Page 31 of King of Sinners

I look up, no idea where we are.

“Hungry?” he asks as the door opens.

We are once again entering through a back door into a private room where food has already been laid out for us.

It’s American cuisine but it’s ridiculously nice cuts of beef and fish in delicate sauces. We sit, a server presenting Mason with a bottle of champagne.

He nods and the bottle is opened, two glasses of sparkling pale gold liquid fills our glasses.

My brows lift but I say nothing until we are alone. “Mason…” I start my tone clearly letting him know that I’m looking for answers.

He takes a sip of champagne. “Not here.”

“All right.” I take a sip too and then help myself to a piece of fish. I trust him enough to know that if he says private affairs shouldn’t be discussed, they shouldn’t.

His hand slides across the table, taking mine. He turns it to study the pink diamond again. If I’m not mistaken, he’s attached to the ring too.

But we don’t say much as we quietly eat, our hands joined the entire meal. Is it for the staff? Do we appear the picture of a newly engaged couple? Should I discuss wedding plans? That’s just too much for me…

It’s the best meal I’ve had in years. Maybe ever. I like comfortable silences and this feels like one.

When the meal is done, Mason helps me from my chair, his arm around me as we make our way back out to the waiting limo.

When we climb in, he’s right next to me again. “You didn’t question me when I asked you not to speak.”

I twist to face him. “In that situation, I’m well aware you know best.”

He looks at me for a moment before he captures my mouth with his own. For a second, the kiss is tender, but in a blink, it’s hungry, our tongues tangling together as I land in Mason’s lap. I hadn’t even noticed his hands had come to my hips until I’m settled in the cradle of his.

I press to his front, my breasts crush against his chest, my arms tangle about his neck.

He runs his hands from my hips, up my back and then down again, my body hums at all the contact.

The kiss is so intense, when he nips at my tongue with his teeth, it only makes me hotter.

His hand slides up my leg, under my skirt and over my thigh, my sex throbbing with the need for him to touch me. I’m ready to beg.

I don’t even notice the limo has stopped until Mason pulls away and sets me to the side. Then, he opens the door. Usually, it’s the driver. My head pops up as I look around in question. “Where’d we lose Jackson?”

But Mason only chuckles. “He knows when to be discreet.”

That’s a detail that bothers me. I’m not the first woman to arrive at this penthouse in the back of Mason’s limo.

And surely, I won’t be the last.

Have other girls tried to give every part of themselves to this man?

Likely yes.

I try not to think about it as he pulls me into the elevator, but I clearly stiffen and he feels that.

“Nervous, sweetheart?” He pulls me against him, his hand cradling the back of my head. It’s romantic the way he’s comforting me, and I relax, closing my eyes remembering that I want whatever Mason gives for as long as he is willing to give it.

This was never going to be permanent, and I should know better than to even wish.

“No,” I answer, shaking my head. “I’m not. Today has just been…” A revelation? Of what it might feel like if this man loved me?

It’s a fantasy but one I just want to sink into and pretend without interruption.

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