Page 9 of Be My Baby

“Millie,” Max growled.

She laughed and set it down on the bar. “Fine. You’re fast becoming a grumpy old man, Max. You won’t even let me play with you a little.”

A strange expression rippled over his face, then disappeared. If she wasn’t completely wrong, she would’ve said it was almost like… longing.

He frowned. “Just open it already.”

It was light. She lifted the tape and slid the box out of the thick paper, and gasped.

Swarovski.

It was too thin to be an ornament. She loved the little, and sometimes not-so-little, crystal ornaments. Had a whole cabinet of them.

She lifted the lid off the box and her second gasp echoed around the empty bar.

The tip of her finger touched the fine rose gold chain of the double-link bracelet. Exquisite, miniature crystal charms sat between the top and bottom chains, both chains coming together to create a single, pull-through slider.

“Max…” she breathed. She couldn’t take her gaze from it.

He’d never bought her jewellery before. Not once in all the years of birthday and Christmas gifts.

Could it mean he was thinking about her request?

She didn’t dare hope so. Didn’t dare let herself get her hopes up.

“Do you like it?” His question was equally soft. His husky voice sent shivers down her spine.

Millie picked it up and rested the gorgeous bracelet on her palm. The crystals glittered and sparkled in the bright overhead lights.

“Iloveit.”

She looked up into depthless baby blues and held up her trembling hand. “Help me put it on?”

Max nodded and picked it up off her palm. His warm fingers brushing her skin erupted goosebumps over her exposed skin. He slipped it over her hand to settle it on her wrist, then slid the slider down the metal so that it rested close to her skin, but giving it enough room to move freely.

“Beautiful,” he murmured.

Millie looked up to agree, only to see him staring ather, not the bracelet.

She forgot to breathe. Forgot her own name. Could only lose herself deep in a sea of rich blue.

“Nice wrist candy, Mil.”

Simon’s loud voice shocked her from her daze. She pulled her eyes from Max’s and pasted the smile she always had at the ready on her mouth.

“Thanks, Simon. Itisrather pretty.”

She stood and wrapped her arms around Max’s neck, unable to not touch him in some way. A hug would have to do, would beallshe could do. He pulled her tight. His warmth drew her tighter still. She pressed into him and stood on tiptoe, pressing a kiss to his cheek.

All that hard, delicious warmth. The planes and hollows of his toned body fit into hers so well she wanted to moan out loud.

To have him naked and pressed against her…

She pulled back sharply, shocked that she’d let herself fantasise about him while clinging to him like a barnacle.

She couldn’t quite look him in the eye as she said, “Thank you, Max. It’s beautiful.”

Attraction to him had been there in the background for a long time, but she’d refused to acknowledge it or act upon it. Not since the one and only time they’d kissed, so long ago. It had been only a few months after Lucy’s death. They’d had a few wines and she’d been consoling Max on her sofa. An innocent hug had turned into more when he’d turned quickly, her mouth accidentally bumping his jaw. Their mouths had clashed, the kiss deep, passionate. They’d both pulled apart, pure horror written across Max’s face.

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