Total pages in book: 97
Estimated words: 95107 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 476(@200wpm)___ 380(@250wpm)___ 317(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 95107 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 476(@200wpm)___ 380(@250wpm)___ 317(@300wpm)
“What?” I say, spitting out my mouthwash at the sink.
She eyes my reflection in the mirror. “I didn’t say anything.”
“I can hear you thinking.”
“I’m not.”
“You look like you want to tell me something.”
“No. I swear.”
“Just spit it out.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
For fuck’s sake.
“Whatever.” If she’s going to be difficult, I don’t have the energy to fight about it tonight. I wipe my face with a soft towel and then wander into the master bedroom of our brownstone.
I get in bed, staring at the ceiling until Hannah slides in beside me and shuts off the light. She rolls onto her side and places her hand on my bare chest.
“Sorry,” she says softly. “I didn’t mean to act weird. I was just thinking about you and your dad. I know tonight was difficult for you, but for what it’s worth, I thought you handled yourself well.”
I pull her toward me, my hand playing with the hem of her thin tank top. “I swear I want to take a swing at him every time he puts his arm around me with that cheesy grin. He’s such a hypocrite. And they all love him.”
She goes silent for a moment.
“What?” I push.
“I don’t know…just thinking. Maybe it’s time to have that talk.”
“What talk?”
“Tell your father how you feel. That you’d rather he keep his distance.”
I can’t help but snort out a laugh. “How I feel about anything is irrelevant, as far as he’s concerned. It’s all about appearances.”
“You could try. If you don’t put down some boundaries for yourself—”
“Let it go.” It comes out more forceful than I intend, and I feel Hannah recoil. I draw her closer, quickly brushing my lips over her soft hair. “I’m sorry. Didn’t mean to snap. Trust me when I say if I thought talking to him would help, I would’ve done it a long time ago.”
“No, I get it.”
“He doesn’t care what I have to say. That’s why he traps me like that, corners me at parties with plenty of witnesses. He knows if I snub him, it becomes a story. A story that embarrasses me as much as him when it shows up in the press the next morning.”
Hannah grumbles with indignation. “I just hate seeing how much he gets to you. He shouldn’t get to have that power.”
“I know, babe.” I cling to her, because having her warm body curled against mine does a lot to chase the uglier thoughts out of my head. “And I really do appreciate you being there for me tonight. I couldn’t have gotten through it without you.”
“I’ve always got your back.” She kisses my jaw then settles back into my arms.
Minutes later, an hour, I don’t know, I’m still awake. Still staring at the dark ceiling and grinding my teeth as it all plays back in my mind. How smug he is, parading me around for his friends. Not an ounce of shame for what he did to me. To my mom. Not the smallest drop of remorse. What kind of man can be such a shameless bastard?
“Can’t sleep?” Hannah whispers. I don’t know what wakes her up, or if she ever fell asleep.
“I’m fine,” I lie, because there’s no sense keeping us both up all night.
She doesn’t listen, though. Never does, this stubborn, beautiful woman of mine.
Instead, her fingers trace the lines of my chest and down my abdomen. My muscles clench at the teasing sensation. I grip her tighter around the waist when her hand pushes my plaid pajama pants down to stroke me.
I’m hard the second she touches me.
“You don’t have to,” I whisper.
“That’s cute.”
“Not like I’m saying not to.” I smirk in the dark. It’s like when a friend offers to pick up the tab at dinner. It’s polite to refuse the first time.
Hannah pushes the covers back and drags her tongue up my shaft. I grip the sheets, biting my lip at the feel of her mouth on me. No sense arguing with her once she’s got her mind made up, after all.
When she reaches the tip, she presses an open-mouthed kiss on it and I nearly explode right then. I breathe in through my nose and silently order my dick to cooperate.
“Go slow,” I tell her. “I won’t last otherwise.”
“Figured.” And then her tongue comes out to gently circle the head of my cock. Slow and deliberate. A lazy, torturous exploration. I feel the tension ease from my shoulders. All other thoughts evaporate while I watch the outline of her going down on me.
With her ass in the air beside me, I squeeze a handful, which makes her work me a little quicker. Her delicate fingers glide up my shaft with each upstroke, then her warm, wet mouth slides down hungrily. Oh fuck. She knows I can’t last long this way. Hannah’s too damn good at this.