14
Before Liveven opened her eyes, she could smell the scent of fresh brewed coffee. The aroma gently pulled her from her slumber. With a flutter of her lids she awoke to find Grady, wearing only his boxer briefs, sitting beside her at the small table sipping a cup of coffee and reading the paper.
She knew that this was only temporary but she had to admit that she didn’t think she’d ever get tired of waking up to that view. He was truly the most attractive human being she’d ever seen before and she didn’t think he could ever look better than he did right now, sitting in his underwear, sipping coffee.
When Liv shifted her legs, her body ached in places it had never ached before; reminding her of their night of debauchery. They’d made love, fallen asleep, both woke up a couple of hours later and they’d had sex. He’d gone and got food from the pantry, they ate and had sex for a third time before finally falling asleep for the night.
That was a record for her. She’d never had sex three times in one night, and it got hotter each time. The final one was doggy style which had always been a favorite position of hers, and with Grady it had been so good she was scared he might have ruined her for other men.
Who was she kidding? He’d ruined her for other men long before the doggy style.
Grady looked over at her and smiled. She’d been wrong, he absolutely could look even more gorgeous. That smile would make a nun rethink her choices.
“Morning.” His voice held an extra rasp in it that had her aforementioned sore parts tingling with awareness.
“Morning.”
He stood and by George, he looked even more impressive. Liv took the cup of steaming coffee from him and sipped. Her coffee order was very specific, so she knew that there was no way he’d know it. But she was grateful for the caffeine.
When she tasted the hot liquid she was pleasantly surprised. It was, in a word, delicious. It was exactly like she’d made it herself. She closed her eyes and let the java brew slide down her throat then opened her lids and smiled. “It’s perfect.”
“Two sugars, a splash of creamer, and two sprinkles of cinnamon.”
How did he know her order?
Was he a psychic?
Had she mumbled it in her sleep?
“How did you...?”
“Research.”
“Research?”
He picked his phone up off the table and turned it toward her. “Instagram.”
On his screen was a picture that Anna had taken of Liv sipping coffee in the sunroom at Grandad’s. At the urging of her publicist, Liv had been trying to be more active on social media but being a writer didn’t automatically make you good at captioning pictures. So, when she couldn’t come up with something clever to post, she’d just written: 2 sugars + a splash of creamer + 2 sprinkles of cinnamon = Perfection with a chef’s kiss emoji at the end.
She smiled as warmth spread through her that had nothing to do with the caffeine she’d just ingested. The feeling she was experiencing was due to the fact that he’d not only looked her up online, he’d also taken the time to find out how she liked her coffee and actually gotten it for her.
That sort of consideration was not something she was used to experiencing. Jordan had been more of a big gesture romantic. He’d taken her on a helicopter ride around the city. He’d surprised her with tickets to Hamilton. He’d get them into the nicest restaurant when reservations were impossible.
At the time she’d thought the dates had been sweet, but now that she looked back on them she realized they’d really just been about him. Those were all things that made him look good. He could post the pictures online and within an hour he’d have a hundred comments from women saying that Liv was so lucky to have him and that he was an amazing boyfriend.
Grady stood in front of her looking like a gladiator about to go into the coliseum and her mouth began to water. She took another sip of her coffee in an attempt to keep the drooling at bay.
“What time are you leaving today?” Grady lowered down on the bed beside her.
“I was planning to leave by noon, one at the latest.” Anna had her weekly Sunday dinner tonight so Liv told her that she’d be home by then so she didn’t miss it.
“Do you have any plans before then?”
She smiled. She knew what she’d like to do. She’d like to stay in bed with Grady until the very last second that she had to leave. “I don’t know, do I?”
He grinned. “I’m going to see my mom and I’d like you to go with me.”
It had taken Jordan a year before he introduced her to his parents. Her stomach did more somersaults than Jack and Jill rolling down the hill at the thought that what they had between them was real. That it wasn’t fake, and it was special.