Page 13 of The Noisemaker

He made a face. “What specifically?”

“You’ll see.” I grinned as I took the box from his hands. Tucking it under my arm, I carried it upstairs. “But first, we need to get dressed. We need to wear all white.”

“All white?”

“Yes. In Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, they believe that wearing white attracts peace for the coming year. And it wards off bad spirits and bad vibes.”

“Isn’t it bad luck to wear white in the winter though?” he asked.

“No, but it’s a fashion faux pas to wear white shoes.”

He made a face. “A fashion faux what? Come on now, Aria. You know you could’ve just said it was a fashion no-go.” He opened his arms. “Ain’t nobody here but me. You don’t have to do all that.”

I laughed hard. “Shut up! Oh, and you need to put on red underwear.”

“What?”

“Just wear those burgundy ones. You don’t haveredred.”

“What’s that about?”

“Italian tradition says red underwear is for allegria.”

He made a face and gestured with his hands in confusion. “And allegria is…?”

“Joy. And the red is for fertility,” I answered.

I saw him freeze. “Fer-fertility? I thought you wanted to wait until after marriage to have a kid.”

“Fertility of mind, body, and soul.” I got in front of him and searched his eyes. “This is more about being fertile in mind, body, and spirit.”

He grabbed my waist. “Between telling me not to pull out and then these fertility drawls, what are you trying to tell me? Because if you want to have my baby—”

With a giggle, I rolled my eyes. “Be serious!”

“No, but seriously…” He licked his lips slowly. “You want me to keep coming inside you? Or do you just like the idea of me coming inside you?”

There was a distinct throb between my thighs at the thought of him filling me up again. His fingers flexed against me as he stared into my eyes. Heat crept up my neck and flushed my brown skin. I knew the right answer, but my body was saying something else. The sensation he created within me caused a slight hesitation.

Even though I was smiling, I shook my head. “The pull out method has been working well for us.”

He looked at me with the sexiest expression, a small smirk on his lips. “You didn’t answer the question.”

I pushed myself out of his arms and turned toward our closet. “You play too much, and we have somewhere to be, baby.”

“I’m just saying…” He started following me across the room. “Say the word and I’ll fill you up. Every time.”

I closed my eyes briefly as his words washed over me.

Stay focused.

Going into the walk-in closet, I searched for the white tank dress that I loved to wear in the summertime. Pairing it with a leather jacket, tights, and knee-high boots, I made it into a wintertime look. But the entire time I was getting dressed, I couldn’t stop looking at the gold gown.

“What’s on your mind?” Desmond asked as I checked myself out in the mirror.

I looked over at him in his white polo shirt, dark denim jeans, and white sneakers. “You look good,” I complimented him.

“So do you.” He whistled, looking me up and down. “Turn around for me.”

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