Page 28 of His Forever

“I’ll be fine, Zeus. Plus, I know a knight with a tow truck should I get into trouble.”

“I will check the car tomorrow to be sure it is good to go for you.”

“Zeus, you don’t need to do that, you’ve got your hands full already!”

“I wouldn’t be any kind of man if I didn’t make sure my woman’s vehicle was ready for a road trip, mi siempre hermosa.”

“Fine. You know where I’ll be since you have an appointment at one.”

“Si. We are still running errands tomorrow?”

“Yeah. After a Sunday with Mother, I won’t want to leave the house come Monday.”

He chuckled at her cranky tone of voice. “How about I play hooky on Monday and we go do something fun?”

She looked at him in astonishment. “You…you’d do that for me?”

“Si, mi siempre hermosa.”

“Then it’s a date.”

As they reached her door, he drew her in for a goodnight kiss and once she felt like melted butter, he let her go with a reminder to “lock up” and then he waited until she was inside and he heard the lock turn before he went back down the stairs and headed home.

***

Saturday Morning

She woke up with excruciating back pain and knew before she even got out of bed that this month was going to be a rough one. Silently cursing the fact that she had a full day, she got up and headed toward a hot shower and some breakfast so she could take some meds. She slapped on a heated patch which helped some and would ensure she got through the day, took care of the cats and then headed out the door. Looked like tonight would be a Netflix and chill kind of night and she was glad it was going to be a late night for Zeus. They would run their errands and eat a quick dinner before he headed back to cover the phones in case someone had need of a tow.

Glancing at her phone before she left, she saw a text from Mamá asking her to stop and get the coffee and donuts on her way in. Sending one back that simply said “okay”, she headed into town, focusing on her breathing so she could stuff the pain where it wouldn’t interfere with her workday.

When she finally got to the salon, it was hopping already with customers in each of the stylists’ chairs, and several waiting. She carried the donuts and coffee to the breakroom then took each coffee out to the respective stylist’s station, then grabbed the used towels and started a load of laundry before she made her way into the massage room, which would be her first appointment of the day. Getting her playlist set, she put it in the dock and then went out front to wait for her client and mingle with the other customers.

As she chatted with the customers who were waiting, she felt her phone vibrate and she looked down to see a quick text from Zeus wishing her a good morning. Smiling, she sent him one back and added a kissy faced emoji. His response? “I’d rather have the real thing and will be there shortly.”

“What has you grinning, girl?” Chandra asked.

“Ah, a text from Zeus,” she replied.

“You mean the same Zeus who is walking across the street right now?”

Glancing up, she saw him coming through the door nodding to those he knew without breaking stride. Taking her hand, he walked them into the breakroom where he pulled her into his arms and proceeded to kiss her senseless. “There, that’s much better than an emoji, mi siempre hermosa,” he said as he smoothed a thumb over her cheek.

“Mmhmm,” she responded, looking up at him.

“Mi siempre hermosa, if you keep looking at me like that, all bets are off for either of us working the rest of the day today,” he whispered in her ear, his husky voice doing delicious things to her senses.

“I see.”

“Keep it up and you will,” he said before gently nipping her earlobe which elicited a full-body shudder. “Okay, going back to work before I change my mind, Marleigh. I’ll see you around one, okay?”

“Yeah,” she replied softly, still lost in the haze he put her in every time he touched her. He walked her back out to the front to the chuckles and knowing looks of the other women before he kissed her forehead and went back to the shop.

“Girl, that man has itbadfor you,” Josie called out.

Rolling her eyes, she merely smiled and shook her head.

“You keep telling yourself that, Marleigh, you keep telling yourself that,” Chandra said.

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