Page 54 of Silver Fake

"Yes, why?" Melissa responds, her eyebrows furrowing in confusion.

"That's such a small world," I exclaim, a grin spreading across my face. "Bash runs a bar in Barton Beach. He's actually the twin brother of Denise's boyfriend, Brett."

Melissa's eyes widen in surprise. "Bash lives in Texas?" she asks incredulously.

I smirk, nodding as I take in her shocked expression. "He does," I confirm. "You know, you should come down to Barton Beach with me the next time I visit. I'm sure Bash would love to see you."

At my words, Melissa clears her throat nervously, shaking her head vehemently.

"Absolutely not," she says quickly, a blush creeping up her cheeks.

"Are you sure about that?" I tease, leaning back in my chair. "I bet he'd be thrilled to see his old high school crush. Who knows, maybe he's still carrying a torch for you."

Melissa groans, playfully swatting at my arm. "I swear, Lisa, if you bring this up around Bash, I'll never speak to you again," she warns, but I can see the amusement in her eyes.

I laugh, raising my hands in surrender.

"Alright, alright, your secret's safe with me." I glance at my watch and grimace. "We should probably head back to the office, we've been out longer than I realized."

Melissa nods, getting up from her seat and grabbing her purse. "Yes, and let's hope John isn't wondering where we've been all this time," she says, winking at me as we head back to work.

CHAPTER18

John

I slicethrough a crisp bell pepper and glance over at Lisa.

She's standing at the stove stirring a skillet of pasta sauce with a focus that's usually reserved for her work. Her eyes are narrowed in concentration and every so often, the pink tip of her tongue pokes out between her lips to taste a little bit of sauce on the spatula.

Quietly, I sidle up behind her, wrapping one arm around her waist. I press a soft kiss to the back of her neck, causing her to jump slightly before relaxing into my arms.

"Ready for me to add the bell pepper?" I murmur into her ear. "Or do you need a little more time?"

A gorgeous blush rushes up her neck into her cheeks.

"Sure, go ahead," she responds. She's calm enough when she says it, but I don't miss the light thrum of her pulse at her neck.

I can't help but grin, loving the effect that I have on her.

Once we got back to Houston, Lisa and I only managed to last three days before we started ripping each other's clothes off.

I was expecting it, to be honest.

Even before we slept together, I didn't want things to go back to the way they were. But after that first night in Barton Beach, walking away would have been like cutting away a part of me that I wasn't sure I could live without.

Now, she's living with me in my condo in River Oaks. And I love having her here.

Her laughter is the soundtrack of my mornings, her smile lights up my evenings. The aroma of her cooking wafts through the air. Her clothes peek out of my closet, her toothbrush stands next to mine, and her favorite books are tucked into my bookshelves.

And the more time we spend together, the more certain I am that I don't want to experience life without Lisa.

Not that I've admitted that to her, of course.

We haven't discussed what all of this means between the two of us at all.

I know we've got to talk at some point. We can't keep dancing around it, but Lisa was the one who suggested making it just a one-time thing. I'm not sure what she will decide if I bring it up again.

Will she regret continuing with whatever it is we're doing? I can't stop going back to the fact that I know she's too good for me. I'm just too greedy to send her away so she can find someone better.

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