Page 68 of Love in Fine Print

“It’s been a long day,” I commented.

She nodded.

“We should probably call it a night,” I suggested.

Her eyes stared up into mine and she didn’t immediately agree. A flicker of hope lit that maybe, just maybe, she was enjoying herself as much as I was and didn’t want our night to end either.

The tiny flame was extinguished when she nodded in agreement. “Yes.”

She grabbed the bag that Bailey had packed for her and excused herself to go to the bathroom off the main bedroom. I grabbed my bag and went into the smaller of the two rooms to change. I threw on sweats and a t-shirt and checked my phone.

Jake sent me a photo of himself and Dolly with a thumbs up. He was staying at my place tonight and watching her for me. I glanced around and saw there were no water bottles in the room, so I grabbed my wallet and figured if there weren’t any in the mini-fridge I could find a vending machine. I always drank a lot of water during the night.

I walked back out into the common area and had just bent down to open the mini-fridge when I heard my name behind me. I stood and turned around. Olivia had taken off her makeup and shoes but was still in her dress. She looked soft and sweet. Seeing her bare-faced and barefoot did something to my heart, which ached in my chest.

“Can you help me with the zipper?” she asked as she turned so her back was facing me.

Fuck me.It had been hard enough, literally, to keep my hands to myself after we’d arrived at the hotel since I’d been touching her and kissing her all day. This was seriously going to take every ounce of self-control I had. I took a step and closed the distance between us. My hand shook as I lifted it and brushed the hair to the side. The back of my knuckles grazed the base of her neck and her back before I slid the zipper down to her tailbone.

My chest was heaving in labored breaths as I dropped my arms back down to my sides. She turned around slowly as my heart pounded wildly in my chest. When her eyes met mine, I could see flames of desire flickering in them.

“I really want to kiss you again,” I admitted.

“Is that all you want to do?” she asked.

I shouldn’t be surprised that she was addressing the attraction that we obviously felt for one another head-on. Olivia Bradshaw was a force to be reckoned with.

“No. I want to do a lot more than kiss you.”

A flush rose on her cheeks. “What do you want to do?”

“I want to strip you out of that dress. I want you naked. I want to touch and kiss and worship every inch of your body. I want to make you feel so good that you forget anything or anyone else exists in this world. I want to make love tomy wife.” It was the first time I’d said ‘my wife’ out loud and I had to admit, I really fucking liked how it sounded.

Olivia licked her lips nervously then inhaled slowly. “In Tudor times, the high council of the court would have to witness the wedding night to make sure that it was consummated. Even these days, if a marriage isn’t consummated, it can be annulled.”

I could see that she was trying to convince herself that us being together was the right thing to do. The thing was, I didn’t want her to wake up tomorrow and regret tonight. I didn’t want to start our marriage off, fake or not, with a night that if something happened, she had to talk herself into it.

“The only way anything is going to happen tonight is if you want it to happen. Not because of tradition or legality. I want you, Olivia. I want you more than I’ve ever wanted anything or anyone. But I only want to do this if you’re not going to regret it in the morning.”

Her eyes remained locked with mine and I watched as her hands dropped to her sides. The material of the dress slid down her body and pooled at her feet, revealing a sexy, white lace bra and panties. My eyes ate her up, hungrily, greedily as any blood that was left in my brain headed south. As she took a step toward me, I could see the desire that was flooding through my veins mirrored in her large amber eyes.

“The only way I’m going to wake up with regret tomorrow is if we don’t act on what we’re feeling tonight. This does not set a precedent for our marriage. It’s one night. Just tonight, I want us to give in to our attraction and tomorrow?—"

Urgency roared through me, and I leaned down and covered her mouth with mine, cutting her off mid-sentence. I wasn’t sure if it was because I just couldn’t hold back any longer or if I didn’t want to hear her say that tomorrow we would go back to being married on paper only. I didn’t want to think about tomorrow. If she was giving me tonight, I didn’t want to waste a second talking about tomorrow.

My hands cupped her face, tilting her head back giving me full access to her full pouty lips. Our first kiss at the wedding had taken me by complete surprise. This kiss was no less powerful, but I was slightly more prepared for it. Arousal infused my bloodstream, thrashing through me with the force of white-water rapids.

As my tongue speared into her mouth, she met me lick for lick. Her hands clung to my shoulders as mine began to explore her body. My fingers trailed down her back before spreading out on her ass cheeks. I squeezed the firm, full flesh tightly. I swallowed the moan that escaped from her throat as I kissed her with all the pent-up passion and attraction I’d been denying, ignoring, and refusing to allow myself to entertain, much less act on.

“I’ve wanted you since the first second I saw you,” I said as I made my way down her neck. Kissing her softly between each word.

“Really?” she asked, sounding genuinely surprised by my feelings about her.

“I thought that was pretty obvious,” I said as my finger trailed over the scalloped edge of her lace bra. I watched as tiny bumps rose on her smooth skin.

“It wasn’t.” Her chest rose and fell in short pants.

“Well, I did. You were all I could think about. It drove me fucking crazy,” I admitted as I snapped the tiny clasp in the center of her chest, causing the material to open revealing her bare nipples and releasing her full breasts.

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