Page 55 of The Rules of Dating a Younger Man

“For you.”

“They’re beautiful.” I touched the petals of one of the flowers. “Wow, are they real?”

He nodded. “They’re preserved roses. Supposed to last a year. I figured you wouldn’t have a vase here, and even if the hotel gave you one, it would be a pain in the ass to take regular flowers home. Plus, if these things last as long as they say they do, you’re going to be reminded of me for a long time to come.”

“Thank you.” I smiled and stepped aside. The man really did think of everything. “Come in. I just need a minute to slip my shoes on and apply some lipstick. I was on the phone with my stepdaughter and lost track of time.”

“No rush.” Brayden let the door close behind him, then caught my hand. “But before you put on that lipstick…” He gave my arm a quick tug, and I practically fell into his chest. His eyes sparkled as he cupped my cheeks. “I have been dying for this all week.”

Brayden’s lips crashed down on mine, and I melted into him. If it were possible, he tasted even better than I remembered. After a minute, I felt him growing hard against my stomach.

“I fucking missed you,” he growled into my mouth.

If he hadn’t already had me lost in his kiss, the needy sound of his voice would’ve done me in. It was raw and real and left no doubt that he wanted me. It also made me ache with need. I was seconds away from stripping off my clothes when there was another knock at my door.

I ignored it, but eventually Brayden wrenched his mouth away. He leaned his forehead against mine. “I hate whoever that is.”

I groaned. “Me too.”

Neither of us made a move to answer the door, and I might’ve stayed quiet hoping they’d just go away so we could get back to the kiss. Though no such luck. Whoever it was knocked again, this time louder. Brayden used his thumb to wipe under my lip and tilted his head toward the door. “You’re going to have to answer. I need a minute.”

I smiled. “Okay.”

I assumed it was housekeeping or some other hotel employee, so imagine my surprise when I swung open the door and found Cher.

The woman had to be six-feet tall without the giant feathers sticking out of the hat on top of her head. She had a mane of black curly hair, and her mouth was overlined with bright red lipstick. “Are you Alex Jones?”

I took a hesitant step back. “Yes?”

She smiled and held her arms up. “Happy birthday from your best friend, Wells!” She pushed a button on her iPhone, started some music, and belted out a full rendition of “If I Could Turn Back Time” followed by “Happy Birthday, You Bitch.” Guests came out of their rooms and joined us in the hall to watch. I couldn’t stop laughing. The woman was really good. She even sang out of the side of her mouth like Cher. Brayden stood behind me, looking a little confused, but this was par for the course for Wells. After the show was over, the woman handed me a dick lollipop while Brayden dug some cash from his billfold and tipped her.

I shut the door, still laughing.

“What the hell was that?”

“Apparently Cher.”

“Is it really your birthday?”

I nodded. “It’s Sunday. But Wells and I celebrated this morning before I left Connecticut. His dad passed away on my birthday a few years back, so we changed our celebration to three days earlier.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Because unlike you, I’ve stopped celebrating getting another year older.”

He raked a hand through his hair. “I have to leave Sunday—I have an appointment early Monday morning.”

“It’s fine. It’s just another day.”

“Is it…a big birthday?”

I raised a brow. “Are you asking me if I’m forty? Or worse yet, fifty?”

“I don’t care how old you are. But I would’ve liked to have done something for you.”

I grabbed his tie and pushed up to kiss him. “If you play your cards right, I might let you do something for me before the weekend’s over.”

Brayden groaned, but my little tease seemed to erase the stress wrinkles from his forehead. “Go do what you need to do,” he said. “Or we’re going to be late for dinner…by a couple of days.”

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