Page 92 of The Marriage Auction 2: Part 4

The best even.

I grinned as I watched my footballer walk up the sandy beach, his muscled body dripping with salt water and looking good enough to eat. All I needed was a shot of tequila. I’d lick the salt right off that gorgeous body and go back for seconds.

“You keep lookin’ at me like I’m lunch, and you’ll never eat a full meal again,” he warned.

I looked at him over the rim of my sunglasses, eyebrows cocked. “Who needs a full meal when I’ve got all of that to feed off of?” I gestured to his perfect chest.

He smiled shyly and shook his head. I loved it. I loved him. Learning that my man was actually rather shy about his body was a delight. He had one of the best bodies I’d ever seen but was rather prudish about showing it off. I’d tried to get him to go skinny-dipping with me last night, and instead, he tackled me the moment I’d ripped my top off on the beach and hauled me back to our private cabana. He claimed my tits were his to look at, and no perv was going to get in on any of his action.

Turns out, he also felt the same about himself. Already he was reaching for his t-shirt and slipping it over his head, cutting off my view.

I pouted, which earned me a wet, salty kiss.

“Food first, then dessert.” He nipped at my bottom lip, and I groaned, my gaze on the massive private beach and miles of ocean beyond.

“I can’t believe Joel & Faith gifted us this for our wedding. You’ve got some cool friends, baby.”

“Yeah,” he said while rubbing a towel over his head. “It was kind of them for sure.”

“I think I’ll gift Faith something special from my Mother’s Day collection. Can you find out what month the girls’ birthdays are in?” A pendant with both Eden and Penny’s birthstones would be beautiful. Maybe an infinity symbol with each loop wrapping around one of the children’s gemstones.

“Nay, just because someone gave you a gift doesn’t mean you have to return the gesture right away,” Memphis noted.

“I know, but they’re your friends, and I want to build a relationship with them. Joel doesn’t need anything in life. He’s made it clear that all he cares about is Faith and those girls. So a present that represents both kids would be nice, don’t you think?”

Memphis shrugged. “Sure. But what happens when they have another baby?”

“Are they trying?” I asked, wanting to hear all the tea.

“Joel claims he wants another baby asap. Faith wants to wait a bit because she’s working on setting up an authentic Italian restaurant like the one her father had in Las Vegas that burned down. Only this one will be in Greece.”

“They’re going to stay in Greece most of the time?”

He nodded. “Faith says there’s too many bad memories in the States. She was in hiding and on the run from that douche Aiden for a long time.”

I turned onto my side on the lounge chair to face him and get more comfy. “Ooooh, tell me more?”

Memphis burst out laughing. “You’re as bad as my granny.”

“No, I aspire to be as well informed as granny. That woman knows everything about everyone. Nothing gets past her.”

He chuckled. “True. It’s not a happy story though,” he frowned.

“Okay, well we can discuss it later. Let’s talk about how in two days we are going back to New York where my man will be finishing up his degree and starting work at Columbia.”

I watched a gorgeous smile spread across his face. “I’m really excited about it. Football, the players, the game, all of it has always been my passion. Getting to help college kids live out their dreams?” He shook his head. “It’s my dream job, baby.Well, if it turned into me coaching for an NFL league, that would be the ultimate.”

I reached out and covered his hand with my own. “You’re young. You have years of experience ahead of you to learn, but I believe if you work hard, focus on that ultimate goal, one day you’ll get it.”

He sat down next to me and played with my fingers, turning my wedding ring from left to right, toggling it as he seemed to enjoy. “Sometimes I think I can’t dream any bigger because finding you, marrying you, my family being set…” He let out a long breath. “It’s all better than I could have imagined. More isn’t needed. I’ve already got everything I ever truly wanted. And it’s all because of you. I love you, Naomi Taylor.”

“I love you, too, Memphis Taylor.”

He leaned over and we kissed for so long he ended up pulling me up and over onto his chair, straddling his large frame where we made good use of the outdoor private patio facing the ocean.

When the night fell and we were cuddled in bed, whispering about the things we wanted to do in the future, I thought back to when all of this began.

I’d lost faith in men.

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