Page 18 of Falling

“He’s biteable everywhere, don’t you think?” I ask the lady. A hand clamps over my mouth.

“So sorry,” he says. I try licking his hand, but he doesn’t budge. The elevator opens, and I start forward. Peter pulls me back against him as the older couple steps out.

“Goodnight,” the gentleman says. “And good luck.”

Why would Peter need luck? I’m not going to say no.

“I can’t believe you licked my hand,” he complains when the doors close. He wipes his hand on his pants.

“You know you liked it.” I point to the erection filling his tux pants. I’d touch it, but he pushes my hand away and we get into a slapping match. The door of the elevator opens, and I stumble, trying to get my dress to cooperate so I can get out. With a sigh, Peter picks me up in his arms.

“Is this the start of naked fun time?” It seems like a reasonable question. In the past, if a man carried me to a Vegas room, it ended in sex.

“Behave, Geneva.” He sets me on my feet in front of a door. “Where’s your key?”

Oh, right. I dig through my purse until I find the card. He waves it over the panel. Yay, now I can get this tight dress off. I’m suddenly so tired.

“Geneva, wait.” Too late. My dress pools at my feet. I kick off my shoes and stagger toward the bedroom.

My bra is the next thing to go. I sling it to the floor next to the bed. Peter moans behind me. That reminds me, I haven’t thanked him for taking me out. Spinning on my heel, I grab the front of his shirt. We crash together as my lips find his.

At first, his body stiffens like he’s been bit. Then he relaxes into the kiss. His tongue slides against mine. The only way this could get better is if my nude breasts were pressed against his bare chest.

“No, Geneva.” He steps away from me, but I wasn’t done yet. My whole body tingles from that one kiss. “You’re drunk. Get in bed before you do something you regret in the morning.”

Jokes on him. Nothing I do with Peter will I ever regret. But I climb into bed like he wants. He pulls the blankets over me. The room is spinning. What did they put in those martinis?

“I put a trash can by the bed just in case,” he says. “I’m sorry, I should have been paying better attention to how much you drank. I promised Rand I’d take care of you.” The rest of his words are lost on me as I drift off to sleep.

* * *

When did a portal to hell open in my brain and allow a demon to crawl out? And why is the world so loud? I think I can hear it spinning on its axis.

I pry my eyes open, only to realize I’m not ready to be alive yet. The bed feels like lava, it’s so hot. I kick the heavy comforter off. I don’t remember the extra-large T-shirt I’m wearing. I pry my eyes open once again to read what’s on it. Virginia Tech.

“Did I break the no-nudity rule?” I mumble. I can feel Peter watching me from across the room. Or at least, I can feel his presence in the room. It’s like the air seems different when he’s around.

“Yeah.” His voice comes from the sunken living area.

“Have you been here long?” I ask, attempting to sit up. My head pounds. It takes a few minutes of swallowing to convince my stomach to behave.

“I ordered some lunch,” he says, ignoring my question. He appears at the side of the bed. “Here.” He hands a bottle of water to me. “I’ll get you something for your head after you eat.”

“Did you at least have fun last night?” I take a sip of the water.

“You know,” he says after some consideration, “I did. We won around five grand.”

“Are you serious?”

“As death and taxes.”

“Where did we do the best?”

“Probably at one of the poker tables. I think everyone was too busy trying to look down your dress to pay attention. You kept bending to whisper in my ear. It was a brilliant strategy,” he admits.

There’s a knock at the door. Peter lets the server in with a cart of food. It smells both amazing and disgusting at the same time.

Crawling out of bed, I pull on a pair of leggings. The T-shirt is already warm, so there’s no reason to trade it out. I start down the steps into the living area when my bladder reminds me I drank a lot of vodka last night. By the time I return, Peter has everything on the table and the server is gone.

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