Page 95 of The Love Wager

“No worries. I’m a light sleeper.” He cleared his throat and said, “I’ll hear when you knock.”

They exchanged another look—lust and longing and something else she couldn’t put her finger on—before he said good night to her dad and then left the ballroom.

Hallie hadn’t even made it to the prep room when her phone buzzed.

Jack:I miss your mouth already.

She smiled and typed:My words of wisdom?

Jack:No, your gorgeous lips and the way they feel when you suck my tongue into your mouth.

Hallie:Damn, Marshall—this is a PG-13 show.

Jack:Then someone’s going to be pissed when I tell you that I can’t stop thinking about the way your ass looked when your hands were on that cooler door.

Hallie felt that in her stomach.

She texted:Confession: that might be the hottest I’ve ever had.

Jack:MIGHT? Hal.

Hallie:I just mean I can’t decide between up-against-the-freezer-door and on-top-of-the-hotel-room-desk.

Jack:Confession: My favorite part of hotel night was actually your Rumple Minze lips.

Hallie:Mere kissing??

Jack:That falling-off-a-building feeling the first time you kiss someone is just perfection.

Hallie set her hand on her stomach when she read that. God, Jack was a heady drug. He would be a lot to recover from, and it was terrifying. She texted:So you’re saying it could’ve been anyone.

Jack:Anyone who knew how to make a perfect Manhattan, tell a ridiculous joke about the Kansas City Chiefs, climb on my lap to get my attention, and have the name Hallie Piper.

Hallie:Nice save.

Jack:Thank you very much, TB.

She was about to drop her phone into her pocket whenshe saw texting bubbles. She stared at the screen as she walked, and when the text finally came through, she felt breathless as she read his message.

Jack:It couldn’t have been anyone but you.

As she followed Ben and her dad, Jack’s words kept playing through her head, over and over on a loop.

I miss your mouth already.

My favorite part of hotel night was actually your Rumple Minze lips.

It couldn’t have been anyone but you.

Chapter

TWENTY-SIX

Jack

Jack took off his jacket and dropped it on the bed, tired and frustrated at the situation.

Hallie was here for her sister’s wedding, so that was the priority, he reasoned as he undid his tie and yanked it off. Of course she would stay and help out, he mused, untucking his shirt with a jerk and undoing his buttons. What kind of a sister would she be if she didn’t?

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