Nothing but heavy breathing.
A hand fumbled over her ass and the thing stopped buzzing. Probably for the best. Carefully he pulled it out of her. Her body was too tired to react. Her mind had been defeated. Nick was master of them all. Damn him.
A wet cloth smoothed between her tender butt cheeks.
“You okay?” he asked.
She turned her head. It was easier to breathe without her face in the pillow. “No. I think you broke me.”
He lay beside her, dark eyes searching her face.
“That would account for the fuck-drunk smile,” he said.
She tried to frown at him. It didn’t work. “You’re a bad man.”
He smirked.
“You’re my bad man.”
“Mm. I’m going to do that to you every time I catch you daydreaming about threesomes with other men,” he informed her. “And the plugs will get bigger.”
Like hell they would. Best not to tell him that, though. He’d only see it as a challenge.
She stretched lazily as gradually some semblance of life returned to her sated body. “To be fair, Nicky, you were one of the men in my imaginary threesome.”
He gave her a skeptical look, his brow arched high. Of course, since she had bisected the other brow he could really only raise the one. Lucky it looked good on him.
“Hey, I don’t want any other men.”
“No?” he asked, shuffling over until they were close as they could be.
“Nope. I don’t suppose you’ve got a twin, though?”
His hand clapped down on her butt cheek. It stung.
“Ow. Sorry. I’m sorry. Just joking.”
“And you actually wonder why I abuse your ass,” he said, ever the gentleman. One of his hands rifled around in the dreaded backpack once more. “I picked up some other things for you today.”
“Do I even want to know?”
“I don’t know. Do you?” he asked and carefully put a funky-looking pair of reading glasses on her. “There we go. How are they?”
She blinked experimentally, peered around the room. “Good, I think. Thank you.”
“Wear them the next time we fuck. That would be thanking me.”
“Aww. You say the sweetest things.”
“Don’t I? There was also this.” He set a blue velvet jewelry case on his bare chest. A ring-sized one.
“Holy hell.” Her heart lurched at the sight. It was the strangest thing. After everything they’d been through, she was going to lose it over a piece of jewelry?
“I saw it in a shop in town. Thought you might like it, so I grabbed it.”
Carefully, she popped the case but left it sitting on top of him. Of all the things he could have picked up for her, right on out of any shop window now that alarms and money and all the rest were gone, he’d gotten her this. A circlet of seed pearls surrounded a small winking diamond in an antique rose gold setting. It was lovely. Heartbreakingly perfect.
“Okay. What does it mean?” she asked.
“Huh?” His face blanked.
“Nick, you can’t just give a girl a ring without it meaning something. You do know that?”
His forehead furrowed up.
“I mean, it has to say something.”
“What?” he asked. “Why?”
“Come on, Nick. The ring says something. Work with me here, please.”
He looked at the ring like it had suddenly sprouted poisonous tentacles. “I dunno. I just thought you’d like it.”
Honestly, he was such an idiot. He could probably spend an hour explaining the vibrating butt plug to her, but he couldn’t even string together a sentence about the ring. Her mind was officially blown.
“Come on,” she said, voice sounding more than a little aggravated. “Surely there was more thought behind this.”
“So you don’t like it?” His big hand closed around the case and he went to put it away. Like he wanted to die. “It doesn’t matter.”
“Don’t you dare! That’s mine.” She clambered across him, straddling him and wrestling for custody of the ring. And not being gentle about it. “Give it.”
“Ros.” He wisely let go before her teeth could sink into his arm. “Shit. Calm down.”
With the ring case in hand she sat triumphant atop him. One cranky-faced man with a world full of attitude. His lips were a tight, unhappy line. Poor baby. Bad luck, he’d chosen her. Now he’d just have to live with it. She wouldn’t be letting him off the hook anytime soon.
“Alright, I will tell you what the beautiful ring says. Since you clearly find yourself incapable of manning up and dealing with the moment as you should.” Carefully she pulled it front its case and slipped it onto her ring finger. Perfect fit. She gave quiet thanks to the universe at large. “It says that I love you and you love me.”