Protecting Mr. Fine (The Billionaire Brotherhood, #4)

by Lucy Lennox

Then I stepped out of the elevator and saw the most beautiful man I’d ever laid eyes on… and hubris literally knocked the breath out of me. Gorgeous face. Long, sun-kissed hair. Honey-brown eyes that regarded me curiously. A mouth so soft and sensual my gut went painfully tight in an instant.

Zane Hendley was the walking definition of a person who set himself on fire to keep everyone around him warm.

“B-bear?” he asked weakly. “What happened?” My heart gave a crazy leap at hearing that name on his lips. I loved all the things it represented—the teasing, the familiarity, the trust we’d built, the knowledge that I’d do anything to keep him safe—and I hated it, too. Because I wanted it to mean even more.

But this time… this time, I was almost tempted to let him take over. To curl up in a ball and ask him to ferry me away from the crowds and the fear of the unknown. The only thing stopping me was the thought of missing a long-awaited visit with my gran.

“I would never consider sleeping with you… as anything other than a dream and a goddamn privilege. I certainly wouldn’t consider it harassment of any kind.”

His need was nothing to mine because I needed Zane Hendley like I needed the Earth to keep spinning around the sun. Like I needed plants to keep producing oxygen. Like I needed winter’s snow to melt and fill the rivers and lakes so I could drink my fill.

Then he leaned down to kiss me. It was soft and precious, gentle and sweet. For someone who resembled a grumpy bear half the time, Ryan Galloway was heart-achingly tender with me. Always had been.

Bear met my eyes and leaned in. My breathing picked up, turning shallow and jagged at the same time. “You’re really hard to say no to,” he said, no longer smiling. I could still see signs of hesitation in his eyes… but it didn’t stop him from leaning in and kissing me.

“I’m so in love with you I can’t breathe. If something happens to you, my life will simply… stop. I can’t… I can’t let anything happen to you, Z. You’re…” His lips were wide with a smile, and his eyes were wet. “I’m your honey.”

There is nothing in this world I love more than you. So fuck the job. Fuck anything that keeps us apart. I know who I can’t live without, too.