Total pages in book: 50
Estimated words: 47524 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 238(@200wpm)___ 190(@250wpm)___ 158(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 47524 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 238(@200wpm)___ 190(@250wpm)___ 158(@300wpm)
“You’ve got a busy day?” he asked.
“Uh, yeah, it’s kind of full. A lot of appointments.”
“I’ll be around tonight,” he said. “I’ve got to head back to the clubhouse.”
“Okay.”
He chuckled.
“What?” she asked.
“You want to ask, ask.”
She laughed and then averted her gaze. What did she say?
“Do you want to talk about that kiss?” he asked.
Her cheeks started to heat.
“Or are you curious about exactly what else we can do?”
This made her lift her head up. “What?”
He chuckled. “You heard me. We’re both consenting adults. I think that kiss was pretty good. Better than good, and I’m thinking, if you’re game, you and I can have some fun with this.”
She took a deep breath and couldn’t deny her body went on high alert. She hadn’t been obsessed with sex or guys. It hadn’t really entered her mind about either, until now as she looked at Road.
“Are you suggesting I use you?” she asked.
He shrugged. “I’m saying it could be fun. You trust me. I trust you. Why not? Unless you want to trust a total stranger with something so precious.”
“You’re not even going to suggest helping me find someone long-term?” she asked. “You know, like in the movies. You could be my best friend, but…”
“I am your best friend, and no, I don’t believe in finding some guy who can make you feel good.” He took several steps toward her. He took the coffee out of her hand, and then cupped her cheek, tilting her head back at the same time. “What I believe is showing you, guiding you with the skills to take care of your own pleasure. You don’t need a man to give you that. When you’re ready, you can find a man long-term.”
That shouldn’t have sounded so … sexy, but it did. She licked her dry lips and struggled to find the words to even deny or agree with him.
“You’d teach me?” she asked.
“Yes.”
“What do you get out of this?” she asked. “Don’t you have women falling all over themselves to make you feel good?”
Road burst out laughing, and it didn’t sound particularly nice, or even entertaining. She couldn’t help but wince.
He pointed at his face, but she didn’t see the scars. She was starting to understand that before his scars, Road relied on his face at every possible turn. Sergey Golubev had taken that away from him, and in a way stripped him of his identity, took everything. Others might consider him exaggerating or a little self-centered, but Dinah got it. After seeing what it did to her mother, who had never hurt another person in her life, she understood Road’s pain.
She reached up and touched his face, the scars as well, and stared into his eyes. “I’d like that,” she said. “You and me, no judgment, just … experimenting with each other. Tell me what you want from me?”
Dinah couldn’t even believe she was offering this, but it felt so right and her mother had always told her to follow her gut.
“You,” he said. “Not holding back, taking what you want, enjoying me. That is what I want, and I don’t want you to ever flinch from me.”
“I could never do that. Road, you’re not scary.”
“Trust me, to a lot of women, I am.”
“Is that what you want?” she asked. “To be with a woman who doesn’t just look at your face?”
“Yes.”
She stared at him, seeing the complete honesty staring back at her, and she was a little startled. Road didn’t repulse nor terrify her.
“Okay, but I think we should both agree that you’re not allowed to, well, you know, strangle me.”
He groaned. “Please, I am never going to live that down, am I?”
She chuckled. “It’s fine. I get it.”
“You do?”
“Yeah, it doesn’t take a genius to work out that you were all part of the Bratva at one time, and now you’re all not, and you’ve got a score to settle. You thought I might be working with the Golubev to worm my way into your club.” She shrugged. “At least, that is what I’ve gotten from our very brief conversations.”
“You’re on point.”
She offered him a smile, even though this wasn’t something to be smiling about. “Would you like some coffee?” she asked, taking several steps away from him, bringing about some distance.
“I’d love a cup, but first I want you to come here.”
“Why?”
“You’ll see.”
“I haven’t been the type of woman who’s big on surprises.”
He chuckled. “I’m starting to see that, but this is a different kind of surprise.”
She ignored the coffeepot and made her way toward him, stepping up close, and then he surprised her by cupping her cheeks. She still didn’t flinch. Road didn’t scare her, not anymore. Their friendship had changed during the brief time she’d known him, and she knew there was no going back. She liked Road, especially when he wasn’t trying to threaten her.