Page 136 of By His Vow

But neither of us acknowledge it or make a move to shatter it.

“That was good, thank you,” I finally say once my plate is empty.

“You’re welcome,” he says before taking my hand and pulling me from the stool.

“What are you doing?”

“We’re getting ready to go out.”

“Go out? I thought we were relaxing.”

“We are.”

“Going out isn’t relaxing in my book.”

“Then maybe you should take a page out of mine,” he counters before releasing my hand in favor of placing a suitcase on the edge of the bed and unzipping it.

The second he flips the lid open, I discover that it’s packed full of my things.

He rummages through before pulling out a pair of cut-off shorts, a long-sleeved Chicago Chiefs t-shirt and a red set of lingerie. A set he chose. And then to top it off…a thick pair of socks.

“Interesting choice,” I muse, staring at the items laid out on the bed for me.

“Get dressed,” he instructs before turning his back on me and reaching for another case.

He grabs what he needs before shamelessly shoving his sweats from his hips, leaving him standing there gloriously naked. I’m powerless to do anything but gawp.

“The sun will only be up for so many hours, Tatum,” he mutters without looking back to confirm that I’m doing nothing but staring.

“You’ve got a nice ass for a jerk.”

“Pretty sure you like more than just my ass,” he counters as he pulls a pair of shorts over his boxers and then reaches for a t-shirt.

When he turns around fully dressed, I’m still standing in the shirt I slept in.

Folding his thick arms across his chest, he raises a brow.

“What? You’re not watching me dress,” I sass.

“You just watched me,” he points out.

“I didn’t have much choice. You just stripped off.”

“You could have looked away,” he argues. “Just like you could have walked away last night.”

My lips purse.

Why didn’t I just walk away? It would have saved a lot of frustration.

Part of me expects him to stay put and force me to change in front of him, but after a few seconds, he concedes and walks toward the door.

“You’ve got ten minutes.”

“But I need to shower,” I argue.

“Shower later. We have places to be.”

34