I could hear muffled conversation from deeper in the house, but Ellison gestured me away from it and toward the grand staircase.
Once we were safely on the second level and wandering down a long hallway, I asked Ellison if he was worried about Binnie’s reaction to my presence.
“No,” he said, offering me a reassuring smile. “Henry’s reference to her wanting me to be happy is his way of informing me she will support my bringing you as long as you make me happy.” He came to a room with an open door and movement inside. Before entering the room, he looked at me over his shoulder and added, “And you do.”
I stood there staring after him. What the hell did that mean? Was he being a cheeky boyfriend right now because people were listening? I glanced around but didn’t see anyone who could be paying attention to us.
As I entered the room, I saw an attendant setting our bags on matching luggage stands under the windows. The room wasn’t overly large but had the same elegant comfort the rest of the house seemed to have. I didn’t feel as intimidated in this space as I’d anticipated.
At least, I didn’t feel intimidated until I saw the queen-sized bed. The only bed in the room. The bed we were going to have to share since there didn’t seem to be any other furniture to sleep on in the room besides a small desk and velvet-upholstered desk chair.
I swallowed back the images of the two of us trying to share that bed. When I reached into my pocket for some cash to tip the man who’d brought up our bags, Ellison gave me a subtle head shake. I lifted an eyebrow in question, and he repeated the head shake.
“Thank you,” Ellison said to the man instead. “We really appreciate it.”
The man smiled and nodded, murmuring an offer to help us with anything else we may need, before leaving and snapping the door closed behind him.
Ellison let out a breath and tilted his head back and forth before shaking out his arms. “Okay, let’s strategize, because if my father is coming, that changes everything.”
I was relieved he didn’t say anything about me getting the tipping thing wrong. When he had the opportunity to cut me down, Ellison never seemed to take it. He moved on instead. Maybe he’d matured more than I gave him credit for.
He was right about his dad. “The shitshow is in town,” I remarked calmly. I’d noticed this past week that Ellison tended to stay calmer if I did. He was like the Queen Anne’s lace flowers my grandmother used to pick on the side of the road, sucking up the colors of whatever was around him.
Ellison turned to look at me, and that’s when I noticed the fear in his eyes. I reached out and clasped the side of his neck. “Look at me. You’re going to do fine. We are going to do fine. Your dad is a selfish prick. Want to know how I know?”
Ellison took half a step closer to me. “There are too many answers to that question.”
“Because your godmother has the right of this. If you are happy—regardless of the family business or anything else—if you’re truly happy, your father should be happy for you.”
I felt the warm thrum of Ellison’s heartbeat under my thumb. His hair brushed the tips of my fingers and made them itch to run through his thick curls.
He ran his teeth over his bottom lip. His chest rose and fell more rapidly as his breathing shallowed. “I don’t think many people could be happy finding out their son is dating the man who took over their company and basically fired their ass.”
Ellison was right. This was going to be a disaster. But it was too late. We were here. And we had a deal. “He doesn’t know you’re trying to save his ass,” I corrected. “Maybe he needs to trust you.”
Ellison threw up his hands. “He’s had thirty-five years to trust me, and he hasn’t. He’s unlikely to start now that he thinks I betrayed him! The better question is why I care. I shouldn’t. He’s an asshole who ruined your life. Who ruined your life, thanks to me.”
Okay, we’d skipped past Nervousville and were entering Panic Town. “Slow down and breathe,” I cautioned.
He paced back and forth, ignoring me completely. “This is never going to work. You hate me. Everyone is going to see that. It’s not like you can hide it, especially from the people who will already be suspicious of you. Oh god. Oh god.”
I stood up and grabbed him by both arms, stopping his pacing and forcing him to look at me. “I don’t hate you.”
“Of course you do. And you should.” He was losing his composure. His eyes were wide with fear, and he was audibly gasping for breath. Did he always have panic attacks when he got overwhelmed? Somehow I doubted it. This weekend was an unusual challenge. His reaction was very understandable.
I leaned in and pressed my lips to his before he could say anything else. If my words wouldn’t convince him I could do a convincing job of being his boyfriend, then maybe my actions would.
He made a soft sound of surprise that quickly turned to a low moan as his entire body relaxed into mine. I quickly moved my arms around him to hold him upright.
The kiss was shockingly good. Easy and natural. Our lips fell into rhythm together like they’d always been meant for this, always been meant to be together, lazily stroking each other and searching for more.
I couldn’t stop. My arms tightened around him as I explored his lips and mouth with my tongue. The little noises of pleasure he made went straight to my groin. I could get used to this. I could do this for a very, very long time and be perfectly happy. More than happy.
Ellison was a damned good kisser, maybe the best I’d ever had. He kissed me like he did most things, with enthusiasm and joy, a little bit of mischief. His hands fisted the front of my shirt where he’d grabbed me in surprise. I ran my hands up and down his back, wishing desperately I could run them down to the rounded muscles of his ass and pull him tightly against me in a hot grind.
I hadn’t thought this through. Maybe if I had, I wouldn’t have risked something so intense. Because it was earth-shaking, life-changing, difference-making.
Panic inducing.
I forced myself to pull away, setting him back from me by grabbing his upper arms again.
I cleared my throat. “See? I can fake it. No problem.”
He stared at me with glassy eyes and wet lips. The tip of his nose was red from my late-day stubble. “Uh… yeah. Uh…”
I turned around and busied myself with my computer bag while I thought about Warren York’s response to my assault of his son’s person. That wasn’t as boner-deflating as I’d hoped. I quickly imagined my mother picking out a tulip-shaped key chain for me at a cheesy tourist shop in Europe.
Boner problem solved.
Ellison’s voice was deliciously breathless. “That… um… yeah. So… yeah. Faking. Good faking. It was definitely… believable.” The last word came out a little squeaky. I looked back at him and noticed his flushed face and nervous eyelash movement.
Before I could say anything, the bedroom door burst open and Ian Duckworth stormed in. His rage was palpable, and it was completely focused on me.
“What the hell are you doing here?”
12
Ellison
“Opportunistic relationships can hardly be kept constant.”