"You're hungry, eat."

"Aren't you hungry?"

"They got a counter at the gym. Had a protein shake after I worked out."

My eyes narrowed. "You have a phone, you didn't think to call me and tell me you were covered so I could take care of myself?"

"No, I didn't, seein' as you're a grown woman. I assumed you could take care of yourself or, say, phone me you wanna know what's happening, not charge into the room throwing sass."

My back went straight.

"Throwing sass?" I asked.

"Throwing sass," he answered.

"What the fuck does that mean?" I snapped and, surprisingly, his brows drew together and he shared a reaction with me and that reaction was puzzlement with an edge of annoyance.

"It means, you barged in here yammering and then threw a fit about me not joinin' you at the pool, which I told you I didn't do, and you bein' hungry when anyone knows, they're hungry, they should fuckin' eat, and not phonin' you when your phone's right fuckin' there," he pointed to the phone that fell to the ground when I dropped my stuff, "and you got fingers so you can also dial me. That's throwin' sass."

I glared at him.

He kept talking. "I also told you this was your vacation day so I got back, saw you were at the pool and left you to it."

"You left me to it?"

"Uh... yeah."

"Yeah?" I snapped.

His eyes changed at my snap and it was new to me but I read it right away.

Confusion and annoyance gone, now he felt anger.

He proved that by biting out, "What the fuck's your problem?"

"My problem, Ty," I started, not giving one shit about the fact that this huge man was obviously angry and angry enough to let it penetrate the impenetrable shields he kept up to cover his emotions, "is that I wanted to have breakfast with my husband not be left to it. What, were you gonna leave me out there all day?"

It was then I noticed his body had gone still but I was still angry. And I knew why I was angry. I was angry because I was reacting to something different, something important, something big and it had nothing to do with breakfast and everything to do with life being total shit and me never being able to latch onto anything good, anything clean, anything right and I sensed, no matter what secrets the man standing in front of me had, he was all three of those things. Therefore right in front of me I had something I wanted and there I was, in a position where I couldn't let myself have it, not until I knew I was right. But I wanted it, not later, but right then and that pissed me way the hell off and I was taking all that out on him.

"Hello?" I called. "Did you hear me?"

Then he spoke and when he did it was soft in a way that made my body go still.

"You wanted to have breakfast with your husband?"

"Well, yeah," I replied. "We did that yesterday. It was nice. I mean, I'm the kind of person who can be alone and I have no problem doing that but why be alone when you can be with someone you like being around? And we're in Vegas and we have a vacation day. It isn't often you get to be in Vegas on a vacation day so you should live it up. If you don't want to hang at the pool, that's cool. So we have breakfast, go shopping, go to some crazy Vegas museum or do the Star Trek Experience. I heard that's cool and not just for geeks. But whatever we do, we should do something. And all of this, by the way, was something we could have discussed over," I leaned in to drive my point home, "breakfast."

He stared at me and I let him.

Then he rocked my world again and he did this be saying in a different kind of soft voice, "Baby, you wanna have breakfast with your husband, all you gotta do is pick up the phone and dial. I'm covered, you eat, I sit with you and drink coffee. But you want me, anytime you want me, that's all you gotta do."

I didn't speak and again I couldn't breathe and there were a lot of reasons for that. The first, he called me "baby" which was the second time he did that but the first time he did it without an audience, the first time he did it in that soft voice, the first time he did it just him and me and I felt that word rushing through my blood with a warmth I never wanted to leave. Second, his soft voice was the most beautiful thing I'd ever heard in my life. And third, him telling me anytime I wanted him, he was a phone call away was the kind of thing I'd wanted my entire life and never, not ever, had and there he was, giving it to me.

"Lexie," he called.

"Navarro propositioned me at the pool," I blurted to cover all the profound feelings I couldn't quite deal with feeling right then and he gave me yet another reaction.

His torso jerked back, his brows snapped together, his eyes narrowed and his big man energy swelled to fill the room.

"What the fuck?" he whispered.

"With Bag of Bones watching," I went on.

"What'd he say?" he asked but each word lashed out like a whip.

"I didn't let him say much of anything. He said he wanted to talk privately about an offer he'd like to make me. I said I didn't wish to talk privately with him and reminded him I was married. He did a little pushing. I made it clear I wasn't interested. He gave up and walked away."

Ty stared at me.

"Still," I continued, "it was an asshole thing to do."

Ty kept staring at me but he was doing it like he didn't see me.

"Ty?" I called.

His eyes focused on me.

"Throwin' sass," he muttered.

"What?" I asked.

"You're not hungry; you got cornered when I wasn't at your back and that's why you're pissed."

"Well, no," I said. "We were in a public place. He didn't push it and told me he knew the answer I'd give him but it was worth a try. Anyway, I can take care of myself but I thought you should know and I thought you should also know Bag of Bones was part of our audience. I don't know what's going down with him but, well... whatever it is, you should know."

He stared at me again and I didn't mind because I was used to that.

Then he moved straight into rocking my world yet again and I minded that because you never got used to that.

"It's good you're not pissed but I am. I fucked up. I used you last night to help me get somethin' I needed and doin' it made you visible which put you where you were this morning. And I don't like where I put you this morning. That's on me and I also don't like that that's on me. But it happened and right now all I can do is promise you that won't happen again."

It was my turn to stare at him.

Then I pointed out, "But, isn't this whole gig for me to be available to ?"

He shook his head, his arm swung out to the side; he set his coffee down by the TV then crossed his arms on his chest. "I told you when I laid it out for you, none of my shit would blow back on you. This morning, my shit blew back on you."

"Ty," I said gently, "it wasn't that big of a deal."

"It's good you think that, Lexie, but I don't agree."

I tried to assure him, "He was relatively gentlemanly about it."

"I don't give a shit how he was about it. I don't like the idea of you bein' out there alone and a man like Navarro thinkin' he can get in your space. Your space is your space and you get to decide who's in it. At the very least, Navarro should think your space is my space and I get to decide who's in it. Either way, he got in your space, that does not make me happy because him doin' it means I gave you my word and then I broke it."

"You didn't break it, Ty. You can't be responsible for his actions."

"I tell you to cross your legs often?" he shot back.

I pressed my lips together.

"Right," he clipped.

I walked the short distance between us and put my hand on his bicep.

"Honey, you aren't responsible for his actions."

His chin was in his throat as he stared down at me but he didn't reply.

"I shouldn't have said anything," I muttered, looking away.

But I looked back and that was because I had no choice but to do so when Ty's big hand cupped my jaw and forced my face to his.

"Don't keep shit from me," he ordered quietly.

I nodded and whispered, "Okay."

"For however long this lasts, you play wife. That's all you do. You don't put up with shit from anyone and especially not because of me."

"Ty, guys hit on women they're wearing wedding rings or not. What he did was the same thing. Who's to say that, he didn't see me last night but saw me at the pool, he wouldn't have done that anyway?"

"I'm to say it because last night he saw you watchin' me lose, your face givin' it away that you didn't know that was the way I was playin' it but you still laid your jewelry at my side without hesitation and kissed my jaw before you walked away. He saw a woman take her man's back. He's a guy who's got no shot at findin' a woman like that because the women that gravitate toward men like him are not your kind of woman. And he wants what I got. And I showed him that. So, he might like what he sees by the pool but he took a shot at it because I showed him what's behind the tits, ass and legs. He can get tits, ass and legs anytime he wants. What he can't get is what's behind yours."

There it was again. A Ty-style compliment that couldn't be beat.

"Ty," I whispered.

"It won't happen again."

"Okay but you need to know, I'm not mad at you for that. I don't even care about that. I'm not actually mad at you about anything. I really am hungry and wanted to have breakfast with you."

"Okay, I know what you need me to know but I need to know you get it that it won't happen again."

Good. Clean. Right.

Right there. In front of me.

Shit.

"I get it," I said softly.

His hand dropped.

I instantly missed it.

"Okay," he said and took a step back so my hand had to drop. "Get in the shower. I'll order room service and get you fed. While you eat, we'll decide what we're gonna do on your vacation day."

I nodded but asked, "Are you going to let me pick what I want for breakfast?"

And again, he gave me a gift. His lips tipped up a half a centimeter.

Then he replied, "You didn't let me pick my coffee."

So maybe he also had a sense of humor.

Good.

One step closer to knowing what I thought he was was real. An important one.

"Fair enough," I muttered, smiling at my feet and turning to my bag.

He got on the phone and I gathered my stuff as I listened to him ordering me blueberry pancakes which sounded really good. Then again, I was super hungry so pretty much anything would sound really good.

Then I went into the bathroom, shut the door and turned on the shower.

In the shower, I listened and heard the TV even over the water.

So I knew a door, a wall, a shower and the TV would drown out me doing what I needed to do.

So I did it.

After, I felt much better.

Even so, I knew what would make me feel even better.

But I wasn't going to go there.

Not yet.

Ty Ty lounged on the bed, eyes on the TV and mind in the shower.

That was how he heard it when Lexie made herself come. It surprised him, he wasn't expecting it; the noise was slight but also unmistakable and unbelievably hot.

He closed his eyes and muttered, "Fuck."

Then a knock came at the door.