Page 38 of Stripped

I already knew I'd hate it, and I was just about to tell him that when there was a knock at the door. I spun and opened it to see a pizza delivery guy there with a carry-out box in his hand. “Wow,” I said. “That was ridiculously fast.”

“Slow night,” the guy said. “Plus, we're right next door.”

I did remember seeing an Italian place near the hotel. Zane was by my side before I could reach for my wallet and he paid the teenager. I took the pizza and Zane shut the door.

“I could have paid for it,” I said. “I know money's tight for the pack.”

“It's fine,” he said, but his tone was curt and his shoulders were tense.

“What's the story there anyway? With the reality show and—”

“Let's not ruin our one night in paradise with talk about the pack's financial issues.”

I wasn't going to argue with that. “So, should we sit at the desk or eat in bed like barbarians?”

“I was raised by wolves.” He leapt and landed on the bed with a bounce. I joined him.

I set the pizza box between us and Zane grabbed a slice and stuffed in a big bite. I stared at the cheese pizza. “You could have gotten half meat-lovers.”

“Pretty sure that would contaminate your half,” he said around a mouthful of pizza. “It's fine. I like cheese.”

I stared for another moment. I don't know why it was getting to me so much, but his gesture was undeniably sweet. I couldn't remember the last time someone had done something so generous for me. Did that say something about my friends? Or about Zane? Grabbing my own slice, I took a bite. It wasn't the best pizza I'd ever tasted, but I was hungry enough that it was close. “Yum,” I said. “I was starving. Thank you for dinner.”

He grabbed the remote without acknowledging my thank you. “What do you want to watch?”

“Something funny.”

He flicked on the T.V. with one hand while he stuffed pizza into his mouth with the other. He opened the guide and flipped through the options. “Road Rally?”

“That doesn't sound like a comedy. Seriously, I don't want to watch anything with the potential for blood, death, or violence.”

“Even comedies can have blood, death, and violence.”

“Not romantic comedies.”

He lowered his pizza hand and looked at me, eyes round, jaw low. “You want me to watch a romantic comedy? We haven't even slept together, yet.”

“You want sex in exchange for watching a romantic comedy?” For a millisecond, I'd felt bad about my suggestion, especially after he'd ordered the pizza I'd wanted, but his reaction squelched any guilt.

His nose crinkled. “What? No. I won't be able to have sex ever again if I watch a romantic comedy. I'll have to turn in my dude card, I'll grow a vagina. I'll be emasculated.”

He looked so sincere and so worried. I laughed. Really hard. I laughed so hard, I almost choked on my pizza. Once I'd calmed down, I discovered him glaring at me. “I'm glad you find the loss of my manhood so amusing.”

“You're an idiot.” I grabbed the remote and flipped through the guide. “Do you know how many dick flicks I've watched? I haven't grown a penis. You'll be fine.”

He huffed. “I'm going to need a lot of cuddling while we watch to make up for this outrage.”

I patted the top of his head. “Whatever you need, sweetie.”

I found one of my favorite escape-from-reality-and-make-me-laugh movies and clicked on it. It had already started, but I muted it and got Zane all caught up. He moaned and whined, but he shut up, ate his pizza, and watched the movie.

When we'd both finished eating, I set the empty pizza box on the floor and kept my promise by cuddling with him. He wrapped an arm around my shoulders and pulled me closer, until my cheek was on his chest, one of my legs bent over his legs. I snuggled in and breathed in the scent of him. I was wrong before, the hotel bed was good, but this, lying on Zane, his arm around me, an adorably hilarious movie playing, this was heaven.

“What an idiot,” Zane said as the credits rolled. “I mean, he had this amazing, brilliant, gorgeous girl and he didn't lock it down immediately? Are all the men in chick flicks that dumb?”

“She wasn't exactly a saint,” I said. “She sent mixed signals and she—”

He gripped my chin and looked me in the eyes. “You find a girl like that, the right girl, you don't pussyfoot around or make excuses, you lock that shit down.”

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