Page 108 of The Boss and the Wedding Mess
"I'm just going to put on something comfortable."
But I don't get far. He grabs me from behind, wraps his arms around me, and nestles his lips against my neck. "Or you stay here with me. I just want to hold you for a moment."
"Okay."
I close my eyes, let the dress fall, and place both hands on his arms. It feels so good to feel him and know he's with me.
"It made sense that it would be you. You wanted my PIN..."
"To unlock your phone."
"You applied to other jobs."
"Because I thought you were having an affair with Stephanie."
"At the boxing club, I didn't mean to embarrass you, just show everyone you were with me."
"Maybe we should have talked to each other."
"We should have."
But being silent together is also quite nice.
Eventually, Alex lets go of me. I go to the bedroom and put on something comfortable.
I'm supposed to pack for a few days so I can spend the weekend with him, so I have to cancel on Vanessa. She's happy for me, though, and can hardly wait to hear all the dirty details that will unfold over the weekend.
It's 4:02 in the morning. After some of my neighbors complained about the noise, we took a limo to his place. As soon as I packed my bag, we couldn’t keep our hands off each other in my living room. I enjoyed it. So did he. The neighbors, however, didn’t.
We're lying in his bed enjoying our time alone. Even so, it still feels a little strange after the exhausting weeks behind us.
"How could I not notice?" he asks me, though he's staring at the ceiling. Perhaps he just spoke the question aloud because he wanted it out of his head.
"Because she never said anything. Because you'd known each other forever. Because she got married. How could you have possibly guessed? You've known her forever. I think people just block out certain things."
"You suspected it..." He looks at me.
I sit up and tie my hair back.
"I found her behavior suspicious. When she was alone with me, she probably couldn't pretend as well." I want to be honest: "I feel sorry for her. For Marc too, of course. It's a terrible situation for both of them."
"I'm frustrated at both of them," he growls, briefly closing his eyes.
“Stephanie was desperately in love—and unfortunately Marc was too. She should never have married him. She hurt him terribly. But the fact that he tried to pin the theft on me is also pretty extreme."
If Alex had fired me, he would have certainly gone back to the States.
"The team is staying in America. They won't be moving here," Alex decides, which surprises me greatly.
"I'll commute for now and find someone to represent me there. But I'm staying here to take care of the company."
"You're just deciding that spontaneously?" I ask.
"Yes." Alex reaches out to me and brushes my neck. He gently pulls me to his bare chest, kisses me deeply and then wraps both arms around me. "I've fallen in love with London."
"With London?" I ask, examining his warm smile.
"With the city. It's beautiful here. I'm going to stay."
