Total pages in book: 95
Estimated words: 91683 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 458(@200wpm)___ 367(@250wpm)___ 306(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 91683 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 458(@200wpm)___ 367(@250wpm)___ 306(@300wpm)
Harper leads me to her room, and I hold my breath, expecting some kind of two-story bunk bed with an attached slide, a working carousel, Cher’s closet from Clueless.
She flips on the light, and I find it’s…wholesome. Downright normal. The walls are a pale pink. Her queen bed is covered in a butterfly comforter with matching pillows. The room’s not overflowing with toys either. It’s neat and clean, and I can tell she’s really proud of it. She shows me her treasures lined up on the shelf by her bed, the basket of stuffed animals she missed while she was gone, then the view, which is…okay, it’s of Central Park. So we were pretty close to normal, but not quite. Still, it’s great. Luke’s clearly trying to keep her as grounded as possible in a world where she could easily know nothing but excess.
“And this”—she gestures to an empty corner of the room—“is where I’m going to put my Barbie Dreamhouse once I buy it!” She runs over to take my hand. “Now, c’mon. I’ll show you your room.”
Down the hall, past two other rooms, the door is cracked to the primary bedroom.
“This is where you and my dad will sleep! Isn’t it pretty?”
It is. Beautiful. The expansive room has tall ceilings, pale blue drapes, a landscape painting hung above the four-poster bed. We walk through a door that leads to the other half of the suite with the bathroom and closets. Luke’s standing in a mostly empty closet.
He looks back, sees me, and waves me in. My bags sit at his feet. Clearly, he was making sure I had everything set to unpack in here.
“I’m surprised you don’t have more stuff.”
The closet is quite literally bare save for some golf clubs he tugs out and puts in the main part of the bathroom.
“Oh, there are his and hers closets. I’ve never put anything in this one except my clubs, so you should be good to go. Do you think you’ll need more space than this?”
I level him with a stare that says, Get real.
The closet is huge. It has an island in the center of it! In a minute, I’ll unpack every single clothing item I have to my name and it will fill exactly one rack and one drawer, maybe two.
“I’ll manage,” I tease.
He nods. “Right. Harper, did you unpack yet? I need your dirty clothes in the hamper in the laundry room. The toys you brought with you to the Hamptons need to be put back where they go too. Those throw pillows too!”
Her face falls. “Do I have to? I want to stay with Chloe. Can’t I do it later?”
“You can’t do it later,” I say, cutting in before Luke has the chance. “Because…I was thinking, if we unpack and get settled in, there’s somewhere I’d like to take you guys this afternoon.”
Harper claps her hands excitedly. “Oh! Oh! Where!?” She doesn’t even wait for me to answer; she’s flying out the door. “I’m going to go unpack right now! Don’t leave without me!”
As if we’d ever leave without her.
“Go eat a snack too!” Luke shouts. “And change into some nice clothes! There’s dirt on those shorts!”
“Okay!”
Then he looks at me. I look at him. He raises an eyebrow. I tilt my head in question. He waits a beat, listening as Harper scurries to her room. Then he’s on me instantly, backing me up into my dark closet, hoisting me up onto the island.
“There’s no time!” I chide.
But it doesn’t matter. There’s no convincing him. We slept together Friday night in his room (well the sleeping part didn’t really happen), but then last night we stayed up late trying to get everything settled with the house, finish packing, arrange travel plans for Miami and the weeks ahead. I went to bed close to midnight, and Luke didn’t climb in beside me until well after that. In the morning, there was a heavy make-out session, but then Harper ran in and jumped on top of us, asking if someone could please cook her breakfast because she was starving, and also, she didn’t know who did it but someone spilled milk in the kitchen while trying to pour themselves a bowl of cereal…
Now, Luke locks my closet door so fast it’s like his life depends on it. Clothes quite literally go flying. My bra gets tossed and lands up on a second-story rack meant for seasonal clothing. I’ll never manage to get it down without a ladder.
I laugh, but when Luke takes my mouth in a passionate kiss, it dies swiftly.
My world shrinks to him—the tender kisses he strings down my body, his hands peeling my thighs apart, his fingers finding my sensitive skin and then his lips following after. He tastes me between my thighs, and I fall back on that cold marble island, absolutely consumed by his touch.