Page 58 of His Forever

She fell asleep to the sound of his steady heartbeat.

Chapter Eighteen

Tuesday dawned bright and clear and she woke up feeling refreshed. Wiggling a little, she felt his arm tighten before his sleep-roughened voice said, “Careful, mi siempre hermosa, or you’ll get more than you bargained for this morning.” Giggling, she turned in his arms and found herself pressed front to front against an impressive hard-on.

“Morning, sweetheart,” he said as he leaned in to kiss her. She wound her hands through his hair and nipped his lower lip.

“Morning, Zeus,” she replied before she swiped her tongue back over his lip. With a growl, he pulled her closer and several long minutes later, after she was thoroughly kissed, he pulled back.

“We’d better get up before we can’t,” he told her finally.

“Um, yeah, not a bad idea. Either of them, actually,” she said as she rolled away and got out of bed.

***

Dressed, she came out and saw Paulie and Gray rummaging in the kitchen as Zeus made the coffee. The cats roamed between the mens’ legs and had her laughing. “Okay, babies, let’s get you guys some wet food so you’ll leave the guys alone,” she said.

“Marleigh? What are you in the mood for?” Paulie asked, his head in the fridge.

“Yogurt I guess since I still need to eat light,” she replied as she put the bowl down for the cats. “Where’s Duke?”

“He’s outside, mi siempre hermosa,” Zeus replied.

“Ah, we need to let him back in then so he can eat,” she said.

“Give the cats a few minutes, okay?”

“Fine. Can you grab me a Diet Coke while you’re in there, Paulie?”

“Absolutely. You know, as clean as you try to eat, that stuff is bad for you, right?”

She rolled her eyes at him before saying, “It’s why I drink more water than soda, silly, but we all have to get our caffeine somehow, right?”

Breakfast finally done, they got Duke back in so he could eat and she freshened the water dish. “You ready, Paulie? Time is money and all that jazz,” she said as she gathered her purse, bag and phone.

“Absolutely. I’ll meet you down there.”

She headed down to give him and Gray a few minutes of privacy, not surprised when she felt Zeus at her back. He led her over to the car and pulled her close before she could get in, giving her a kiss and saying, “I’ll try to run over today, okay?”

“I know you’ll probably be busy so it’s okay if you can’t,” she replied.

“I will always make time for you,” he told her as he kissed her again.

“Get a room you two!” came Paulie’s voice as he got into the passenger seat. “Jeez.”

She giggled as she pulled away from Zeus, not missing the warmth in his eyes. “He’s incorrigible too,” she whispered. “I’ll see you later, okay?”

He nodded as he held the door for her until she slipped inside. Standing there, he watched as they pulled away, before he turned to walk down to his house and get ready for the day.

***

She had just finished up a facial and was headed to the breakroom when she heard, “Delivery for you girl.” Turning, she saw a gorgeous bouquet of flowers and she smiled, knowing who they were from. Taking the card and reading it, her jaw dropped – they were from her mother! “Marleigh, I know moving forward may be difficult, but I’d like to try. Love, Mom.”

Unsure of how to react, she kept the smile on her face as she took the vase and walked toward her massage room. Passing Paulie’s station, her smile became real because she could tell from the look on his face he was having the time of his life.

Back out in the main area, she went to the books and wasn’t surprised to see the waiting area full of men. “Are all of you waiting on Paulie?” she asked.

Nods of assent and “yeses” filled her ears. Looking at the clock, she saw that it was unlikely they would be breaking for lunch, so she went around and got everyone’s orders and then texted Zeus to see if he wanted to join them for Mexican. His response was a quick yes with a request to send him their orders so he could pick them up. He also reminded her that he would get her something “soft” from the diner since she was still on a restrictive meal plan for a few more days. Rolling her eyes, she did as he asked and then went to see what she could do to help the others as her next client wasn’t due until after lunch.

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