I grin with a shake of my head and follow him into the elevator.
I’m amazed we still want to be with each other every waking moment since we bought the house a month ago. Moving in wasn’t a big deal for us, as we’d basically lived together already. Living next door to one another made it hard to go home. It was just a matter of whose bed we were sleeping in each night.
The first night we had attempted staying at our own places for the night ended with him trying to talk in Morse code through our thin walls. It was cute for a little while, but it only made me want him lying next to me more. A half hour later, we were making love on my living-room floor.
Our leases were up for renewal around the same time. That was when Jake floated the idea about buying a place of our own. I was thinking we’d get a bigger apartment. He had grander ideas. The house is a gorgeous Tudor in upscale Lincoln Park and way more home than I have ever had. I was hesitant and about to say no way until he showed me my office. With built-in bookcases and a picture window overlooking the backyard … I was intrigued. When he told me his idea to have a reading nook built under the slanted eaves … I was sold.
He had a designer come in and work with the two of us to combine our styles. His high-end with my wine-stained one seem to blend together quite nicely.
While I love my house, I’m content with sleeping anywhere as long as Jake’s there.
God, I’m such a sap.
And I love it!
He slides the key card into the door, and we walk into our suite at the Milwaukee Regent. I run to the bed and plop down on it, lying with my arms out wide.
The emotions and feelings running through my body are always intense after signings. It’s like a huge crash from the highest of highs. I was a ball of nerves before, convinced no one would show. Then, they showed, and I was anxious not to disappoint them. I kept a smile and stayed on point for hours, talking to hundreds of people until my throat hurt. My nerves were kept tight, and now that it’s all over, it’s like a whoosh of energy leaving my body. I just want to crash. So, I am. Into the fine thread count of this very fancy bed.
Jake walks over to his suitcase and pulls out a bottle of my favorite cabernet. “Shall I open it?” he asks with a shit-eating grin on his face.
I hold up my arm in the air with my thumb held high as my answer.
He laughs as he taunts, “Come on. You’re okay. You weren’t that busy at the signing.”
I sit up straight in shock. “Not that busy? My wrist has a cramp, which, for the record, I am not complaining about! I just can’t believe how long some people waited in that line. I remember being that reader, waiting to see E.L. James and Colleen Hoover.” I close my eyes, still not able to fully digest how enormous this all was.
Jake sits next to me on the bed, handing me a glass of wine. “You’ve had an amazing year, and readers are literally lining up to read your books.”
I laugh and hit his stomach with the back of my hand at his little joke. Then, my smile fades because as happy as I am, I’ll always feel hesitant in my gut.
“It scares me. The success,” I confess. “The bigger I get, the more people to disappoint.”
“Well, that’s true. You’re always going to have critics. There’s also more people to inspire.”
I stare into his gorgeous brown eyes. “You always know the right thing to say.”
He kisses my lips and then pulls back. “You don’t give yourself enough credit.”
I smile brightly. “What did I ever do to deserve you?”
I lean in to kiss him again, making sure he knows just how much I cherish him. When he pulls back, his grin shows he knows what I meant.
“You knocked on my door and yelled at me for playing music too loudly.” He squeezes my leg and then stands to walk to the table that has the room service menu. “What do you say we blow off our reservations for tonight, stay in, and order one of everything on the menu?” He raises his eyebrows in my direction.
“As long as everything includes a cheeseburger with a brownie for dessert, then I say, that’s a plan.”
“One cheeseburger and a brownie coming up!” He picks up the phone to place the order.
“Really? You’re okay with staying in tonight and not exploring the city? I thought you had a friend who had a friend who owned a restaurant.”
“Tonight’s your night. If you’re exhausted and you want to relax, then that’s what we’ll do. Funny how the nights in become much more fun than nights out. Plus, I packed a seafoam-green towel I plan to model for you.”
If I didn’t already love this man, his ability to compromise would have me swooning hard for him.
We had plans to eat at a super-fancy restaurant he had been looking forward to, so I’ll make it up to him another night. For now, nothing sounds better than taking a hot bath and lying around in Jake’s arms for the rest of the night. After he models that seafoam-green towel, of course.
When I wake up, it’s to an empty bed. I glance around and find Jake standing next to the window, staring out at the beautiful view around us, as the sun peeks through the curtains.
“How long have you been awake?” I ask as I stretch.
He turns, and I see the long-stemmed rose in his hand.
He slowly makes his way over to me. “Since five.”
“Five? Why?
