Page 18 of Marry Me Forever
Katie: Yes. I want that trip, and be prepared for the bill. It won’t be tiny.
Iparked outside Katie’s house on Thanksgiving Day and debated whether or not I should go inside. Her family was beyond excited—her mom was even planning a wedding even though we were only “dating” right now and not yet engaged—and I had a feeling that once I set foot inside their house, I might not leave for days.
But as soon as I saw Katie exit the front door, I promptly forgot about her family.
She wore a dark blue dress that hugged her breasts before flaring out and dancing around her hips and down her legs, to just above her knees. The amount of cleavage on display made my mouth water.
I wanted to run my tongue through the valley before tugging down her dress and taking her nipple into my mouth. Then I’d grab her full hips, press her soft belly against me, and claim her mouth until I knew she’d be nice and wet. That way I could run my hand up, play with her pussy, and make her come as she dripped down my hand.
Katie opened the car door, and I mentally cursed at where my thoughts had gone. I definitely needed to be more careful, or I’d show up for Thanksgiving with my dick at full mast.
As she slid inside, I said, “You should’ve let me open it for you.”
“You were too busy staring at my boobs, so I didn’t hold my breath.”
I frowned, trying to think of how to reply. But she beat me to it. “Don’t worry. I’m used to it. I got my first bra in second grade and to this day my best friends make a game of tossing shit into my cleavage. It’s no biggie.”
Despite her words, I sensed she wasn’t so casual about it. “Does Abby, Amber, and Emmy know you don’t like it when they toss crap into your tops?”
She shrugged one shoulder. “They would stop, if I asked. It’s not them I mind so much—we all tease each other about something. But it was brutal when some of the girls made fun of me as a kid. And these days, I just have to be careful with what I wear on the tours.”
“You shouldn’t have to be careful, though.”
She patted my upper arm. “You’re sweet, Nolan. But I’m a grown-ass woman. I’ll be fine.”
I growled. “First, the drunk on the tour. And now this? Does no one in your family look after you?”
“How would they in this case? Do you expect them to be constantly on alert and act as the boob-watching police? Because do your siblings step up to form a wall when you take your shirt off, to shield your glorious muscles from the world?”
“I rarely take my shirt off.”
She rolled her eyes. “You deal with the paparazzi and rabid fans, and I deal with lechers and skeevy guys. A few women, too.” She shrugged. “It is what it is.”
I couldn’t change the world, but I could do something for Katie. “Well, whenever you’re with me and you feel uncomfortable—because of me or someone nearby—tell me. I’ll try to do better or take care of it.”
As I maneuvered back to the main road, Katie said, “What, do you have a high-class security team and with a nod, they make people disappear?”
“Not quite that extreme, but close.”
“Do you really have a security team?”
“At my house, yes. One woman snuck onto the property a year or so ago. And now with my ex stirring up shit with her fans? I have to be careful.”
“It’s a double-edged sword being famous, I think.”
I glanced at Katie and then back to the road. “Most people say I’m ungrateful when I bring that up. So I stopped trying.”
“Surely your family doesn’t think that.”
I sighed. “Maybe, maybe not. I’m not as close with my family as the rest of them are with each other. So I don’t really talk about my problems with them, if I can avoid it.”
“Why do you set yourself apart like that, though? I get how the age differences between you, Zach, Zane, and Abby probably made things difficult as children. But Beck’s only three years older, right? My eldest sister Cassie is six years older than me, and once I was out of high school, we became best friends. Did something happen between you and Beck?”
I’d talked more about myself with Katie over the last few weeks than I had with anyone since probably high school. And yet, I didn’t want to change the subject like I usually did. “I was closer to Beck and West when we were little. But after our dad died…”
She finished for me. “West ran off with that woman, and then Beck took over the winery and became head of the family.”
“Yes. Beck didn’t have time to hang out with me any longer, and my other siblings were so much younger that it was hard to do more than play games with them. So I kept my own company, and between my books and my acting, I found ways to distract myself.”