on us, some widening as they recognize who I am, but otherwise we manage to walk through the exit without distraction. A slight breeze from the ocean swirls around us, and I watch Julia shiver from it, so I do the only thing I can think of. She stiffens slightly when I pull her against me, my hand resting above her hip, but quickly relaxes into my hold.

Should it feel this natural?

“Is Mallory worried about you?”

Julia snorts. “Unlikely. She’s got her own thing going on.”

I groan loudly at the meaning of her words and shake my head. “Yeah, I’d rather not talk about my sister’s romantic life right now.”

“I figured that would be the case.”

We walk in silence for a few minutes along the sidewalk and a tingle shoots up my arm as Julia’s fingers brush over mine, an unintentional movement with us walking so close together. I can’t help but wonder what it would feel like to thread our fingers together in a way that would make this more real, but I immediately shake the thought from my head.

What is going on with me?

Since the restaurant is located on the resort, it doesn’t take us long to step through the lobby and head toward the elevators. There’s a few people waiting outside of them, each stumbling from the alcohol they’ve consumed, and I hang back a few feet with Julia tucked under my arm. As soon as we step into the elevator, something about her shifts, a tension filling the air that I can’t bring myself to ignore, and I watch her swallow thickly as she watches the floor numbers increase.

She steps out as soon as the doors open onto hers, not even bothering to look back over her shoulder at me, and I shake my head with a small smile before hurrying after her. “Julia,” I say. “Wait up.”

Her steps falter and she comes to a stop, barely turning toward me with her eyes cast to the ground. “Yeah?”

I come to a stop in front of her, cup a hand against her cheek, and nudge her face until she looks into my eyes. “You forgot something that would be great practice for you,” I whisper. She scrunches her eyebrows in confusion and I lean forward, then brush my lips against hers softly. It’s barely anything, but it’s enough to have my body lighting up in flames. “Goodnight, Buttercup. Thank you for joining me tonight.”

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