Irresistible Bachelors: Books 1-5 by Landish, Lauren (bts books to read TXT) 📕

“And I was supposed to be a one-night stand or a sport fuck,” Brianna reminds me. “Look how Gavin and I turned out. If you’re feeling something for him . . .”

“Hey! Get off the phone and help me, you lazy skank!” Roxy yells. “I’m not doing all of this my damn self!”

“Roxy?” Brianna asks, and I chuckle.

“How’d you know?”

“She reminds me of some foul-mouthed, cute as hell coffee shop manager I know,” Brianna says. “Seriously, though, if you like him . . . don’t wait and give yourself the drama I did. Tell him.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” I reply. “Thanks. Love you, Bri, but I gotta go before Roxy starts throwing tacks at me. Bye.”

I head back over toward Roxy, but before I can get halfway across the hall, the doors open. I see Oliver carrying a huge set of speakers, one in each hand, the DJ behind him.

“Over there,” she says, and Oliver gives me a sexy little grin and blows me a kiss as he heads off across the hall.

I get back over to help Roxy, who climbs down from the ladder, handing me what looks like paper lanterns. “Here, you hang. I’ll hand you the next ones,” she says, grumbling. “You know how hard I’ve been working?”

“Sorry,” I say, climbing the ladder. I start putting up the lanterns but get distracted in my thoughts. I think about what a good man Oliver is. With the dog and all that, I could totally see settling down and . . .

I try to push the thoughts away. I have to remember this is fake. In a few days, it will all be over. I just need to enjoy it for what it is—a fun vacation fling.

But it’s not that easy. The passion. The connection. All of that feels real.

Maybe Brianna is right.

Roxy waves her hand in front of my face.

“Mindy?” Roxy says. “The lanterns?”

“Huh?” I ask, looking away and blinking. “What’s that, Rox?”

“I know you love your fiancé’s ass and stuff, but we need to get this done.”

I chuckle as we go back to work, doing my best to deal with the questions running rampant in my head.

But there’s one thing I know for sure. I don’t know what’s real anymore.Oliver

The bedroom lights are low, and I marvel as I run my fingers down Mindy’s arm, enjoying watching the goosebumps rise on her skin. “How do you keep doing that?” she asks, smiling. “Two days of us having sex, and you keep surprising me. I know it’s coming and you still make it happen.”

“A secret.” I chuckle, looking into her eyes. “And you’ve got great skin.”

The past few days have been paradise. With most of the big stuff done, we’ve had some more time to just spend together. Most of it has been spent talking.

The more and more time we spend together, the more I grow confused. At first, this was all fun and games. But it’s turned into something more. Being here with her, getting to know her and her family, I’ve enjoyed every minute of it.

Sure, some of them are wild. Her sister has sex on the brain way too much, her mother’s a bit too worried about money, and her grandmother gives exactly zero fucks what anyone thinks about what she has to say.

But they’re real, and they love each other. All of them. And Mindy herself . . . she’s more than a Princess. She’s an angel.

She reaches up, cupping my face to look into my eyes. Her breathing is still ragged from our early morning quickie, and watching her naked body on top of the sheets, I can’t believe that I’ve had the chance to be with her as often as I have. “That was great,” she says, shuddering. “You take my breath away.”

“Good,” I say, delivering a kiss to her lips. “Because I plan on doing that a lot more.”

She smiles for a moment, then it slowly fades. “A lot more? We only have a few days left. Reality’s coming, and it’s coming too damn fast.”

I feel a little jolt. It’s now Friday. It’s the day before her mother’s wedding. Honestly, it feels like our last day together. Our return flight is Monday morning, but I’m sure Sunday will be spent preparing to go home and spending a lot of time with the family. It’ll be the hug and kiss goodbye time and a chance to wish Mary Jo and John off on their honeymoon. They’re flying out Monday too.

We don’t even have all day today. Today is already packed with rehearsals and trying on stuff. This will be our last leisurely morning. And it’s hard to admit, but I don’t want it to end.

“Yeah,” I murmur, my chest feeling like I’ve got a lead weight pressing down on it. It’s taking away my breath and making it hard to even say what I want to say. I want to tell her that the dream doesn’t have to end. I want to promise her more than just a fantasy week on the ocean.

But I can't form the words. How can I tell her that I don’t think this is fake anymore? Our engagement might be fake, but what I’m feeling damn sure isn’t.

“What are you going to do when you get back?” she asks softly.

“Probably check on Mom first, then make sure my business isn’t in total shambles before it ever gets off the ground,” I say, slightly troubled. Last week, making Steele Security a name in the corporate world dominated my thoughts and my efforts. Now, it just doesn’t seem as important as spending time with Mindy. “Then I’ll make sure my little shithead brother hasn’t burned down my house. I asked him to watch my place.”

She smiles. “I’m sure everything will be okay. If he’s anything like Roxy, he’s a pain in the ass but comes through when your back’s to the wall.” She sighs and turns on her side, running her hand down my slightly stubbled cheek