Breathe with Me
Page 60
“I’m so glad you invited me to come here.” I grin up at Mark.
“Me too.”
“What are we doing tomorrow?”
“You’re going to keep me permanently hard while you lay in a bathing suit by the pool,” he replies with a grin.
“That sounds like fun. Will you put sunblock on me?”
“Of course.”
“Will you bring me fruity drinks with umbrellas in them?”
“If you ask nicely.”
“Will you keep your shirt off all day, also keeping me in a perpetual state of horniness?”
“If that’s what it takes, yes.” He laughs and tucks my hair behind my ear. “You make me laugh.”
“I’m glad.”
His face sobers as he drags his fingertips down my cheek. We’re still swaying back and forth, dancing to our own rhythm.
“I crave you, you know.”
“There’s no shame in that,” I reply as I smooth my finger over his lower lip. He puckers his lips and kisses me gently. “There are times I want you so badly my body feels like it’s on fire.”
“It’s not just that. It’s everything. I crave everything about you. Your body, your laughter, the way you make me feel when I’m with you. You’re my drug, Meredith.”
“I’m addicted in the same way, and I don’t plan to ever have to recover from you again, Mark.”
He stills for a moment and pins me with his blue gaze, sending shivers down my spine, as if he’s reached in and touched my soul.
“There’s no recovering from this.”
Chapter Sixteen
“We’ve walked so much tonight, my feet are numb,” Stacy grumbles as we stand on the escalator leading up to the club in our hotel, the Cosmopolitan.
“I think that’s from the liquor,” Nat replies.
“These chandeliers are crazy,” Jules says and squints her eyes as she stares at the glittering glass surrounding us. “It really fucks with your head when you’ve had a lot to drink.”
“I wonder if the bastards did that on purpose?” Sam wonders.
“We’re definitely in the prettiest hotel on the strip,” Brynna says with a grin. “I’m surprised you talked Will into this place, Meg.”
“I don’t think he cared where we stayed as long as it had a buffet and a bar,” Meg replies with a giggle and sips her pink drink. “The buffet here is killer. I think Will would have been happy sleeping with the crab legs.”
“The man can eat,” Jules says with a sigh. “This fifteen minute break from Vegas shenanigans was not good. I’m feeling droopy.”
We reach the top of the escalator and Sam steps between Jules and Nat, loops her arms through theirs and says, “Perk up, girls, the shenanigans are just beginning!”
“These women are hilarious,” Jax murmurs to me and leads me into the club. “I haven’t been flirted with this much since we were at that club in New York after the New Year’s Eve show three years ago.”
“That was a gay club,” I remind him with a roll of the eyes. “Needless to say, I didn’t see any action that night.”
“Trust me, snickerdoodle, I saw enough action for both of us that night.” He wiggles his eyebrows suggestively as the girls around us burst out in laughter.
“You’re disgusting.”
“You’re hilarious,” Nic says as we commandeer two tables, pushing them together again. The same bartender from last night is behind the bar and rolls his eyes at us as we sit down.
“I haven’t recovered from you guys from last night yet!” he yells to us.
“You haven’t seen anything yet, sugar,” Stacy says with a wink. “We shook off our men and left our filters in Seattle.”
“Great.” He laughs and shakes his head as he walks down the bar to help a customer.
“I wonder if the guys are having fun?” Brynna asks and types away on her phone.
“You better not be texting the enemy,” Jules says with a glare. “This is Meg’s bitchelorette party.”
“I’m just texting my mom to see how the kids are.”
“Oh, good idea,” Nat says and begins typing on her phone too.
“Okay, all the moms get their check ins with the babysitters now, because you won’t be sober enough for it in a little while,” Jax says and flags down a waitress.
“What are the guys doing again?” I ask and raise a brow when Jax starts typing on his phone. “I didn’t realize you were a baby daddy.”
“I’m not, smart ass. Logan hasn’t been answering his phone today.”
“Trouble in paradise?” My grin fades when his worried, dark eyes meet mine. “I’m sure he’s fine. He’s probably making up time at work from the days he took off this week with you.”
He nods, but the frown on his face says he doesn’t buy it.
“Remember? Not all guys are cheating bastards.”
“I didn’t say I thought he was fucking cheating.” He scowls and slams back the shot of tequila the waitress just set before him. “But now I am.”
“Trust me,” Stacy says and leans across both Brynna and Meg to lay her hand over Jax’s arm. “No one is going to cheat on a hot piece of ass like you.”
“Oh God,” Nat says and begins giggling. “And so it begins.”
“Me too.”
“What are we doing tomorrow?”
“You’re going to keep me permanently hard while you lay in a bathing suit by the pool,” he replies with a grin.
“That sounds like fun. Will you put sunblock on me?”
“Of course.”
“Will you bring me fruity drinks with umbrellas in them?”
“If you ask nicely.”
“Will you keep your shirt off all day, also keeping me in a perpetual state of horniness?”
“If that’s what it takes, yes.” He laughs and tucks my hair behind my ear. “You make me laugh.”
“I’m glad.”
His face sobers as he drags his fingertips down my cheek. We’re still swaying back and forth, dancing to our own rhythm.
“I crave you, you know.”
“There’s no shame in that,” I reply as I smooth my finger over his lower lip. He puckers his lips and kisses me gently. “There are times I want you so badly my body feels like it’s on fire.”
“It’s not just that. It’s everything. I crave everything about you. Your body, your laughter, the way you make me feel when I’m with you. You’re my drug, Meredith.”
“I’m addicted in the same way, and I don’t plan to ever have to recover from you again, Mark.”
He stills for a moment and pins me with his blue gaze, sending shivers down my spine, as if he’s reached in and touched my soul.
“There’s no recovering from this.”
Chapter Sixteen
“We’ve walked so much tonight, my feet are numb,” Stacy grumbles as we stand on the escalator leading up to the club in our hotel, the Cosmopolitan.
“I think that’s from the liquor,” Nat replies.
“These chandeliers are crazy,” Jules says and squints her eyes as she stares at the glittering glass surrounding us. “It really fucks with your head when you’ve had a lot to drink.”
“I wonder if the bastards did that on purpose?” Sam wonders.
“We’re definitely in the prettiest hotel on the strip,” Brynna says with a grin. “I’m surprised you talked Will into this place, Meg.”
“I don’t think he cared where we stayed as long as it had a buffet and a bar,” Meg replies with a giggle and sips her pink drink. “The buffet here is killer. I think Will would have been happy sleeping with the crab legs.”
“The man can eat,” Jules says with a sigh. “This fifteen minute break from Vegas shenanigans was not good. I’m feeling droopy.”
We reach the top of the escalator and Sam steps between Jules and Nat, loops her arms through theirs and says, “Perk up, girls, the shenanigans are just beginning!”
“These women are hilarious,” Jax murmurs to me and leads me into the club. “I haven’t been flirted with this much since we were at that club in New York after the New Year’s Eve show three years ago.”
“That was a gay club,” I remind him with a roll of the eyes. “Needless to say, I didn’t see any action that night.”
“Trust me, snickerdoodle, I saw enough action for both of us that night.” He wiggles his eyebrows suggestively as the girls around us burst out in laughter.
“You’re disgusting.”
“You’re hilarious,” Nic says as we commandeer two tables, pushing them together again. The same bartender from last night is behind the bar and rolls his eyes at us as we sit down.
“I haven’t recovered from you guys from last night yet!” he yells to us.
“You haven’t seen anything yet, sugar,” Stacy says with a wink. “We shook off our men and left our filters in Seattle.”
“Great.” He laughs and shakes his head as he walks down the bar to help a customer.
“I wonder if the guys are having fun?” Brynna asks and types away on her phone.
“You better not be texting the enemy,” Jules says with a glare. “This is Meg’s bitchelorette party.”
“I’m just texting my mom to see how the kids are.”
“Oh, good idea,” Nat says and begins typing on her phone too.
“Okay, all the moms get their check ins with the babysitters now, because you won’t be sober enough for it in a little while,” Jax says and flags down a waitress.
“What are the guys doing again?” I ask and raise a brow when Jax starts typing on his phone. “I didn’t realize you were a baby daddy.”
“I’m not, smart ass. Logan hasn’t been answering his phone today.”
“Trouble in paradise?” My grin fades when his worried, dark eyes meet mine. “I’m sure he’s fine. He’s probably making up time at work from the days he took off this week with you.”
He nods, but the frown on his face says he doesn’t buy it.
“Remember? Not all guys are cheating bastards.”
“I didn’t say I thought he was fucking cheating.” He scowls and slams back the shot of tequila the waitress just set before him. “But now I am.”
“Trust me,” Stacy says and leans across both Brynna and Meg to lay her hand over Jax’s arm. “No one is going to cheat on a hot piece of ass like you.”
“Oh God,” Nat says and begins giggling. “And so it begins.”
