Page 107 of From Best Friend to Bride
“Terrible idea.”
“Good lord. There’s no winning with you. I’m wrong no matter what.”
“At least you know your place.” I grinned for the first time in a few days and pushed off the doorframe, making him drop his hand. “So, you’re not leaving just to avoid me?”
He chuckled and followed me over to his case. “No. In fact, I distinctly remember telling you about this trip two weeks ago.”
I pursed my lips. “Please. I can barely remember what I ate for yesterday’s breakfast.”
“You don’t eat breakfast.”
“That just proves my point about my dreadful memory.” I pulled his clothes out of the case and set them on the bed. “What is this? Do you call this packing? You can’t just shove things in the suitcase and hope for the best, Frederick. Please tell me you have a bag for your suit.”
He removed a suit bag from the wardrobe, held it up triumphantly, and put it back again.
“You know to hang it up in the back of the car rather than lay it down, right?”
“Yes, wife,” he replied dryly. “I have travelled with suits before, you know.”
I eyed the mess of clothes I’d removed from his case. “Mm. Forgive me for not being convinced.”
He laughed, pulling a jumper from the wardrobe.
“I just watched you fold these over the case. How are they such a mess already?” I grumbled, re-folding the trousers he’d last put in there.
Fred shrugged. “One of life’s greatest mysteries, I suspect.”
“Whatever you say, babykins,” I replied breezily. “No, don’t put things in the case. Put them on the bed. I’ll pack the bloody thing properly.”
He did as I said, then wrapped his arms around me from the side, squeezing me tightly. “I have the best wife.”
“At least you’re aware of it.” I nudged him in the stomach. “Now, get off. I know you can pack a suitcase. Did you do this deliberately to summon me here?”
“Shit, you caught me.” He released me and went back to the chest of drawers. “I knew if I didn’t pack the suitcase properly, you’d get an itch you couldn’t reach and just know it was me fucking something up.”
“Yeah, well, speaking of, there’s one right by the mole between my shoulder blades. Can you get it for me?”
With a laugh, he dropped whatever he was doing and came over. He pushed my hair out of the way and scratched my back along my spine, finally getting the little niggle that’d been bothering me for the past several minutes.
“Ahh,” I groaned, tilting my head to the side and stretching out my neck. “That’s the spot. Thanks.”
“That’s the last time I do that while faced with this ill-fated attraction.” He stepped away from me. “I’m going to have nightmares about you moaning like that.”
“You little—” I chucked a pair of socks at him, and he caught them before they hit his face. “Keep up with those snarky comments, and you’ll make a widow out of me.”
“Why? Are you going to kill me?”
“It gets ever more tempting,” I confirmed, taking the socks back and tucking them into the case. “I’ll stage your death and take over your estate.”
“Hmm, no, I think you’d get kicked out. My cousin is technically my heir right now.”
“That’s easily fixed.” I widened my eyes, a wicked grin stretching my lips. “How about donating some of your sperm, my good sir?”
Fred raised his eyebrows. “Ah, I see. You’re going to have my child, kill me, and steal my fortune. How long have you been planning this?”
“Hmm, twenty-nine years.”
“The long game. I appreciate your hard work.” He nodded sagely. “There’s just one problem with your plan.”
