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He ran his fingers down her cheek and pinched her chin

"Doeson herher that? My Stella Did he know there was nothing she wanted more than to be his? She wanted to ask what heit

"I can stay the night here?" In his apartment, in his bed where clients weren’t allowed? Was she rubbing off on him, then? Maybe there was hope Maybe he really could be hers

"If you want to None of your things are here, though You’d have to use ht have to sleep naked," he said with a suggestive arch of an eyebrow

Those things bothered her, true She’d probably sleep terribly and feel off all day tomorrow But it would be worth it to be with him And to put her mark on his apartnacious honey badger

"I want to stay"

His smile alone made her decision worth it

Chapter 20

Over the next week, Michael learned Stella’s rhythms

In bed, she responded best when he went slowly and whispered dirty things in her ear, but if he wanted soer to please He couldn’t have asked for a better lover The irony of the situation was not lost on hiot up at the sa sex--he loved starting the day off right--had yogurt for breakfast, and stayed at the office until six o’clock Her evenings belonged to Michael When they weren’t ers, they filled the ti conversation, and companionable silences that Michael had never experienced with a real girlfriend

Saturday night, after spending the day perusing one of the San Franciscooutlandish co in the Wind in bed Well, she atching it He atching her as he co hair

She rested her head against his shoulder, eyes on the large screen asped or stiffened in reaction to the fils shifted beneath the hem of the oversized white T-shirt she wore--his T-shirt froether

He didn’t kno to describe the way he felt seeing her in his clothes, knowing she’d kept his shirt and had been wearing it to sleep all this ti like this a lot lately--basically, anytime Stella smiled, demanded a kiss, or crossed the rooether He’d spent the entire past week in a euphoric high, grinning for no other reason than he was thinking of her

No doubt about it

Michael was stupid in love

He knew this was temporary, kneasn’t real, knew it couldn’t possibly end well, but he’d done what no escort should do anyway He’d fallen for his client

"So she saved his life, but now she’s hiding behind that curtain pretending to be a grand his attention back to the screen "Is she the one he falls for?"

"Do you really want ht about it for several seconds before nodding "Yes Tell hed as he pulled her closer and kissed her tehtful and serious but so quirky, too He loved that about her "Too bad You’ll have to watch it to find out" Because he couldn’t help it, he kissed her jaw and nipped at her ear God, it felt good having her near He’d been made to love her

She crossed her arms "Why won’t she let him see her? It’s clear she likes hiether"

"Why not?"