Page 105 of Terms + Conditions
Elizabeth pulls my mouth down on hers with the collar of my polo. Cupping her cheeks, I ply her mouth open and delve further into her, swallowing her moans. Her fingers slip underneath my shirt, cool against my heated skin.
“Sugar,” I warn against her mouth.
I’m two seconds away from laying her out on this table and fucking her. Honestly, the idea of doing it right here where we could get caught by the others who are less than fifty feet awayis exhilarating. But the last thing I need is for Brie to come down the stairs and scar for life before we even get to know each other.
Elizabeth giggles and pulls her hands from under my shirt.
“Tease,” I mumble.
“What’s the job?” she asks, wiping the corner of her mouth, but it does little good. Her lipstick is smeared which means I have it on my face. That’s not going to be obvious whatsoever.
“Director at a hospital.”
“Josh, that’s amazing!” She kisses me again.
“It is, but it means a lot more work. I already increased my load when I took over Warren’s position.”
“The difference is you’ll have a bigger team to back you up. You’re not alone.”
She’s right. While I’ve never been busier since my promotion, I have more help and I’d have even more in this new position. With the power to delegate things and pass projects down to my team, I can handle the bigger things. Being a director is the same thing I’m already doing…just on a much bigger scale. I can do that.
“You can do this, Josh,” Elizabeth says, touching my cheeks. “If you want to, that is.”
“I don’t even know if I’llgetthe job.”
“You’ll get the job.”
“Elizabeth.” I sigh. Not even five minutes ago, the thought of a new job felt like a sign from above, but now it feels like I’m taking two steps backward. My commitment to work has proven to be one of our downfalls, why would I want to take on an even bigger role than before? “We just…We’re barely two weeks into starting over, and now I’m going to jump into something that was one of our biggest issues before?”
“We can do this, Josh. I know we can.”
Her confidence is reassuring, but there is still a hint of hesitation in the back of my mind.
“And if it becomes too much, we’ll handle it.” Elizabeth shrugs. She makes it sound so simple, but I guess it is, isn’t it? “I called Liam, by the way.”
My heart stops. She called Liam. Her attorney. Why did she call her attorney?
“I asked him to file a motion to dismiss the divorce petition.”
My heart jumps. Of course that’s why she called him. What was I thinking?
“That’s okay, right?”
“Yes!” My outburst catches her off guard.
I hadn’t even realized I hadn’t said anything. Of course, that was okay—it was more than okay. She didn’t even need to ask. Truthfully, I hadn’t even thought about it, but I guess telling our attorneys we no longer needed their services was a pretty important step. “I mean...yeah, of course.”
“Are you guys decent?” my sister asks. Looking over my shoulder, I see her sticking her head through the double doors with her eyes covered.
“Yes, MJ.” Elizabeth laughs, stepping down from the table.
Michaela lets out a breath and uncovers her eyes. “Well, if you two are done canoodling in here, the rest of us would like to eat while the food is hot.”
“Go tell the boys to wash up, then,” Elizabeth directs her, and Michaela scurries away. Elizabeth turns back to me, standing on her tiptoes to press a quick peck on my lips. “Will you tell Brie dinner is ready?”
“Anything for you, Sug.” I smile and kiss her one more time before heading up the stairs.
We made an appointment to have a paternity test done at the end of next week, and in just a few short days, we will have confirmation whether or not Brie is my daughter. I don’t know how I’m supposed to feel about that. Part of me is relieved, but part of me is extremely anxious. What if the results come backpositive? Then, I’ll have a daughter I am now responsible for, and I have to decide how she fits into this new phase of my life. But the bigger question is, what if the results come back negative?
