I try to think up a response, but my throat feels dry suddenly.
“You wanted my help?” He stops in front of me.
His help! Right!
“I can’t reach the buttons.” My voice is far breathier than I’m proud of.
Given our argument in the car, I could at least pretend to be disgruntled in his presence.
Declan circles around me like a predator. His muscles shift with each step, and I’m surprised my tongue doesn’t roll out of my mouth like a dog as I pant after him.
He drags my wild hair over my shoulder, and goosebumps spread across my skin.
That should not be happening.
Anyone with eyes would be attracted to a set of abs. It’s evolution beckoning us to choose a mate who can provide for us.
Provide what? Endless stamina and orgasms? I reply.
“There have to be a hundred of them.” He tugs me out of my thoughts, and for that, I am eternally grateful.
A laugh escapes me before I have a chance to stop it. “Hundred and twenty according to Nana.”
He grunts. “Come inside so I can see them better in the light.”
The invitation is innocent, but my body doesn’t seem to get the memo as Declan ushers me into his room and toward the light on his nightstand.
“Let me go put some clothes on.”
Please don’t.
Whatever expression I have on my face makes the corners of his lips lift.
“I’ll be back in a second.” He walks toward his closet, only to look over his shoulder at the last second.
My cheeks burn from being caught ogling him.
He raises a brow. “It’s rude to stare.”
“Then don’t walk around naked to begin with. Problem solved.” Atta girl.
He shakes his head and enters his closet without sparing me another glance.
I take a moment to observe the personal objects on his nightstand. A worn copy of The Great Gatsby has five different sticky notes protruding from the yellowed pages, neatly lined up next to a remote control for his TV. My eyes widen at the small cactus I bought him two years ago as a Christmas gift.
“Oh my God. It’s still alive?” I reach out and grab the tiny don’t be a prick pot.
“I can manage to take care of a cactus.”
I startle at the sound of his voice. “But it’s been two years!” And he keeps it on his nightstand. I don’t have the nerve to ask him why that is, although the urge rides me hard.
He shuts me up by tracing a finger down the base of my spine, right beside the hundred ivory buttons. The pot in my hand trembles as his hot breath hits the back of my neck. My skin prickles in response, and I place the pot down in order to hide the way my hands shake from his proximity.
He starts with the top button, only to fumble. His frustrated grunt makes me laugh.
“You think this is funny?”
I giggle again as he slips again.
“My hands are too big.”
I roll my eyes. “Of course they are.”
“I’m not joking.”
I shoot him a glare over my shoulder. “Well, we need to figure it out because I can’t sleep in this.”
“What if I cut you out of it?”
“No!” The gown cost fifty-thousand dollars. I can’t imagine ruining it just because Declan and his hulk-like hands can’t manage some measly buttons.
He sighs as he tries one last time and fails. “Scissors or a knife?”
“You’re joking.”
“Would you prefer I rip it apart?”
“Absolutely not!” I push back, forcing him to give me some room. “I’ll be back.”
I head to my bedroom, open a box labeled gardening supplies, and pull out a pair of shears. They still have a little bit of dirt on them, but it doesn’t matter. It’s not like I’ll be wearing this dress ever again, although the option to donate it is not completely off the table.
“Stupid Declan and his massive paws for hands,” I grumble under my breath as I walk back into his room.
“Here.” I shove the shears against his chest.
He looks down at them. “This is not how I expected tonight would go.”
“Disappointed?”
“Amused.”
Our eyes lock, and something passes between us. One look sends sparks across my skin and my heart into cardiac arrest. It’s as if our outburst in the garage never happened. While I want to be annoyed at myself, I can’t help it when it comes to him. He might be an asshole, but I knew what I was signing up for when I married him.
“Get on with it.” I turn again and hold on to my hair before he has a chance to move it for me. The less contact we have, the better. I’m already feeling weak tonight as it is.