Page 32 of Staying for Her

“Addi, what are you doing here?” Lucas asks, taking her coat as he hugs her close. “Not that I don’t love having you here, I’m just surprised.”

She rolls her eyes, causing a chuckle from me as both sets of eyes reach mine.

“I’m sure you had better plans than for me to burst in here.” Addison winks in my direction as my cheeks redden and Lucas’s eyes harden in arousal. “But I just wanted to check in. I was worried when you left my place and even though I know Cash drove you home, I still wanted to make sure everything was okay?” She looks between us, obviously knowing our situation and the fact that it all fell apart within hours, so I smile shyly and nod.

“We’re good,” I say while walking toward Lucas, his arm wraps around my shoulder and he kisses my temple.

“Good. I was worried that we lost you right after we met you and I need more women in our group.”

Lucas laughs, shaking his head. “You do not. You already have Kate and Hannah. You guys almost outnumber us with Luna in the mix now.”

Addison and I laugh as she goes to grab Luna, who is now throwing all the pillows she can reach off the couch and onto the floor.

“Luna, baby, we need to go drop you off with Daddy so Mommy can get some work done.” It’s an offhand comment but it unlocks the conversation I had with Harlow the other day.

“Addison? Are you looking for day care?” I ask, hoping I’m not overstepping, but when she gets this guilty look on her face, I panic and try to reassure her that I’m not judging her. “The only reason I ask is because one of my clients I was with the other day is starting an at-home day care and I asked if I could give you her info in case you needed it.”

The relief that crosses Addison’s face is palpable and then her smile grows as she nods her head, I separate myself from Lucas’s hold and make my way to where I set down my purse and rummage through it until I find the card Harlow gave me.

“You have no idea how hard it is to find day care nowadays. I swear the waiting lists are years long and you have to put your kid down two years before they are conceived to get a spot when you need it.”

I chuckle softly as I hand her the card.

“Harlow Bennett… why do I know that name?” she whispers, her eyes meeting mine.

“She used to model for Victoria’s Secret?” I say as Addison’s eyes widen.

“Holy shit. She was the client you left to see on Luna’s birthday, wasn’t she?”

I nod because there’s no denying it.

“Wow, I loved her and was so sad when she retired. I wonder what she’s doing in Harbour Cove?” she wonders aloud and as much as I know a little bit of the reason, it’s not my place to say, so I shrug my shoulders.

“Call her. She seemed really excited about it.”

“I definitely will. Thanks,” she says before picking up Luna and kissing Lucas on the cheek before she opens the door. “I’m glad you’re okay.”

Lucas smiles as he waves to Luna, her squeals echoing down the hall before he shuts the door.

I go to say something about Luna being adorable when I meet Lucas’s eyes, his gaze intense as he leans back against the shut front door.

“I hope you’re ready to continue where we left off before we were interrupted,” he teases, that smirk giving me tingles all over my body.

“Oh I’m ready,” I say back as he pushes off the door and shows me just how much I missed while I was gone.

Lucas

“Babe,” Billie groans from beside me, her hands pushing at my back as I slowly wake up. “Your phone’s going off.”

I mutter under my breath as my hand blindly feels for it on my nightstand, and when it drops to the floor, I silently curse the person on the other end of the call as I get out of bed and pick up the phone. Once I see the name on the caller ID, my heart stills, and I look back at Billie, who looks angelic lying naked in our bed.

It’s been a few months since we became an us. Weeks of figuring out what we are outside the lie we tried to portray, days of figuring out who we are to each other and if what we felt was real in those weeks we were together. It took time but eventually we figured it out, we remembered what it felt like to just be us, alone and together, and that was everything I ever wanted.

“Aren’t you going to answer it?” Billie yawns, covering her face with the covers and burying her head in the pillow, groaning when the phone rings again. “Babe, just pick it up before I kill you.”

I grin, looking back down at the name and taking a breath. “Hey, Harry,” I mutter, Billie’s body jumping up from its horizontal position as she sits with her back against the headboard.

I try and focus on the phone call, I really do, but she’s naked from the waist up, and my eyes can’t stop staring. Billie smirks, grabbing the edge of the comforter and covering her gorgeous chest, narrowing her eyes.

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