The Girl Who Always Wins (Soulless 13)

She looked at me through her thick lashes, her lips still slightly parted, plump and sexy, her teeth perfectly white. “I know.”

My lips cherished her everywhere, kissing her collarbone, her neck, her perfect tits. I worshiped her body with my kiss, showed her the depth of my love as if my words weren’t enough.

I rolled over and lay beside her, the bedroom dark because it was sometime in the night. My work was abandoned in the living room, the TV still on and showing whatever came on after the game. Dinner was forgotten.

She lay beside me, a weightlessness to her features, like there was no second-guessing her decision. The backs of her fingers grazed lightly over my stomach, and her eyes dropped to watch her movements, to watch herself touch me.

In that moment, I knew I’d ask her to marry me.

There was no doubt.

If I could get a yes out of her, I’d go for it.

Lock her down for good.

I was seriously picturing it in my head when I heard it.

Her stomach growled.

The laughter started in her eyes first before her lips pulled back in a grin.

My hand went to her flat stomach, feeling it vibrate when it growled again. “Guess my baby is hungry.”

“Ugh, I’m always hungry.”

“You want me to cook something?”

“No. Because that would require you to leave.”

“Then how about I order something?”

“Pizza?”

“Whatever you want.” I reached for my phone on the nightstand.

“Ooh, what about Chinese?”

I swiped up on my phone so the screen would light up. “Chinese it is.” I picked my favorite restaurant and added my favorite entrée.

“Wait…how about Italian?”

I chuckled. “I’m down—”

“No! I want Mexican food. Tacos.”

“Are you sure this time?”

She considered it as her stomach growled. “Yeah. I just need to pick something. Otherwise, she’s going to kick my ass.”

I ordered something then handed her the phone.

She picked what she wanted then completed the order.

“What did you get?”

“Tacos,” she said. “A fried ice cream—”

“That sounds good—”

“Chips and guac and flan.”

“Damn. Good thing I’m a billionaire.”

She gave me a playful smack on the stomach. “Shut up, you know I’m worth it.”

“You’ve got that right.” I set the phone back on the nightstand then returned my focus to her. I lay on my side, bringing us close, the light from the living room illuminating our figures in bed.

My arm tightened on her lower back, feeling that sexy curve with my entire palm, bringing her close so I could smell my scent on her. The pain stopped throbbing. The sadness was quenched. As if I’d never been heartbroken, she put me back together. “I missed you…so much.”

“I missed you too.” Her hand moved up my neck to cup my face, her thumb brushing against the scruff of my shadow, her eyes shifting to my lips. She looked at me like an actress in a movie, pretending to love the man beside her with all her heart. Except she wasn’t pretending. She wore her heart on her sleeve and showed just how much she loved me. “Can I sleep over—”

“Like I’d ever let you leave.” I tugged her a little closer, far more possessive than I’d been before.

Her eyes softened just the way her heart did. “My dad told me you told him.”

“Kinda pulled it out of me.” It was easy to forget that Dr. Hamilton was her father because I had my own relationship with him, had my own connection before I even met her. I’d rejected his affection often, pretended I didn’t need it, but the truth was, his kindness had been a godsend during this lonely time in my life. I wouldn’t know what to do without it, and I would probably never have to worry about that happening.

“He does that. It’s the gaze.”

“Yeah.” The same gaze she had. “There’re a lot of things he does that remind me of my dad. Sometimes it feels like he’s still here.”

Her fingers cupped my face, her eyes showing their emotional affection.

“He calls himself my godfather, so I guess that makes sense.”

“Aww…”

“Yeah, he’s something else.” That man had given me everything, when I’d given him nothing in return. He gave me my dream job, gave me my dream woman, and then he gave me everything else that I’d been missing.

“He’s an exceptional person, but he wouldn’t do that with just anyone. He has so much on his plate, three kids he’s still invested in, my mom. He’s not doing it because something is missing or because he has nothing else to do. He’s doing it because he genuinely loves you like a son. I can tell by the way he talks about you, how he defends you the way he defends my brothers when I complain about them.”

“You complain about me often?” I teased.

“I just mean in the past…”

“Uh-huh.”

“But I’ll probably complain about you more because you’re still an arrogant asshole sometimes.”