Say You're Mine (The Gallaghers Book 1) by Layla Hagen (comprehension books .txt) 📕

ten to twelve. My food was delivered five minutes before I’d promised to call him, and even though I was starving, I was looking forward to talking with Brayden more than eating. That was unprecedented for me.

At twelve o’clock, the reception buzzed me up. Perhaps the delivery guy had forgotten to give me something? I hadn’t ordered anything else, but sometimes restaurants included freebies.

“Mr. Clarke is here. Is it okay if he comes up? He’s asking for the code to your door.”

Oh my God!

“Yes, of course.”

I was even giddier now. It took him a while to come up, and I realized he was probably taking the stairs again.

I opened the door, smiling when I saw he’d put his cap on. He was tailed by two guys who remained in front of the door. The bodyguards were always changing, which had thrown me off in the beginning, but Brayden explained that they worked with an external security company that sent whoever was available that day.

He came inside alone.

“Brayden! What are you doing here?” I asked after I closed the door, grinning so wide that my face was hurting.

He dangled a bag in front of me. “Brought lunch. And myself.”

“Why didn’t you tell me you were coming?”

“That would have ruined the surprise. I wanted to see this look on your face.”

I shook my head slightly, forcibly toning down my grin, trying to appear serious. I cleared my throat before asking, “What look?”

Brayden chuckled, cupping my jaw. “You’re fucking adorable.”

I couldn’t keep up my game, of course. My lips stretched into a huge smile again.

“I wanted to surprise you completely like last time, but they wouldn’t give me the code.”

“How did they even give it last time?”

“Sasha spoke to them, and she’s good at this. But I didn’t tell her I was coming today.”

“Oooh, you’re being spontaneous again.”

He set the bag on the round welcome desk before tilting forward and sealing his mouth over mine. It wasn’t a quick peck either. He explored me until my knees were weak and I was practically tugging at his shirt. It was all I could do not to slip my hands under the fabric.

Wait... I spoke too soon. One of my hands was under his shirt. How did it get there?

Pulling back, I dropped my hand, smiling sheepishly. Brayden winked.

“Sorry... don’t know how that happened.”

“I don’t mind your wandering hands.”

I rolled my eyes. “Of course you don’t.”

Taking the bag of food, I brought it to my desk, walking with an exaggerated shimmy in my hips. I had no idea why I wanted to provoke him. I couldn’t help myself. I wondered how long it would take for him to lose his composure. Until we finished lunch? Or sat down?

Turned out the answer was until I reached the desk. Pressing his chest against my back, he rained kisses down the side of my neck before burying his face in my hair. I shimmied again, but he stopped me quickly, gripping my hips.

“Isabelle, don’t, or instead of having lunch, I’ll have you on this desk.”

“I don’t mind.”

He groaned in my hair. “Don’t tempt me like this.”

Smiling, I took the food containers out of the bag. I was so happy he was here that I could only express it in some outrageous way... like jumping him. He’d wanted to see me and spend time with me even after we’d been together all weekend. He’d brought fries with melted cheddar cheese on top by the smell of it, and maybe truffle too. Another box contained burgers. Yum. I would keep my Caesar salad for dinner.

“Hey, just so I know, are you planning to surprise me tonight too?” I asked.

“Yes. How did you guess? I can’t stay away from you, Isabelle.”

I wanted to do a happy dance but couldn’t because he had me confined, so I shimmied a little. He stopped me with a firm grip on my hips again. But how was I supposed to express my joy? Movement was my way of expressing myself, and this terrible man was currently pinning me against the edge of the desk.

“Isabelle, I know when we started out, we said we’d take this easy and enjoy what we had until the concerts start, but I don’t want to let you go. I want us to explore this, to keep seeing each other.”

Holy shit. I hadn’t expected that. I’d hoped we’d find a way, but I’d be lying if I didn’t admit to myself that I’d been terrified our relationship would just end when the tour started. My heart rate intensified, and my shoulders stiffened.

“Say something,” he whispered. Uncertainty tinged his voice. I turned around slowly, looking straight at him. “What do you feel for me?”

“Like I don’t want to let you go, at all, but I’m not sure what happens after the tour starts.”

He cupped my face with both hands. “We’ll figure it out, okay? I’m sure of it. But the first thing we should do is go public.”

“Public?” I asked slowly.

“Yes. If we let ourselves be seen and photographed together on purpose, we’ll be in a better position to control the narrative the press spins, because the information will come from us. And once we’re no longer trying to hide from them, they’ll lose interest. I can’t explain it, but I’ve seen it happen.”

“Do you think they’ll pop up in front of my practice more? I’m trying to guess what the repercussions might be.”

“It’s hard to tell. I think they might stalk the place for a bit. You’ll need security, and it would make me happy if you’d let Paul drive you around everywhere.”

I nodded. “Sure. That sounds like the smart thing to do.”

He’d been driving me around most of the time anyway since the first photos were leaked. Sasha had insisted I not use public transportation again, just Uber everywhere and send her all the bills. Honestly, I couldn’t wrap my mind around all the repercussions, but I knew I had to brace myself for everything, and I was ready to