Page 16 of Sinister Devotion

The way his fingers delicately stroke the side of my face shows the amount of restraint behind their ruggedness. Yet, the softness of his touch disappears when he grips me by the chin, holding my face firmly as he leans in close and lets his lips move over mine.

My breathing stutters as I lick my lips. A quiet whimper escapes out of my throat.

"You don't get a happily ever after with me, Claire."

I take a breath. "How do you know that? You won't even consider the?—"

He cuts me off. "Pain and pleasure blur when dealing with me. The things I like to do, that bring me satisfaction? I don't want to hurt you, Claire. That's just between you and me. Don't get me started on what a relationship with me looks like. I'd look like a creepy old pervert at best and a predator at worst. Don't push this, Claire."

"Fine," I tell him, shrugging out of his grasp and sitting on my bed. "I want to date. No, I'm going to start dating. I don't need your permission, right?"

He lets out a heavy exhale, the line of his jaw tensing. "Fine. You're right. You're old enough to date. Anyone in particular?"

"Does it matter?" I ask him, folding my arms over my chest.

"It matters if they're going to have access to this property. Give me the name, address, profession, job address?—"

I cut him off this time. "You want their social security number, too?"

"They need to be vetted, Claire. One, it's to keep you safe. Two, it's for the safety of this home."

"Don't give me that shit, Julian. You're being difficult on purpose. You don't get to keep me to yourself, get me all riled up to the point I nearly bust my ass in the shower trying to give myself the same feeling your tongue—" I stop myself from saying too much and redirect back to what I'm asking for. "You're hosting a lavish event masquerading as a birthday party for me. None of those people have to be vetted. All they need is an invitation to get on this property. Allow me the same freedom."

"Fine, Claire. Invite whoever you want to the party. Date whoever you want, but Bonnie has to chaperone the first six dates."

"The first date only and she stays in the car," I counter.

"The first four dates, she comes inside for the first two and waits in the car for the last two," he replies.

"Three dates, one inside wherever my date takes me, and the other two she waits in the car."

He sighs, shoving his hands into his pockets. "Deal. Also, dating does not interfere with your job. You're still my assistant. If I need you, you drop everything and you come to me."

"I was trying to, but you didn't want to cross that line," I tease him, hoping he takes away this permission to date. I don't want to go out with anyone else, but if he insists on keeping the sexual aspects out of our relationship, I might as well enjoy myself.

"Claire," his tone is loaded with warning. "I'll see you in the morning."

"Sure thing, Boss-well. Good night," I tell him as he walks out of my room. He leaves without another word. My dreams don't get the memo that Julian's officially off limits. Every toss and turn tempts me into touching myself, but this has to stop.

By the time my alarm rings the next morning, I'm ready to hurl my phone across the room. My training session with Bonnie sucks. She pins me way too many times. It gets to the point where she stops the drills.

"Okay, what's going on?" Bonnie asks. "You're not here."

"Julian said I can date and you need to chaperone."

"Oh," she raises an eyebrow with a grin. "Nice. I promise not to get in the way. It's good for you to get out, Claire. There are too many older adults who stop you from having a good time. This is going to be fun and I promise I'll only be around to keep you safe. Okay?"

"Yeah, thanks Bonnie," I tell her with a sigh. It's clear she has no idea of what's going on between me and Julian. I'm happy because I'd hate to see how she'd react. Julian's words sit with me. I don't want his reputation under fire because of me.

"Let's call it quits for this session. We'll pick back up tomorrow. Meet me in front in an hour." Bonnie shifts back to bodyguard mode and leaves the training room.

I can't get out of my head. Thoughts whirl like a tornado, snagging all my attention. I don't even know where I'll meet someone my age to date. It doesn't take me nearly as long as it has previously to get ready. This morning, I'm not looking to impress Julian at the office. Instead, I'm ready to be his dutiful assistant.

When I step outside, Bonnie doesn't have the car waiting, but I hear a noise coming from the side of the house. There's an engine running. Maybe she's still in the garage with the car. The smell of the grass and moisture in the air are strong this early in the morning. It's a beautiful home and the landscaping crew does a fantastic job.

I round the corner of a very trimmed hedge to see a beat-up car running just outside the garage. There's a door beside the larger one meant for vehicles to come and go which swings open, and Devon walks out.

"Wow. Good morning, Princess." He smiles and licks his lips. "How about breakfast?"

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