“You mean tell them that you are in town working on a job? That you were out to lunch with me without having contacted your mom? How do you think that’ll go down?”
She sighed as he pulled out of her driveway. “They’ll text me billions of questions and ask me over for dinner every night. They don’t take my job seriously.”
It was like they refused to understand that she couldn’t be on the phone 24/7 or go have lunch or do whatever at the drop of a hat. That she, you know, actually had to work when on a contract, regardless of where that job might be. They treated her like the irresponsible teenager she had once been. And yeah, she’d gotten into some trouble and made stupid choices. But hello, she’d been a freaking teenager. Wasn’t that the whole point of being young? To do stupid things, learn from your mistakes, grow up and make better choices. Unfortunately for her, all of her brothers had been rule followers—or at least they hadn’t gotten caught doing stupid stuff.
“I love your brothers, but it’s true,” he murmured. His jaw ticked once and Ivy knew it really did bother Nash the way her brothers treated her sometimes—which just served to make her adore him even more.
Not to mention he looked and smelled amazing this morning. His hair was slightly damp, so he must have taken a shower right before coming to get her. And whatever cologne or shampoo or…scent of Nash maybe, that he had on? Yum. It was all spicy and masculine and she wanted to wrap herself around him and just inhale. Because that was what friends did to each other. “So we’re going to stick to the whole ‘we’re dating’ story?” She wished it were true.
“I’m fine with that if you are.” He was so dang nonchalant about it that it was a bit unnerving. What was going on with him?
“It will be weird, won’t it?” Why wasn’t he more bothered than this? He was best friends with Ezra. She knew that men often had stupid “bro codes” or whatever, but Nash was as relaxed as could be.
He lifted a broad shoulder, and she had to actively resist the urge to imagine what it would feel like to clutch onto said sexy shoulders as she wrapped her legs around him. Oh God, even thinking about that was too much right now. She didn’t need to get all worked up in an enclosed space with him.
“We already know a lot about each other,” he continued. “Your brothers will probably give me a little grief, but it’s something I can handle. And if they think we’re dating, they’ll leave you alone while you’re in town. Especially your mom,” he added dryly.
It was true. Her mom was always on her about “settling down” and it was one of her greatest pet peeves. As if she needed to settle down to find happiness. The thing was, Ivy knew her mom meant well, but it didn’t negate the fact that it bothered the hell out of her. To be fair, her mom was on her brothers about it too.
And her brothers were a whole other story. They were all successful in their careers and yet it was like they refused to see that she was too. “Okay, so we’ll pretend we’re dating. How…uh, how will we play this, then?” Would they hold hands or whatever? Ugh. This was all starting to sound too complicated. She would have to “fake” this, when in reality she had to hide her true feelings for Nash from everyone, including him. Unfortunately she couldn’t hide from herself.
“Like what, you want to make out in front of your family?” He laughed, the deep rumble coming from him soothing all her frayed edges.
“That’s not what I meant.” Okay, it was kind of what she’d meant.
And now that he’d brought up making out, all she could think about was doing just that with him. She hadn’t been on a date in ages. And the ones she had been on, had been…disappointing to say the least. Mainly because they weren’t Nash.
“How are we here already?” She tensed when she realized he was already pulling into her mom’s driveway. Sweat broke out along her spine despite the cool spring weather.
“Traffic was good but clearly you weren’t paying attention.” Again, with the light, unconcerned tone.
No, she hadn’t been paying attention, she’d been all caught up in her head. Worried about dealing with her family and then obsessing with whether Nash’s lips would be soft or not. They sure looked as if they would be. She also wondered if he would take over. Would he be all playful or…demanding. Maybe both?
He jumped out before she could even unstrap her seat belt and then suddenly he was opening her door. Okay, so he was definitely taking this whole boyfriend thing seriously. She wondered if this was what he was like when he had a girlfriend—not that she wanted him to have one. But…she was very, very curious. If they were truly together, would he open doors for her… Bring her toe-curling climaxes on the regular? Oh God, another streak of heat surged through her at that thought. She shut down all thoughts of orgasms.
Mostly.
Getting herself together, she left her purse in his vehicle but tucked her phone into her pants pocket. It was her lifeline for her job so she couldn’t leave it behind. As she stepped out, he shut the door but didn’t move far. Instead, he caged her in, placing both of his hands on either side of her head on the SUV.
She blinked, her entire body heating up at his closeness. Ooohh, this was nice. That “scent of Nash” teased her senses, made her lightheaded as she inhaled. “What are you doing?” she whispered, and immediately wondered why she was whispering. The moment seemed to call for it.
“I guarantee at least one or all of your brothers are watching us from one of the windows. My vote is on Sebastian being the lookout. You can’t get jumpy if I touch your hand or your back or if I’m even slightly affectionate. You’ve got to act normal, like we’re a couple—and have been for about three months.”
She sucked in a breath, her gaze falling to his mouth. He was right, of course. She couldn’t get all jumpy, otherwise her family would know something was up. As she stared at his full lips, her chest felt constricted. And why was it so hot out here? No, it was definitely just her. Or Nash, to get specific. He was hot and delicious and basically pinning her to his SUV without actually doing it. And oh how she wished this was real. And if a genie was going to be granting her wishes, she would also ask that they be alone and naked right now. Not outside her mom’s house.
“Okay, no jumpiness.” She was still whispering for some reason.
He reached up and tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear and she didn’t jump. No, she leaned into his touch. She really hoped he thought she was just playing along. But it felt soooo natural to lean into it. Into him.
His gaze was on her mouth then and she couldn’t help but wonder… Was he pretending? Of course, he had to be. But the heat in his eyes sure looked real.
“I’m going to kiss you now,” he murmured. “Don’t freak out.”
Kiss her? Oh yes, please. Also, if by freak out he meant don’t jump him and wrap her body around him, then no promises.
But instead of devouring her, the way she wanted to devour him, he brushed his lips over hers in the gentlest butterfly kiss.
And oh wow, did she feel that kiss all the way between her legs. Just a featherlight touch, his lips soft and full and holy shit, just a brief touch and she was ready to go up in flames already. Her skin was too tight for her body, as if it didn’t quite fit right, and she had no idea what to do about this.