Page 35 of Get Undressed With Me

She hung up before Brittany could answer, which was for the best, considering the only words on the tip of Brittany’s tongue had started with ‘f.’

“Rough call?”

His voice was right in her ear, which was why her pulse raced. At least, that’s what Brittany told herself as she turned her head and looked up into Gus’s dark eyes, losing her breath a little at how he was leaning over her. She tried not to inhale his scent, some sort of woodsy cologne he wore, and smiled up at him.

“Just the normal with my mom.”

“Ah. How’s Queen Kathleen doing?”

She did her best not to laugh at his nickname for her mom, but she wasn’t sure she pulled it off. Gus was the only personshe knew who had not been impressed with her mother when they met. Granted, it was a meeting in passing, they hadn’t said more than hello to each other since she had focused on Robbie at the time to grill him about his follower count and ambitions, but still. Maybe it was because he spent his time saving lives instead of worrying about his next social media post that he didn’t understand how scary Kathleen was.

It was refreshing.

“She just wanted to tell me a deadline got pushed up.” Brittany knew she was lucky to have her mom, that she worked hard to make sure that Brittany succeeded and had what she needed, so she did her best not to complain. But something in her face must have shown, because now Gus was frowning at her.

“She’s mad about you being here at Kickoff, isn’t she?”

How he guessed, Brittany had no idea, so she turned her attention to her feet, and the gorgeous heels she loved desperately that she needed to get off her feet as soon as possible.

“She might not be thrilled with it. She’s not a fan of these conventions. She thinks when I dress down for them, I’m cheapening my brand.”

“You’re hot as hell, Britt. Don’t let her make you feel that way.” He sounded genuine and Brittany relaxed a little. A glance up at him told her he was completely focused on her, something she was still getting used to. Gus was in the background, the periphery for so long, and now he was right here, in front of her, demanding her attention in that quiet way of his. They stared at each other for a moment, and Brittany felt her temperature rise a little, which meant it was definitely time to look somewhere else. Like her shoes.

Finally getting the little straps undone, Brittany pulled off the four-inch heels, a moment that felt better than the last threeorgasms she had had put together. She moaned, rubbing the arch of one aching foot, and at the sound she saw Gus swallow, hard, and look away from her.

“Why do you wear them if you don’t like them?”

“My stream is about how to make fashion work for you in the everyday. I sure can’t recommend wearing heels to my fans if I can’t handle wearing them.”

“But you can’t handle wearing them.”

She immediately froze what she was doing and glared up at him.

“Excuse me?”

He really should have known something was horribly wrong, and maybe he did, but still, he went on.

“You collapsed in the chair. You’re rubbing your feet like they were about to fall off. Brittany, you’re on your feet all day, you don’t need to be in heels.”

The look on his face was one of sincere concern, but still. Brittany didn’t like being told what to do, and she certainly didn’t like being told what to wear.

“Gus, I’m going to need you to mind your own fucking business. Women don’t always have the option for what kind of shoes they have to wear during the day, and I’m here to give them recommendations on how to help their life be just a little bit easier. You don’t understand that, fine, but don’t fucking tell me what to do.”

Her blood was up, and her glare could’ve set the table on fire, but Gus looked from her to her feet and back.

“I’m sorry, you’re right. I just don’t like seeing you in pain.”

And just like that, her temper fell back to a simmer.

“Just keep your opinions about what I’m wearing to yourself, and we’re good.”

He nodded, and she took a moment to wonder at how easy it was to argue with Gus. Robbie would’ve thrown a tantrumabout how she was twisting his words, would’ve accused her of trying to purposely start fights for attention. Gus just… listened and acted. Which was really the bare minimum when Brittany thought about it, but still.

“Noted,” he said. “Ready to go?”

She nodded, pulling her sneakers on and carefully placing her heels in her bag, trying not to grimace while he was watching. “Yes. I need something to eat and someplace quiet to sit away from people.”

“Coming right up, killer.”

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