Evin's Fight (Southern Charmers 3)

“Baby, I missed your calls because I was in the air trying to get here. The plan was to surprise you at the theatre.”

Her hands sift through my hair as her eyes scan over my face. “Why is your hair wet?”

“I showered.”

“How’d you get in?”

“Ryanne knew my plans and was waiting for me.”

“Sneaky. She sat by and let me fret all night when I didn’t hear from you.”

“I’m sorry you got upset, but it couldn’t be helped. Delays in Atlanta pushed everything back.”

“I wasn’t upset, I was worried.”

“It won’t happen again. Even if it risks ruining my surprise, we’ll talk.”

“Do I sound clingy?”

“No, but even if you did, I wouldn’t care. You clinging to me would not be a hardship.”

A small giggle escapes, and she presses her forehead to mine. “How long are you here?”

“Until we leave for South Carolina. We’re moving into the hotel tomorrow.”

“We could stay here and save you the money,” she says hesitantly, chewing on her bottom lip.

“Maybe another time.”

“Ryanne wouldn’t mind.”

“It’s easier right now at the hotel. I can set up to work on Monday and Tuesday and not worry about cluttering your dining room. I also like knowing you are right downstairs working. Not to mention we need our privacy. Swear to God, I would have gotten out of the shower and climbed into this bed naked tonight, but with Ryanne down the hall, I had to get dressed.”

Her lips curl. “That is too bad.”

“I hate to say this because it’s likely to fire you up. And when you get fired up, I usually like it. Seeing as I’ve been up for twenty-four hours, I’m too fucking tired to do anything about it. But you have to get over the money issue. The hotel will not break me.”

“It’s not only the hotel. It’s the hotel, the airline ticket, the dinners, the weekly flowers, the accommodations in Kiawah, the wedding present—everything adds up.”

“I can handle it.”

She studies me, obviously wanting to say more, but gives in. “Fine, I’ll let it go for now because I’m still partly shocked you’re in my bed, which outweighs everything.”

“Appreciate that.”

“Ryanne has an event tomorrow; we’ll have the house to ourselves.”

“Good to know. You think we can go to sleep?”

“Yeah.”

“Are we going to sleep sitting up with the lamp on?”

“Give me a second.” Her gaze travels over me as her hands move around my neck and over my chest. My cock twitches and hardens again when she slowly scales her nails lightly up and down my abs.

Her eyes drop lower and she licks her lips. “Thought you’re exhausted.”

“My dick has a mind of its own when a beautiful woman is feeling me up.”

She giggles softly, leaning in to kiss the center of my chest. “I’ll let you sleep.”

“New plan.” I twist, holding her with one arm and switching off the lamp, then fall back. “Lay your head on my shoulder. We sleep like this.”

“You sure?” she doesn’t wait for an answer, nuzzling into my neck. “I may get heavy.”

“Baby, anytime you’re in my arms, you’re weightless.”

“Always so sweet.”

It takes a while for her breathing to even out and then I let my eyes close, holding her tight.

I wake to the smell of cinnamon, the spot next to me empty. My eyes go to the picture on her dresser.

It’s of her in my arms the first time she brought me here. We’re locked together, our mouths fused, with her wrapped around me. One of the shots Ryanne snapped.

Poppy cracks open her door, peeking in and smiling widely. “You’re awake.”

I scrub my hands through my hair and prop up, looking around for a clock. “What time is it?”

“Mid-morning.” She remains in the doorway, staring.

“Why are you over there?”

“Because I’m memorizing this.”

“How about memorizing with a kiss?”

“I can do that.” She crosses the room and flings herself on me.

The taste of cinnamon and sugar coats my mouth when her tongue molds with mine. She angles her head, giving me deeper access, and melts into my body. My hands go to her ass, squeezing my approval. She pulls away too soon, laying her forehead to my cheek. “You sleep okay?”

“Better than the last two weeks.”

“Me too.”

“Why do you taste so sweet?”

“I made cinnamon rolls. This morning seemed like a special occasion to break out my grandma’s recipes.”

“You made them from scratch?”

She nods.

“Can’t wait.”

“Would you like me to bring you some coffee?”

“You made coffee?”

“I may not drink it, but Ryanne does. She made it.”

“She here?”

“No, she’s gone, but she mentioned us doing dinner tomorrow since it’s my only night off before we travel.”

“You make the reservations, invite Dante if he’s off.”

“He’ll love it.”

“How long before your rolls are ready?”

“Not too long.”

“I’ll meet you in the kitchen.”

She lifts off, running her lips across mine once more. I follow her out of bed and pause when she lifts my shirt from last night off the floor, slipping it over her tank. The second she does, she frowns, sniffing deep.