“Feed me?” she asked.
He leaned over and kissed her hard on the lips. “Only because you asked so nicely.”
He slid out of bed, perfectly comfortable in his nudity, and headed for the kitchen, returning with a large tub of ice cream and one spoon. “Hope you like chocolate swirl.”
“Mmm. Works for me.” She scooted back in the bed, sitting up as he turned on the bedside lamp and settled in beside her.
“You’re not having any?” she asked, holding out her hand for the spoon.
He shook his head and laughed. “We’re sharing.”
“You’re a mean man, making me share my ice cream.”
Ignoring her complaint, he popped off the top and placed it on the nightstand before settling in beside her. He dug into the tub and held out the spoon for her to eat.
He fed her, alternating one for him and one for her until they’d had their fill. This was the most relaxed she’d ever seen him, and she understood that something had changed tonight.
Not something, she thought. Everything.
It was as if once she’d verbally committed to him, the walls he’d kept between them had crumbled. Her heart swelled with emotion and the knowledge that somehow she’d captured this man for her own.
The rest of the night continued the same way, with them holed up in his apartment, sharing food, making love, and shutting out the outside world.
Until Sunday morning, when Ian went downstairs and returned with the morning paper. He drank orange juice; she sipped her coffee. She was looking into the back of the sports section that completely covered his face from hers.
“So this is how it’s going to be now? You ignoring me for the morning paper? That didn’t take long,” she joked, reaching for another section of the paper to keep her busy while he read.
“This from the woman who can spend half an hour looking through the apps on her phone?” he asked lightly.
She grinned, still enjoying this lighter, happier Ian.
She flipped through the lifestyle section, pausing at a black-and-white photograph. “It’s us!”
The picture had been taken as they exited the limo, Ian obviously holding her protectively. She smiled at the stern expression on his face.
“You’re not upset this time?” he asked.
She shook her head. “It’s not like everyone doesn’t know about us now.”
She’d called Alex earlier this morning, as promised, and assured him that Ian wasn’t upset, things were good, and he no longer had to worry about her. Ian had been by her side, and she’d chosen her words deliberately, wanting him to know she meant what she’d promised him.
He would come first.
Her cell rang, and she glanced down. “Alex,” she murmured.
Ian met her gaze, his expression bland. Whether it was a controlled look or not, she appreciated how hard he was trying.
“I’m sure my sisters will be next once they’ve seen the paper. They love gossip,” he muttered.
She answered the call. “Hi, Alex,” she said into the phone.
“I take it you’ve seen the paper?” he asked.
“We’ve seen it.”
“I hope your father hasn’t. The last thing you need is to be a public spectacle, and that’s what being with Ian will do for you.”
She frowned. “Don’t start.”
Ian met her gaze with a hard one of his own.
“I have to go. I’ll talk to you soon.” When she hung up, she forced a smile. “He saw the picture. He’s worried it’ll provoke my father somehow.”
“There’s a simple solution for that.”
Wary now, she raised her eyebrows. “What would that be?”
“Move in here.”
And things had been going so well. Had she expected Ian to change overnight? As long as he was being reasonable and compromising, she reminded herself.
“That’s ridiculous. And premature.” She’d planned to go home tonight. To take a long bath in her own tub, to play her music, and to gather her thoughts about this intense, emotional weekend.
She rose and walked to the sink to rinse out her coffee cup.
He came up behind her and bracketed his big body around hers, pressing against her, his erection thick against her backside. “I agreed to be reasonable and to back off outside the bedroom, but not when it comes to your safety.”
“A couple of heavy-breathing calls and one phone message don’t mean I’m not safe.”
“You’re safer here. With me. And for once, I think Alex would agree with me.”
She turned, only to find her front pressed against his. “That may be true, but it doesn’t make you two right. He hasn’t threatened me.”
“Yet.”
“I need to go home tonight. We have work Monday, I need to get my clothes, and I already told you I can’t be seen coming to work with you in the mornings.” She eyed him warily, really hoping he wasn’t going to turn this into a fight.
He let out a frustrated groan. “Okay, answer this one question for me, and then we’ll decide together. Would you put it past your father to lay a hand on you?”
He had her, and she knew it. She hung her head, her shoulders dropping in defeat. “No.”
He braced his hands on her shoulders. “Listen to me. I’m not trying to run your life. I’m not even trying to get you to move in here just because it’s what I want.”
Her stomach did a flip at the admission.
“I’m doing it for your safety.”
“Never mind that you get what you want in the end.”
He grinned. “That’s just a side benefit. Can you deny that apartment building of yours is too easy to get into?”
“No.” She hated that he was right. Not because being here with Ian didn’t appeal to her but because it did. She wanted them together for the right reasons, when they were both ready.
Riley had spent too many years on her own, rebuilding her ego and her belief in herself after the time her father had spent tearing her down. Giving into Ian was something she’d prefer happened slowly, at her own comfort level. Instead, her bastard father was forcing her hand.
“Let me drive you back to your place. You can pack your things and follow me back here in your own car. Tomorrow morning, nobody will know where you’re arriving from.”
She blinked, startled at his concession. “I really thought—”
“I was pushing my own agenda,” he finished for her.