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Her mother being worried usually led to terrible things. But Zep had put her at ease. Zep had made sure everything ran smoothly. For once in her adult life, she’d been able to pretend they were a happy family, that she hadn’t screwed up and ruined all her parents’ expectations. They’d had a good time and it had been all Zep since she would have taken every word out of her mom’s mouth as some kind of passive-aggressive bull and countered it with her own aggression.

Instead, she’d had a nice meal and listened to Zep’s stories and heard about how her brother’s wedding plans were going. She’d found out her father was the new champion of his golf club and that her mom had planned the social event of the year.

So often when she was with her family, it felt like an intervention, like she was the one everyone was worried about because she hadn’t gotten her life together. It had been good to feel like she was an accepted part of the family.

Zep had given her that.

She quickly texted back and promised her mom she would see her tomorrow.

Up above, she heard the shower come on.

Daisy whined from the crate, but she didn’t bark. After a few tries, she seemed to settle down.

Was that what she was doing? She’d boxed herself in but not in the cozy way Daisy was. Daisy had a comfy bed to sleep on and a couple of toys. Zep had taken one of Roxie’s shirts and put it in so the puppy could have her new mom’s scent around her.

Roxie’s crate did nothing but keep people out. It wasn’t a place to sleep and rest for the next day. It was a cage of her own making, and it was going to cost her the week she could have with the sexiest man she’d ever met.

Or she could be brave and walk in there and ask for what she wanted. She could offer herself to him because she knew he wasn’t going to turn her down. At the end of the week, they would both be better because they would have gotten this ridiculous longing out of their systems. Or rather she would have gotten it out of hers and he would be good because she would let him walk away this time. He seemed to need that control and she would give it to him. When the time came and he explained that he’d had fun, but it was time to get back to real life, she would let him go and she would be friendly with him.

She would stop arresting him at every given opportunity just so she could be close to him. The need to be close to him would wane.

All she had to do was take that first step. Up the stairs.

To her room. To the bathroom.

Somehow she found herself there, and without another thought she pulled off her dress and tossed it to the side. The hum of the shower was soothing as she made short work of her bra and undies.

This was what she wanted. Time with him.

She opened the door, happy he hadn’t locked it, but then maybe this was what he’d hoped for, too.

She stepped in and up to the shower. It wasn’t huge but they could both fit. She stared at him for a moment, the mist from the shower making him look almost unreal. His back was to her, every inch of his glorious skin on display, but his head was down in a way that made her ache to soothe him.

She knew that look. Weary. Lonely.

She rather thought she looked a lot like that most days of her life.

Maybe they could ease each other.

His head turned and he was suddenly staring at her, the hungriest look in his eyes. He didn’t say anything, but the heat in the room had spiked and her whole body went taut with that one look.

It was like every inch of her skin came alive.

He turned and she could see his body. Muscle after muscle, each one masculine perfection. His hair was slicked back, making his face look starker. He always had that devil-may-care look in his eyes, but it was replaced with something primal.

“Are you sure?” The question came out of his mouth deeper than his usual tone. “I need you to be very sure, Roxanne.”

She was sure she couldn’t walk away. “I’m sure.”

He held out a hand. “Then join me.”

She placed her hand in his. So often she felt unfeminine and she was fine with that, but there were moments when she needed to feel like she was a woman. His big hand surrounding hers was all the reminder she needed. The worry fell away and she was left in the moment. Nothing mattered except being close to him for a while.


Tags: Lexi Blake Butterfly Bayou Romance