Page 24 of Beauty and the Bosshole

I look at the clock on the nightstand, and it's just after 6:00 AM.

“I am wide awake. That dream felt way too real. I'm going to take a shower and have an early breakfast. Get a jump on theemails I'm sure are piling up and be ready for whatever other tasks you have for me today.” I try to put the wall back up, reminding him he's the boss and I’m the employee.

“Take a shower. I'll order breakfast. Screw the emails. I'm going to take you for a day out in Las Vegas. You obviously need to relax if you're having nightmares before this modeling shoot tomorrow.”

I stop and look at him, a bit torn. I want to put the wall back up and say no, that I'm going to do the emails, and we need to work. I'd also be crazy to pass up a day in Las Vegas, getting to see everything. Because when is the next time I will actually be here?

It's not like this small-town Texas girl goes to Las Vegas once a year to have fun. Hell, I may never leave the state of Texas again. I should take advantage of it while I'm here, right? I definitely should, and if it's on my boss' dime, then all the better.

“Fine, I'd like blueberry pancakes with extra whipped cream, some strong coffee, eggs, and bacon.”

“How do you want them cooked?” he asks.

“The eggs scrambled and the bacon limp.”

“Excuse me? How do you want your bacon cooked?” He crawls out of bed, and for a moment, all I can focus on are his abs. By the time I realize that I could be checking out his tattoos, he's pulling his shirt back on and covering them. Damn it.

“I said I want my bacon limp. You know, not crunchy,” I tell him, not understanding the problem.

“Christ, so you've been going around your whole life ordering limp bacon?” he asks, standing in front of me.

“How else am I supposed to order it?”

“Soft or not crunchy. Because I can promise you, sweetheart, that bacon will be the only limp thing in this hotel room.” He leans in and gives me a quick kiss on the lips. It’s so quick I don't even register it until he's already walking back out the door.

“Get in the shower. I'll order yourlimpbacon,” he says as he walks into the main area of the suite.

I hurry and get into the shower. When the hot water hits my skin, it washes away little bits of the nightmare that I just woke up from. As I start to feel better, I rush my shower, wanting to get back out there because I'm suddenly starving.

I dry my hair and get dressed for a day of walking around Las Vegas, and just as I'm putting on the last of my mascara, there's a knock on the door. I step out to the main living area and see the guy from room service delivering a cart of food.

Reese walks him to the door, and once he’s gone, he turns back to look at me. His eyes run over my jeans and boatneck t-shirt that slips slightly off one shoulder.

He sets the food up at the small two-person table and pulls out a chair, gesturing for me to sit down.

“Anything that you have to see while you're here, we can put it at the top of the list,” he offers as we both dig into our breakfast.

“I've always wanted to ride the roller coasters near the Statue of Liberty,” I tell him.

“You know there's a roller coaster that goes over the edge of the stratosphere?” he asks, and my eyes go wide in complete terror.

“What? Are you scared of heights?” he asks.

“No, more like I'm scared of the roller coaster breaking and going over the edge of the stratosphere and plummeting to my death.”

“Okay, well, we will skip that one.” He chuckles.

“Otherwise, no, I'll let you be my tour guide and show me the best parts of Las Vegas,” I say, and he gets a twinkle in his eye that I'm not sure I like.

As we finish breakfast, the sun finally lights up the sky, and we head down to the lobby where he already has a car waiting for us.

“Driving today?” I ask, surprised that I hadn’t seen his car there.

“No, I figured I'd relax and let someone else do the driving so I can sit back here with you.” He smiles, pulling me to his side like it’s a normal everyday thing.

“So, where are we going?” I ask, trying to ignore how good it feels to be curled up next to him like this.

“I thought we’d start with shopping on Freemont Street since we just ate. Then we will head to the rides you want to do, then lunch, and we will go from there.”