By evening, after having several more conversations with Maggie about Killian and then her two children, I went into my room for a nap and then saw her off around sometime during sundown.
After my shower, I settled on the living room couch in my comfy casuals.
I sat crossed-legged in front of the Tv and shoved a bunch of Cheetos in my mouth when a tired-looking version of my supposed husband walked in through the front door.
He glanced my way for a quick second before focusing on taking off his shoes.
I hid the pack of Cheetos behind the fluffy square cushion and wiped my mouth. "Welcome back."
He hummed a reply and walked in and I didn't fail to notice the gift bag that swayed at his side. He placed the back of his hand on my head. "The fevers gone."
I smiled. "All thanks to Maggie."
He nodded in agreement and then pulled his hand away. "Have you had anything to eat?"
I nodded. "Filled to the brim."
"Well," Instead of speaking right away, he stretched his arm out and displayed the gift bag. "It's for you."
I blinked, slowly retrieving the bag and looking down at the brown paper parcel in it. "You got me something?"
He nodded.
Cautiously, I fetched the parcel and looked at him for a brief moment before opening it, and inside I found a leather box containing six seemingly identical old cloth-covered books.
What the—
I inspected the books closely, six of Austen's most renowned novels were in my hands, and honestly, I had a mixed reaction. I picked up the one titled Emma and opened the front cover that bore a dedication – to the then Prince Regent, the future King George IV.
My heart skipped a beat as I looked back up at him. "Are these first editions?"
When he nodded, I felt my airway constrict. They most likely caused a fortune and wouldn't have been easy to secure all eight.
My mouth slacked. "Killian these cost a fortune."
"Trust me. I can afford it."
I looked down at the books, unable to fathom my situation. "But-but how did you know. I mean—" I was dumbfounded. My heartbeat spiked and I thought I was panting but it was just my imagination.
"You had a lot of books in your room last night so I figured you liked reading."
"I didn't know you paid that much attention to me."
"Well, I do. More than you think. And there's more."
"More?"
"I called in a favor with Mr. Jay Ives, today and —"
YOU ARE READING
To have and to loathe
Romance18+ ❝ I'm a man of great restraint but seeing you like this is pushing the boundaries of my self control, so bad that I might just pin you against this wall and fuck the life right out of you. ❞ ******* San Francisco royalty, Killian Fobster is an e...