She sighed into his chest and snuggled closer. “Thanks.”

He chuckled, and she heard the vibration through his body. “You’re slurring, sweetheart.”

“Aw, I like when you call me all the mushy names.”

“You’re going to regret this in the morning, aren’t you?”

“Am I late for work already?”

“Huh? It’s just a little past eleven, but I doubt you drink so heavily when you need to be at work the next day. When do you get up? Six? Seven?”

“Six-thirty. Do you ever work? How can you take so much time off? Are you a secret billionaire?” She yawned. “It doesn’t matter. You’re too pretty to work. You just need to find a sugar-momma to keep you.”

“Oh? Know any?”

“Well, if I’m not fired for hating my job, I’ll do it. Although I’m kinda not rich.” She stroked his beard, loving the soft texture that could feel kind of scratchy in all the right places. “This feels so good between my legs.”

His grip tightened. “You really have the worst timing.”

“Come on, sexy. Let’s go to my place and Mitch-slap each other.” She giggled, snorted, and laughed so hard she nearly fell out of his arms.

“God, you’re cute even when you’re drunk. How much did you have to drink, anyway?”

“Four beers. But I didn’t eat much today.” She groaned and snuggled closer. “You always smell so good. Why can’t we fuck until we drop?”

He bobbled her in his arms but managed not to drop her as he gently set her down. “You’re killing me, you know that? No way I’m taking you to bed until you sober up.”

“What a Boy Scout.”

“Not quite. I’ll take a kiss.” He gave her soft peck on the lips.

When she would have extended the kiss, he pulled back. “No teasing. Keys?”

She grumbled and handed him her purse. A moment of sobriety returned. “I’m sorry Katie called you. We would have called for a ride, you know. We might be a little drunk but we’re not stupid.”

“I trust you. But no reason you had to deal with your ex alone. I mean, Katie’s great, but it’s always nicer to have a fake boyfriend to make your problems go away.”

He smiled, his eyes clear, his gaze soft. This close, she could make out the striations of amber and brown in his gorgeous eyes.

“I like you so much, Xavier.” She let him tug her into her home and followed as he prodded her toward the bedroom.

She lifted her arms when he told her to and let him take off her clothes, leaving her in a bra and panties and feeling like a toddler. But the look he gave her made her feel very grownup.

She grinned and cupped her breasts.

“I swear, I should be getting some big karmic boost for this.” He groaned and helped her out of her bra and into her favorite sleep tee. “Go on.” He nodded to the bathroom. “I’ll wait out here.”