"Sooo, what did you think of the girls?" I ask Hudson as I push my key into my apartment door.The key sticks and I'm forced to pull it out and put it in correctly before I get the door unlocked. It doesn't help that I do everything while facing Hudson with an annoyed expression rather than keeping an eye on the lock. Before he got here, I didn't lock the door. I mean we have a code to gain access to the top floor and my only neighbors are Marissa and Ryland. Neither of them will break in and steal my stuff or kill me. But Hudson refused to leave for Sunday brunch until I locked the door behind us. I had to dig around to even find my key. He's worse than one of my brothers."Are they always so... loud?" he asks when I finally get the door open and walk inside, not waiting for him.I laugh. "Yes."Cupcake and Ginny squeak loudly in their cage, the sound carrying through the whole apartment. Thank goodness Ryland has never asked to visit. I'd be screwed.I turn, intending to go

A strand of lights wrapped around one of the tall palm trees in front of The San Francisco Conservatory of Flowers blinks twice and then flickers off, leaving the tree only half lit with festive decorations. Hudson and I walked all over the Golden Gate Park. We visited the Japanese Tea Garden and stopped to take his picture on the little mini bridges. We shot pictures of the Golden Gate Bridge from the best vantage points available and enjoyed a pleasant stroll on the paved walkways around the park. I finally got him to sit for a few minutes when we passed the large white flower conservatory. He still doesn't accept it's not a huge birdcage, but I told him the next time it's open if he's still here we'll go in and tour it together.It's been a magical afternoon. Today felt more like two friends on a vacation exploring the city than me wandering around the city park with a bodyguard.I couldn't sit cooped up inside any longer. When my company gave us a week off between Christmas and

Hudson stretches himself across the couch, his path only blocked by the popcorn bowl that sits between us."You don't have to worry, Amanda. I'll keep you safe." Hudson's words are sure. He has faith in himself. His head moves closer, so he's inches away, and his face meets mine. He stops and waits, leaving me to close the distance between us.Before the countdown reaches one I kiss him.His lips are not rough, but harder than mine. Our first touch is tentative and then Hudson runs his tongue over my lip and I open, giving him access to my mouth. I pull on his shoulders to bring him closer and knock the popcorn bowl to the floor with my knee. The crowd on the television roars to life at our side as I tug Hudson's body on top of mine.A flood of emotions releases while I'm in his arms and for the first time in days I feel safe, happy, whole. Hudson has wrapped me in a protective bubble and I never want to leave.Hudson pulls back an inch and I lean forward, not willing or want

"Amanda, are you okay?"Hudson's voice startles me and I drop the tiny card. It flutters to the desk and lands face down. Without looking I slide open my middle desk drawer and push the card in, closing the drawer as Hudson turns the corner to my cubicle."You know where my desk is?" I ask my heart beating in triple time, but not missing the fact he didn't waste a second looking for where I sat and walked right to my location.Hudson shrugs. "Part of the job." His eyes travel over my body as his hand taps away on the fabric edge of my cubicle wall.There's at least a good two feet of distance between us, but I catch a quick sniff of the cologne he put on this morning. I smile, a little lost in the memories of watching him shave at my bathroom sink. The last person I watched hunched over a sink as they looked at themselves in the mirror while using a razor was one of my brothers, and that usually ended up with somebody bleeding."Why are you acting weird?" he asks still checki

"Are you sure I can't use something to con you into coming?" Aspen asks as Marissa yells in the background. I can't hear it from my end, but I'm sure what she said was Marissa-ish.I twist a piece of hair around my finger and lean back on the couch. "No, but you have fun. It's been a long day and I need to relax.""Yeah, I bet you need to relax. With the hot guy you've got staying with you." Aspen laughs and keeps gasping for air between laughter for another good minute before she's able to gain control of herself. "How is work? Does anyone even notice I'm gone?""Of course, they do." Unfortunately, it's not necessarily the way Aspen probably hopes. I have no plans of telling her how a bunch of our coworkers had a pool going on how long the new billionaire's wife would make it before she quit. Jesse Pervis from the warehouse made over a grand."Guess who they fired?" I ask to steer the question away."Who?"As expected my news distracts Aspen from whether or not people are