Rogue Devil (The Rourkes #11) - Kylie Gilmore Page 0,72
kiss her tenderly. I didn’t ask her to, but she took my name. She said she did it so our future kids would share the same name as us. Family is important to her. Still, I can’t help but marvel at her willingness to do that. It’s such an honor. One day they’ll say Dr. Chloe Rourke discovered the cure for cancer. A Rourke will go down in history for something amazing. My woman is going to shake up the world and for the better.
We finish up our cake and head to the kitchen with our dishes. Beast is in there, grabbing a beer from the refrigerator. He straightens, pops the top with a bottle opener, and offers it to me.
“I’m good, thanks,” I say. “And thanks for stepping in as my best man again.” He was there as a witness/best man at our courthouse ceremony. Chloe’s sister, Sara, was the other witness/matron of honor. My parents were there too. I knew they’d never forgive me if they missed it.
He takes a pull on his beer. “You owe me one.”
“Sure, sure, when you get married, I’ll do the best man gig. Hey, that means I get to plan a bachelor party too.”
“Yeah,” he says, leaning against the counter. “Just need the bride.”
Chloe gives his arm a squeeze. “You’re a catch. The right woman will come along.”
He grunts. “The right one. Now that’s the sticking point.”
I sock his shoulder. “You’re twenty-six. Relax, play the field.”
Chloe turns to me. “You were twenty-six when we met.”
“Yeah, but we didn’t get engaged until I was twenty-seven. And by the time we married, I was twenty-eight.”
“By less than a week.”
I send her a warning look. Beast is sensitive. She’s making him feel bad, being the only single guy here. He’s had girlfriends, but nothing that lasted.
Understanding dawns, and she turns to him. “Relationships aren’t all they’re cracked up to be.”
“Hey!” I protest. She didn’t have to implicate me in that one.
He chuckles and raises his brows at me. “Yeah, okay. Thanks, Chloe.”
Chloe sends me a pointed look that says she was just trying to make him feel better.
“You guys have a whole language made of looks,” Beast says. “It’s freaky.”
“Hey, guys!” Josie carols as she walks in and helps herself to a glass of water. “Living Gold uses a live studio audience on taping days. You should come. Your parents saw it last week and said they enjoyed it.” That’s her new sitcom.
“Thanks, but we’re heading back tomorrow,” I say. “We’ll catch it once it airs.”
“Do you ever tape late?” Beast asks.
“Sometimes,” Josie says. “Call time is anywhere from three to seven.”
“Cool. Let me know if you’re running on the late side one week and I’ll go.”
Josie beams. “Awesome! You’ll love it. I’ll get you on the list with a special reserved seat in the front row. I have to warn you, though, sometimes tapings can take hours.”
“No problem. After all, you let me stay at your place rent-free.”
“Oh, you!” She turns to us. “He’s legit house-sitting for us when we’re away and refuses to let me pay him. And he leaves dinner for us the night we get back.” She gives Beast’s massive shoulder a squeeze. “Such a sweetheart.”
She congratulates us again and heads out in search of Sean, her husband. He’s over by the floral arch, where they got married almost two years ago now.
Chloe, Beast and I head out to the deck to take in the view. Jack calls for Beast to help with the grill a few minutes later, so then it’s just me and my wife, standing by the deck rail, taking in the sparkling lake surrounded by a canopy of leafy green trees.
I slide an arm around her shoulders. “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?”
She looks up at me, a mischievous smile tugging at her lips. “Reenact our wedding night?”
I bend her over my arm for a kiss, and she yelps in surprise. I grin and kiss her before letting her back up. “I knew there was a reason I let you lure me into a committed relationship. You’ve got a similar dirty mind.”
“I lured you? More like you teased and tempted until I had no choice but to give in because you were so head over heels for me.”
I shift her in front of me and wrap my arms around her waist from behind. “Rewriting history, are we?”
She relaxes against me. “Problem is…” She turns around, goes up on tiptoe, and whispers in my ear, “I didn’t pack