Total pages in book: 108
Estimated words: 101764 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 509(@200wpm)___ 407(@250wpm)___ 339(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 101764 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 509(@200wpm)___ 407(@250wpm)___ 339(@300wpm)
Huh, maybe I should be offended by his opinion on how I’d react to anything less than luxury. Now, on the flip side, I’d be a big fat liar if I didn’t admit how much I loved to spoil Alex. I had to be careful with it because he was as stubborn as they came and disapproved of me spending money on him, but I had my ways.
I wouldn’t say money was an issue between us, but it was a minor sticking point I strove to keep from becoming a problem.
“Great! Let’s do it. And in the morning, I’ll order breakfast from that place your mom loved. What was it?”
He narrowed his eyes at me. “The French place where a croissant costs twenty dollars?”
Yep, that’s the place. I shrugged. “Don’t know. I just know she loved it. You can’t have a problem with me wanting to do something nice for your mom. I want her to like me.” I gave him the most persuasive grin I could muster at two in the morning.
“Oh, she loves you, trust me. She’s ready to toss me out on my ass and have you take my place at this point.”
We both knew that wasn’t true, but I did love the way his mom had taken to me. “Well, then, I’m definitely buying breakfast from the French place. I gotta keep my status as favorite.”
Alex grunted and pulled me in for a slow kiss. “Fine,” he said with a half-smile when we pulled apart. “We’ll sleep there, and you can buy her breakfast.”
And if the expensive French café also happened to be my boyfriend’s favorite breakfast spot, we’d chalk it up to a happy coincidence.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
ALEX
For nearly two months, I’ve had a boyfriend, a serious one, it seemed. One who chose to stay at my rundown house and sleep in my fifteen-year-old double mattress bed when he had a brand new pillowtop king mattress in his luxury apartment just fifteen minutes away.
Why did he do it? Why did he stay on my side of town when he could have been sleeping on his thousand-thread-count sheets and stepping on his heated tile bathroom floor?
He did it because it made my life easier. Frequently staying at my house allowed me to take care of my mother and keep an eye on my wayward brother while still spending multiple nights with my boyfriend.
Ryder’s willingness to bend for my comfort boggled my mind. Who did that? Who freely put themselves in an uncomfortable situation for someone else, no, not someone else, for me?
Someone who really likes you, you idiot.
Like I said, mind-boggling.
But also pretty damn wonderful. So much so that I got a warm, squishy feeling in my stomach each time I woke up to find him still asleep beside me in my old bed.
For the first few weeks, I spent most of my free time waiting for the other shoe to drop. Whenever Ryder and I weren’t together, which admittedly wasn’t too often since we became an official thing, I tried to prepare myself to be dumped the next time I saw him. I thought for sure he’d get sick of my grumpy attitude, my inability to pay for anything beyond the occasional cheap fast-food meal, or my needy family.
But he didn’t. He smiled and rolled with the punches in the genial way he had, which made everyone like him.
Well, maybe not everyone saw the amicable side of him. There were a few guys at Top Shelf who ended up on the receiving end of his surprising possessive streak. And, God help me, I should find his jealousy off-putting, but instead, watching him snarl at someone blatantly hitting on me made me so hot I’d thrown him down and fucked him senseless each time.
What could I say? I was a sucker for how much he wanted me.
Especially since I wanted him just as much.
The morning of my mom’s foot surgery, my alarm blared before the sun had risen. I was supposed to drive her to the hospital by seven, and of course, Ryder insisted on joining us, no matter how much I warned him it would be a long, boring day.
As I reached out to slap the snooze button for nine more precious minutes of relaxation, the strong arm around my waist tugged me against a naked chest while a set of warm lips went to work on the side of my neck.
“Good morning, handsome,” Ryder whispered as he kissed his way up my neck.
My body responded instantly with shivers zipping down my spine to my interested dick. “Mmm, morning.” I turned in his arms until I could fasten my mouth to his. Morning breath be damned, I’d take his kiss anytime, anywhere.
We made out for a few minutes, our hands roaming, our legs entwined, and our kisses sleepy. I’d have given my left nut to be able to spend the entire morning in bed doing just this, but my life was never that simple or relaxing.