“That’s your cue,” I said to Roane. “I’m going to change out of these clothes.”

His eyes flashed at my words, and I sauntered down the hall to my bedroom with a smug swing in my hips. There was nothing like getting thoroughly laid to put you in a good mood.

When I returned in a fresh pair of shorts and a T-shirt, Roane was sitting on the side of the counter adjacent to Caro, looking at the laptop.

“What do you think?” Caro asked, chewing on her bottom lip.

I rounded the counter to Roane’s side to see what he was looking at and, without thinking about it, slid my arm around his shoulder and rested my chin on his other. “What are we looking at?” I murmured.

He curled his fingers around my hand, absentmindedly caressing my skin with his thumb. “Two-bed flat in Alnwick.” He clicked through the photos with his free hand, and I frowned at the images.

“It’s a little dingy.”

“That’s what I think. It’s overpriced.”

“And Alnwick?” I frowned over at Caro. “You’re not staying in Alnster?”

Her gaze moved between Roane and me, her smile widening as she said, “There’s not a lot of options in Alnster, I’m afraid, and when did this happen?” She gestured to us. “Because it’s happening, right? You haven’t progressed to torturing my cousin?”

Laughing, I slid into the stool next to Roane. “Do you think I’m that evil?”

“Yes,” they answered in unison.

I made a face at Roane and he winked at me.

God, he was sexy.

And yes, I’d always thought so, but over the last couple of months this man’s appeal had grown exponentially. It was true what they said. When you started to care for someone, they became infinitely more attractive to you.

“So you’re together?”

“Yes, we’re together,” I replied.

Caro’s whole face lit up. “Oh, I’m so pleased for you. This is wonderful news. We should go out to celebrate. And to let everyone know so you can get that part over with.”

“Over with?”

“You know they’ll tease you mercilessly for a while.”

True. “Yeah, sure, why not.”

“Don’t sound so thrilled about it,” Roane said drily.

“Are you thrilled about the teasing coming our way?”

“I can’t answer that how I really want to answer it, because my wee cousin is sitting right there, but they can tease all they want. It’s worth it.”

“I’d hate to think how you’d put it if I wasn’t here,” Caro grumbled, her cheeks flushing as she hopped off the stool. “Why don’t I make us some dinner while you look at those other listings for me?”