Chapter 32 - Seriously Cheesy Nicknames

Kerri turned her head to find Arik staring at her silently. “What?”

He shook his head. “Nothing.”

She poked him in the arm. “I know you’re thinking something. Tell me what it is.”

He smirked. “If you insist.” He fed her images of exactly what he was thinking, and she blushed.

“I thought we agreed to take it slow and not to do…that yet,” she said afterwards.

His smirk grew. “Doesn’t mean I can’t think about it.”

She rolled her eyes but smiled despite herself as his arm wrapped around her waist and pulled her towards him so that her back was against his chest and he dropped a kiss at the nape of her neck.

“We’re going to have to be professional in public,” Kerri told him as he kissed a line down to her collarbone.

“Mm.”

She grinned. “I’m serious,” she said as she held a finger against his lips to stop him.

He sighed and the arm that was around her suddenly constricted and rolled her on top of him so that she was resting on his chest and staring down at him. “Name your conditions.”

“No public displays of affection. And by public I mean whenever we’re not alone.”

“Not even Drake, Carter and Joshua?”

“Do you want teasing and ‘I told you so’s?”

“You have a point. Next?”

She bit her lip. “You’re going to have to dump Mandy.”

Underneath her, she could feel Arik stiffen. She raised an eyebrow. “How is that a problem?” she asked.

“Well, for one, she’s the boss’ daughter.”

“Oh, that’s right.”

He reached up to play with a strand of her hair. “I’ll come up with something.”

“Really?”

“You have your conditions, I have mine.”

“And what conditions do you have?”

He cocked his head to one side. “I’ll tell you when I come up with something.” Then he smirked. “Just remember that there will be quite a long list.”

She rolled her eyes and rolled off him, yawning. “Goodnight.”

“Goodnight, Kerri.” His arms slid around her.

She turned around. “Do you know you actually called me by my name?”

“How is that surprising?”

“Well, you usually just refer to me as ‘she’ or ‘the girl’, even when in your head.”

He frowned. “You hear my thoughts?”

“Not all of them. Just the ones about me. They kind of…leak into my head.”

“What do you mean thoughts about you?”

She shot him a look. “She really was so very beautiful,” she quoted from his thoughts, smirking.

He rolled his eyes and tried to ignore the fact that he was blushing.

She yawned again.

“You should sleep. Tomorrow’s going to be a busy day.”

“Don’t you have to repair the buildings or whatever it was that you had to do today?”

“All done.”

“Wow. Really? Already?”

“The convenience of magic.” He kissed the base of her throat as she yawned again. “Sweet dreams.”

Oh, you bet they’re going to be sweet, you hunky stud-muffin, her voice sounded faintly in his head.

Arik raised an eyebrow. “Hunky stud-muffin”?

Dammit! Stay out of my head!

He laughed. It was like a broadcast, he mimicked.

She snorted. If only you knew how gay you sound when you do that.

He dropped a quick kiss on her lips. Goodnight, you foxy little cheesecake.

She turned around to glare at him as he laughed.

Of course, five seconds later, he wasn’t the one laughing anymore.

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