“You’re not alone,” I whisper, kissing her ear.
Her eyes open, and she gives me that well-satiated gaze I love to see after we’ve finished fucking.
“Morning,” she says with a throaty voice.
“Hey,” I greet her, taking her mouth and rolling on top of her. “I want you.”
“We ran out of condoms and we have to meet your family,” she reminds me, and I want to tell her I’m clean and that I saw her pills yesterday.
But instead, I run a hand through my hair and calm the fuck down.
Jesus, Archer, since when do you go bare?
She stretches her beautiful body and rolls away from my side. My arms miss her, and my body begs me to drag her back in bed. I want to follow her into the bathroom, but she shuts the door. When she comes back from taking a shower, I stare at her beautiful body. I’m going to miss it. Miss her.
“When is your family leaving?” she asks.
“After brunch, why?”
“Good. I need to text Courtney and Madeline.”
“Would you like to keep this room?” I offer.
She shakes her head. “We already had plans before …” She gives me a sad smile. “It was a good weekend.”
Suddenly, my heart stops as I watch her drag her bags out of the closet.
“You’re packing already?” I ask, missing her already. The weekend is over, and I can’t think of any other reason to stay with her. But a part of me wants to convince her to stay with me and let me fuck her one last time.
“Yeah, check out is at eleven, remember?”
“Of course,” I say, getting out of the bed. “My plane leaves later today. I should be doing the same. I might go to the office as soon as I land.”
“You should take time off and enjoy yourself.”
“I just did.”
“No, you were worried about your family and trying to run interference between both sides. It’s exhausting.”
“Sorry about them.”
She smiles, walks toward me and places a hand on my cheek. “Please, don’t apologize for them. I’m just saying that you need some time to enjoy yourself. Work will be there waiting for you. Your life though, it won’t wait.”
I kiss her cheek. “I’ll see you downstairs. Thank you for this weekend.”
“Thanks for Tuscany,” she says, pulling her bags toward the door and taking a piece of my heart with her.
* * *
Miller
* * *
Brunch was quiet. Claire decided to leave without eating. She looked tired and defeated. I hated to see her go and hated that I couldn’t do anything to erase the sadness on her face. My parents didn’t have much energy to ask questions. Grandma stayed in her room packing and my sister and Kevin had already left for … was it Belize or Bermuda? I couldn’t remember where they were going on their honeymoon.
“When are you leaving?” Mom asks, rising from her seat.
“Soon,” I say dismissively, looking at my watch.
“If I don’t see you, have a nice flight. Please, bring Claire to the house soon. I really like the girl.”
“Where’s your girlfriend?” Dad asks after Mom leaves.
“Her birthday is tomorrow and her friends are staying for the rest of the week,” I say, modifying the truth.
Dad is a man of few words, so when he says, “I like her,” my head snaps and I look at him.
He never said a single thing about Delany. Nothing good or bad. He just never gave me his opinion about my future wife.
“She’s nice,” I respond to his comment.
“That’s all you have to say about her?” he asks with a frown.
“What else can I say, Dad? We don’t talk like that.”
For instance, that she’s a freaking goddess and I love to worship her in bed, against the wall, during the shower and if I could, I would find her and drag her back to our room.
“You two seem to fit well together.”
“We fight a lot too,” I say because soon I’ll have to give them the news that we broke up.
“Relationships aren’t easy, son,” he says. “You just make them work because you can’t live without the person who owns your heart. When you can’t stop thinking about her and those little things that drive you crazy eventually become the same things you love the most.”
“Love?” I chuckle.
Well, Claire Solis, you did your job well. You convinced them we’re madly in love. Maybe not madly, but either way they think we’re in love.
“I wouldn’t say that,” I say, signaling to the waiter for the check.
“You two are crazy about each other, I watched you,” he says firmly. “Look, what happened with Delany is in the past. Take it as a learning experience, but don’t let it define your future. It’s time to move forward with your life. We haven’t seen you happy in a long time.”
“Happy?”
“Every time you look at Claire, you smile as if the sun’s just come out. I think there’s something important brewing there. You shouldn’t lose it just because you’re afraid.”
“She drives me crazy,” I blurt, thinking about her smart mouth.
“But can you live without her by your side?” he asks and continues without waiting for an answer. “That’s how it was between your mother and me. Now, I’m used to her quirks, and she’s learned to live with mine. Trust your heart.”
He pauses and looks around.
“Trust her.”
I leave a hundred-dollar bill on the table and say, “I have to go.”
* * *
Claire
* * *
As I arrive at the hotel where I was supposed to stay since Thursday, I drop my bags, change, and head to the beach. I need some time alone to regroup. The plan had a few holes. I didn’t realize how much I was going to enjoy my time with Miller Archer or that I would fall in love with him.
I was so taken by the man that I almost let him fuck me without a condom. I needed him to fill me, to claim me, to tell me I was his—just like he was mine. Because at some point during the weekend I forgot this was make believe and just a temporary fantasy.
Where do I go from here?
Next week, I’m going to have to face him and my heart will skip at the sound of his voice, but my mind will know the truth. I don’t stand a chance with him. There’s no way I can convince myself that he’s just a fucking asshole. I’ve met the real Miller Archer and God if I didn’t fall hopelessly in love with him.
Should I have come clean to him?
I can only imagine the shock on his face if I were to say, “Hey, I think I’m falling in love with you. That’s why I didn’t stay for brunch.” I couldn’t pretend that his touch wasn’t food to my soul. Or say goodbye to his family. They welcomed me with open arms and … a tear falls down my cheek. Why did I let myself believe in something that wasn’t real?
“Hey.” I hear his voice and force myself to look up despite the tears.
He’s wearing a dark t-shirt that hugs his muscular torso and a pair of shorts low on his hips. My heart flips at the sight of him. He takes off his sunglasses, and those beautiful brown eyes shine with the reflection of the ocean. I take off my shades too.
He looks at me with a thoughtful frown. What is he doing here? We’re silent for a few minutes, staring at each other.
“Mr. Archer,” I finally greet him.
“It’s Miller,” he says, squatting down in front of me.
He caresses my cheek with the back of his hand. I sigh. Leaning forward, he kisses first one cheek, and then the other. I hold my breath as his lips touch mine lightly.
His arms come around me, and I relax as he engulfs me. “You left without saying goodbye,” he says, giving me a peck on the lips.
“It was better that way,” I say, trying to find some strength within myself to push him away, instead I lean my forehead on his shoulder.
“Look, I know I said a weekend, but we can’t just end what we started.”
/> “Casual and brief,” I mumble the words punching me in the gut. “Our time is up. I mean, the sex was great and all, but it’s over.”
He holds my face with both hands to make sure I’m looking at him. “I miss you,” he says, his voice dropping. “I’ve known you for years—almost three years, Claire. I admire you and I have plans for you. But the moment I saw you in the lounge, you’ve been under my skin. I can’t fucking think straight since I heard you call me Emperor Palpatine.”
He rubs the back of his neck, looking around.
“There’s something happening between us,” he continues. “I’m not asking you to marry me today, I just …” He runs a hand through his hair. “Can we go out? On a real date,” he continues. “We could spend the rest of the week getting to know each other, and then, on Friday when we’re back home, I’ll take you out on a date. Maybe we could get breakfast on Saturday and …”
“You’re staying for a week?” I ask, taken aback by his words.
Our eyes latch with intention, hunger, and I think maybe love.
He moves his gaze toward the ocean and then back at me. “I want to explore what we have, see where it takes us.”
My pulse races and before I know it, I’m putting my hands behind his neck and kissing him.
We kiss for a long time. He gathers me close to him as if he’s trying to make sure I won’t leave his side.
“Wait,” I say catching my breath. “You don’t like to take vacations?”
“For you…” He cups my chin, feathering kisses along my face while our eyes remain connected. “I’ll do anything for a chance to have a real date and a real chance to be with you. You come before everything else, Claire. For me you’re not second best—you’re my absolute first.”
* * *
The Accidental Hookup was
Edited by: Elli McLove
Paulina Burgoa
* * *
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About the Author
Claudia is an award winning, international bestselling author. She lives in Colorado working for a small IT company, managing her household filled with three confused dogs, two daughters wrought with fandoms and a son who thinks he’s the boss of the house. And a wonderful husband who shares her love for all things geek. To survive she works continually to find purpose for the voices flitting through her head, plus she consumes high quantities of chocolate and wine to keep the last threads of sanity intact.
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