Page 141 of Betrayal (Corrupt Empire 1)

“I’m what?”

I buried my head under the covers.

“Beautiful.”

“You think?”

“I thought you’d tell me off for using a girl term.”

He laughed. His deep voice vibrating through me. I peered out at him.

“From you, it’s okay. Just don’t tell anyone and ruin my image.”

“Yeah, okay. Off you go tattooed bad boy, make your lady friend breakfast.”

He cocked an eyebrow.

“Bad boy?”

“Yes. You’ve got that air about you. Making all the ladies want to drop their panties for you.”

He shook his head.

“I only want yours dropping for me.”

I threw a pillow at him, which he ducked away from and strolled out of the room without putting a shirt on. I hopped out of bed and had a shower.

When I dressed in a plain t-shirt and jeans, I found him in the kitchen, still very much shirtless. I needed to stop looking at him or I’d quite possibly drool all over the kitchen table.

I sat down and he deposited pancakes in front of me. He hadn’t made me these since the first day he’d taken me. It seemed like a lifetime ago.

He sat next to me, giving my thigh a squeeze.

“Eat up, princess.”

“Is that a new nickname for me?”

“Maybe.”

His grey eyes glittered with amusement.

“I like it.”

I stuffed my face with as many pancakes as I could. Then I helped him prep the rest of the vegetables for Christmas dinner. It was just the two of us so we didn’t need much. Aiden still insisted on having all the trimmings minus the sprouts.

“Tina is coming over tomorrow. We usually spend Boxing Day together,” he said. “Leftovers are a must.”

I grinned. The turkey was in the oven, the veg ready to go. Now, I could get him to sit down with me and watch a film. I took his hand, dragging him away from the kitchen.

“Are you going to put clothes on today?” I asked.

“Do you want me to?”

I pointed at his chest.

“As much as I like all this, you are rather distracting.”

He nudged me with his shoulder.

---