Chapter 150: Chapter Twelve

Alec

The things we do for the women we love. That's why YouTube sucked. Seriously, you couldn't do anything without someone filming you.

Case in point, last year I'd taken a bet that I could drink a whole gallon of milk faster than Jaymeson, and it made CNN. I don't know how the hell that became headline news, but there it was.

The song ended, thank God, and we made our way over to the girls. I decided that three minutes of hell was worth it if I got a lifetime of heaven, and that's what Nat was. She was my heaven.

“Bravo.” Nat clapped, her cute little eyebrows arching as my hands moved to the button on my pants. “What are you doing?”

“Stripping.” I shrugged.

“Uh—” Her eyes darted to where Alyssa was sitting, but she was gone.

I wasn't sure if this was the right environment for him to ask her to marry him, and hell, I was still confused if that's what he wanted. Was it sex or her? Commitment or just the next step in life?

“Drop ’em.” Nat caned my hand. “Now.”

“Yes, ma'am.”

The pants fell to the ground, she stood and circled around me, the cane touching my shoulder, my back, and lower. I shivered in response. Did she seriously want me to die before I said my vows?

“Hot tub?” she asked in a breathless voice.

“Damn, I thought you were going to say bedroom,” I said, deflated.

“Tomorrow night.” Nat rose to her full height, which in heels barely reached my chin, and pulled my head down for a kiss. “You get me tomorrow night, maybe if you're good I'll bring the cane.”

“So if I'm good, I get caned.” I grinned. “I'm dying to know what I get for being bad…”

“Oh, the things these walls have heard,” Demetri announced, coming back into the room.

“That was quick.” I snorted.

“Right, said no girl EVER after spending a night with me.”

“That was fast!” Alyssa announced, waltzing into the room.

Demetri's eyes narrowed. “You heard our conversation.”

“Gotta take the ego down a notch.”

“No.” Demetri crossed his arms. “What I got, or need, is to lock the love of my life in the bedroom until she's so dehydrated she begs for—”

A confused expression washed across his face.

“In my head—” He licked his lips. “The rest of that was a lot more romantic. And now I kind of feel like—”

“Ted Bundy.” Nat coughed.

I laughed. “Demetri lures them in with his smile, dehydrates them and—”

“Makes wild passionate love to his prisoner.” Alyssa wrapped her arms around Demetri's waist. “Sounds about right.”

“Damn straight,” Demetri muttered.

“But—” Alyssa released him and started walking to the back door. “I wouldn't know. It's been a while and, oh look—” She held up her left hand. “Naked.”

“I wish I was naked,” Demetri said longingly. And then, as if finally noticing my pants were off, began stripping. “No way in hell am I wearing these a second longer.”

“I think they're sexy.” Alyssa grinned.

“No.” Demetri pointed and then hopped on one foot as he tried to peel them off. “You just want to torture me.”

“Watermelon!” Alyssa shouted.

“Damn it!” Demetri crashed into the couch, the pants dangling from his feet as his Armani briefs flashed every last one of us. “You know the rules, Lyss!”

“Of fruit?” Nat asked, her face appearing as confused as I felt.

“Let it go, Lyss!” Demetri was still fighting a losing battle with the pants while Alyssa danced around the living room in triumph. “I hate my life.”

“Did you guys go into the bedroom to get high or something? What the hell are you talking about?”

“Two days ago—” Demetri finally stood. “We were playing the alphabet game, moved on to guessing fruit, I couldn't spell watermelon.”

“Dude.” I sighed. “It's water and melon… did you even get a diploma?”

“Not the point,” Demetri argued.

“Take a spelling workshop?” Nat offered.

“No.” Demetri grinned. “But here's the thing about girls. It's always important to be one step ahead of them, so Lyss…” He stalked toward her.

“You'll get your question, and I'll get my answer… and it's going to be soon, but you don't get to know when. You don't get to make that plan.

“Just know, you and I are a package deal… and when I pop that question — and you know I will — I want tears. The really happy ones that girls get when they don't know what else to do.

“Are you asking me now?” Alyssa asked in a small voice.

“Nope.” Demetri kissed her cheek.

“He's good at math!” Nat said from beside me. Dear sweet Nat, always looking at the positive. I wrapped my arm around her and hugged her close.

The very fact that she was carrying our child was still so surreal. I hoped to God our baby would have Nat's optimism, her encouragement, just everything.

“Hot tub?” Demetri asked.

“Sure.” I gave Nat one more squeeze, then kissed her hand.

“What was that for?”

I shrugged. “Just because.”

“Because I can spell watermelon and other really big words?”

“Hate you guys,” Demetri called from ahead of us.

“Yeah, big words like gun, cat, dog—”

“Ass. A-s-s,” Demetri sang and then popped the champagne waiting for us at the hot tub. Alyssa and I clinked glasses while Nat and Demetri tapped water bottles.

All in all, it was the perfect ending to the perfect bachelor party.