Page 15 of Adrian (Love Under the Lights 3)

“I don’t—”

I brushed my lips over hers again, hoping she’d change her mind before she had the chance to tell me all the reasons she shouldn’t come to my place. “Please.”

Her blue eyes were a little hazy as she asked, “What kind of omelet are you going to make me?”

“Whatever kind you want,” I promised. My fridge was well-stocked, and Jen could get anything else Casey asked for delivered by the time we made it over there.

“I always have a difficult time choosing between tomato, spinach, and feta or asparagus and goat cheese whenever my dad takes me out for breakfast to this little café he loves.” She licked her plump lips as though she could taste them, making my dick twitch as I pictured them.

Even if I hadn’t known how bare the shelves in her kitchen were, I still would’ve wanted her to have exactly what she was in the mood to eat. “This is your lucky morning then, because you don’t need to choose between your two favorites.”

“You don’t have to make me both,” she protested. “I can pick one.”

“We can split them since they both sound good to me, too.” I was more of a bacon or ham and cheddar omelet kind of guy, but that didn’t stop me from grabbing my phone to fire off a quick text to Jen. “Plus, I’m kind of a one-hit wonder in the kitchen, so this ups the odds of me impressing you with my cooking skills.”

“I’m not too bad in the kitchen myself,” she boasted with a grin before climbing off her bed and heading over to the dresser.

I snagged my pants and yanked them on before she noticed how hard I was. After I had my shirt on and buttoned, I snapped my fingers at Duke. “C’mon, boy. Let’s take a quick walk while Casey gets ready.”

It only took Duke a few minutes to find the perfect spot, so I was surprised to find Casey dressed and ready to go when we walked back into her apartment. Her cutoffs showed off her tan legs, and her blue T-shirt was almost a perfect match to her eyes. Her long hair was pulled up in a ponytail, and she hadn’t bothered with any makeup. The casual look didn’t lessen my reaction to her, especially not after I’d gotten to know her more and realized she was as gorgeous on the inside as she was on the outside.

“I think I have everything I need.” She lifted her backpack off the kitchen counter and grunted at how heavy it was.

Moving forward, I grabbed the bag before she put it on her back. Slinging it over my shoulder, I handed her Duke’s leash. “Damn, I figured e-books would’ve made backpacks lighter.”

“Probably.” She shrugged and flashed me a sheepish grin. “But used textbooks are cheaper to buy, so I put up with the occasional backache.”

I was a damn good actor, but there was no way in hell I could give Casey a convincing reason for having neuroscience textbooks lying around my house. If it’d been remotely possible, I would’ve sent Jen another text to get them there. I hated that Casey put up with pain because she couldn’t afford the electronic version of her textbooks. My voice was a little gruff as I said, “I wasn’t sure how long it’d take you to get ready. I’ll request a Lyft now. It shouldn’t take too long for them to get here.”

“No need.” She fished her keys out of her purse as she walked over to the door, Duke trotting along happily at her side. “I can drive.”

I followed her outside, around the building to the parking lot, and over to a brick red Nissan Versa. After we got Duke situated in the back, I gave Casey directions to my place. It took us about thirty minutes to get there, and her eyes widened as I checked in with the guard and asked him to add Casey to my approved list of visitors.

“So… you’re thinking I’ll be back here enough that it makes sense to leave permanent approval?” she asked as we drove through the gate.

Reaching out, I covered the hand she had on the gearshift with mine. “Without a doubt,” I answered.

The soft smile on her face told me just how much she liked that.8Casey“Make yourself at home,” Adrian urged as we walked through his front door.

I paused to take in his house, impressed by what I found. Although my mom spent a fortune hiring designers every two years to make sure the family home was a showcase, Adrian's house put hers to shame. It was about a thousand square feet larger than my childhood home with an open floor plan and vaulted ceilings. The gourmet kitchen with marble countertops and gleaming stainless steel appliances was state of the art, and the furniture could have come straight out of a magazine spread for a contemporary bachelor pad.

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