Wyatt glances up from his phone, but murmurs, “Dad? You’re being weird.”
Empress strolls up to me and crawls her fingers up my chest, which sends goosebumps down my spine. Whether from fear or wanting to fuck her over the desk, I’m not sure.
“You’re driving your daughter crazy. Just…chill outon the new crush. Try not to make heart eyes at him at dinner, king.”
“Right.” I nod. Sheisright.
But…
Aiden is justcool, you know?
If my fathertakes the credit for finding this?—
“I’mthe one who found it,” I explain to Aiden. “He only just told me it was a good pick. Then he drove it to make sure it ran okay.”
Dad’s obsession with my Viscount is bizarre. Predictable. Still so gross.
Aiden chuckles as we reach the lot. The winter wind blasts us both, and I hitch my coat tighter. He surrounds me in hisarms, pressing a kiss to the top of my head. I feel his smile through my hair.
“It’s perfect. Absolute perfection. Exactly what I would have wanted,” he says, letting my hand go to smooth his over the curve of his new, well,vintagePorsche. Red. Black leather interior.
And an engine he’ll appreciate on the back country roads.
“It’s my dowry, apparently. Is it good enough?” I ask with a glint in my eye.
His gloved hand reaches for me, and he tugs me into his chest. “Baby? I’d give away thousands of Porsches just to have you by my side.”
“Only thousands?”
“Millions.”
I shrug. “Okay.”
The wool of his coat scratches my cheek as his chest bounces with a laugh. “Justokay? How about we christen the inside of this one? Want to take a drive?”
I slide over to the passenger door and give him a sneaky grin. Because I know he’s going to lose it when I blow him while he drives.
“Absolutely, I do.”
The back roads look like veins cut through the snow. His red Porsche hums beneath us, warm air licking at my legs. Hand resting low on my thigh, his thumb traces slow circles through my jeans. Each curve of the drive feels like ours alone—a private world stitched from fog and engine growl.
“Still smiling?” I tease, glancing sideways. “You look like my dad just asked you to prom.”
Aiden’s mouth curls. “He’s jealous I pull off gray cashmere better than he does.”
“You’re lucky he didn’t climb in with us.”
“He can buy his own Porsche if he wants to ride me that bad.”
I snort and swat his arm. The laugh sits somewhere between disbelief and bliss. For once, nothing feels like it’s about to fall apart.
The hum of tires, the heat between us, his soft laugh—I almost believe we’re normal.
He downshifts to take a corner, and his hand slides higher. “You know what would make this drive perfect?”
I arch an eyebrow. “Hmm…”
He grins like a feral cat. “You were already thinking it.”