“Yes, sir,” James says. “And… from Saturday, you’ll be back to normal…?”
I glance up, in the direction of Casey’s hotel room. “I certainly hope not,” I mutter, before ending the call.
When I get back up to the room, Casey has redressed in a silky nightgown that flows over her curves, making me want to throw her on the bed there and then and rip it right off her body. But I know that I can’t – a promise is a promise, and I’m taking this one especially seriously.
“Oh,” she says, looking up at me with a shy smile. “You’re back.”
In that moment, I realize she didn’t believe that I would come back. There’s something so appealing about her innocence and doubt, so endearing. I want to hold her close and let her know that everything is always going to be alright, because I’m not going anywhere – not ever again.
“I said I would be,” I tell her instead, checking my watch and slipping my shoes back off. “It’s late. Do you want to get some sleep?”
Casey nods. “I was thinking that.” She glances at me from under her lashes, shy and unsure. “Are you… staying here?”
“Is that alright?” I smile at her, reaching up to undo the buttons of my shirt. “You have a pull-out sofa bed. I can sleep there.”
“Are you sure?” Casey blinks, looking at the big empty bed.
“I’m sure,” I laugh. “I promised you. Tomorrow is special. And if I sleep in that bed with you tonight, I’m not going to be able to hold myself back.”
I find a spare blanket in the top of the closet, and along with the sofa bed, it’s enough to make a passably comfortable place to stay the night. We settle into our respective places, and Casey turns off the lights by the bed, leaving us in the darkness.
“Goodnight, Edward,” she says, already sounding sleepy.
“Night,” I tell her, smiling to myself. Before long, I’ll be hearing that from her every night, in the bed that we share. She’s going to be mine – for the rest of my life. And I can’t wait to start.
Tomorrow will be more special than she could imagine – it has to be. There’s a lot at stake. And I won’t risk losing her now.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Casey
I wake up, and for a moment I think it must have all been a wonderful dream. Then I look across the room and see Edward, just buttoning up the cuffs on his shirt, and I realize it wasn’t a dream at all. It was real.
He looks freshly showered, his hair towel dried, and I could swear his shirt looks brand new even though he didn’t bring anything with him.
“Morning, princess,” he says, a knowing smile on his lips.
“How long have you been awake for?” I ask, scrambling to flatten down my hair and brush my fingers through any tangles that may have appeared while I was sleeping.
“Since dawn,” Edward chuckles. “Old habits die hard. Even if I’m not working today, my body still thinks I must be.”
“Oh, wow.” I sneak a glance at the clock by the bed, it’s past ten in the morning. “I’m so sorry. You should have woken me.”
Edward shakes his head. “You looked peaceful. Besides, it’s not your fault I’m an early riser. I had some things to take care of this morning, to make sure everything is set up, and now I’m all yours.”
I smile shyly at him. “Do you mind waiting just a little longer, for me to shower and get ready?”
From the way Edward’s eyes rake over me, I know he’s enjoying the implications of the word ‘shower.’ “Of course,” he says. “Take your time. We have a relaxed day ahead.”
I rush into the bathroom to shower and dress as quickly as I can. No matter what he says, I don’t want to waste a single minute. I only have a week here until I have to go home, and half of that is gone already – and every moment with Edward is precious.
Plus, the quicker we do whatever he has planned, the quicker we can get back here and have some fun.
I can’t help but wish I’d packed something a bit sexier – jeans and t-shirts are great for exploring the city, but not so much for seducing your Dad’s old best friend. Not that I seem to need to do much more in that area – he’s already promised me tonight, and last night was amazing.
I emerge ready to go and take Edward’s arm, as I’m now used to, locking up the room and heading down to the lobby together. For a moment I worry about being seen together – I’ve only paid for a single occupancy room – but then I relax. After all, Edward can take care of it if we get into any problems. And it would be worth it, to have him with me all night.
The short, and by now habitual, taxi ride takes us into the very center of London to Oxford Street, a place I’ve only ever heard about until now. It’s a wide street populated on both sides with shops from high street brands to the bigger names, superstores with thousands of garments to choose from, and amazing independent places I’ve never heard of. From there we go to Regent Street, and down to Liberty, the iconic store that offers designer clothing, homewares, and everything you could imagine – all wrapped up in a beautiful old building that was once a haunt of Oscar Wilde.
Through the whole experience, Edward keeps telling me that I can have anything I want. My eyes pop open wide at some of the price tags, but he tells me not to look at them – to just decide whether I want something based on how it looks and how
