Page 25 of Easton

Claire grinned back each time and even blew me a kiss once. I know that was for show, but damn if it didn’t make my heart soar.

Speaking of kisses, I keep thinking a lot more about what it would be like to kiss Claire. And I don’t mean a chaste peck like the one I gave her at our wedding. I’m talking a real fucking kiss, one filled with passion and longing—the same passion and longing I keep tamping down.

I better keep doing that, though, as we have a fancy event to attend tonight.

A bunch of the Bears players, including me, have been invited to a formal dinner and auction for an animal rescue charity that our team supports.

There will be a lot of donors in attendance, and they loveseeing the players in person.

I’m almost ready to go.

I have on my nicest black tux, a white shirt, and shiny black shoes. I just need Claire to make sure my bow tie is even and straight. It looks fine as far as I can tell from the reflection in the mirror on the inside of my walk-in closet door, but I want her to double-check.

After leaving my bedroom, I head down the hall to hers.

The door is ajar, but I don’t just go in. I wouldn’t want to catch her half-dressed.

Okay, maybe I would like that, but it wouldn’t be appropriate.

So I knock lightly. “Is it all right if I come in?”

“Yes, yes!” she yells back, sounding frazzled. “I need your help anyway.”

I open the door the whole way and step in, readying to go to her, but I’m stopped dead in my tracks.

Claire is standing in front of the mirror above her dresser, her back toward me. She has on a formfitting gold shimmery dress, and her shiny hair is pulled over one shoulder.

But what has me frozen in place is that her dress is unzipped all the way down to her ass, exposing her bare back.

Fuck, she clearly has on no bra.

And is that a thong I see?

Kill me now.

“Can you zip this thing up for me?” she asks, one hand reaching around her body in vain. “I can’t quite reach.”

“Um, uh, yeah.” Swallowing hard, I stride over to her and place my hand on the zipper pull.

I look down, and—oh hell—she does have on a thong.

And her bare skin is so fucking smooth and sexy.

I’m so mesmerized that I hesitate, zipper pull in hand.

Claire murmurs, “Easton?”

Oops, busted.

I snap to it. “Yeah, I got it.”

I begin to zip up her dress ever so slowly, and that’s when our eyes meet in the mirror.

“You look fucking beautiful,” I blurt out.

“Thank you,” she replies softly.

Our eyes stay locked as I continue to zip up her dress. The whole while, I swear I see in her eyes what I know is in mine—lust.

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