Page 86 of Blue Moon

“Are you crazy? Romeo isn’t that type of guy. Is he?”

Ryder just put a finger to his lips and headed for my dressing room. I got momentarily distracted by his ass as I followed. He’d dressed in that ugly suit again today, but even with poor tailoring, the rear view drew the eye of most of the women and some of the men. I smiled inside because only I knew what lay beneath the shiny polyester.

Muscled perfection.

I closed the door behind us, and Rocky left little dusty paw prints on the leather couch as he made himself comfortable.

“What do you know about Romeo Serafini that I don’t?” I asked.

“The Serafini family has a sketchy past.”

“And you’re only telling me this now? Is he dangerous?”

“Honestly, I don’t much like the guy, but if I believed he was a danger to you, I’d be doing everything within my power to get you out of here.”

“Why don’t you like him?”

“Because…” Ryder backed me up against the wall, pressing every inch of his body against me. “That’s twice Serafini’s hit on you in front of me, and it pisses me off.”

“He doesn’t know we’re together.”

“That pisses me off too.”

“You want me to tell him?”

Ryder sighed and brushed his lips across mine. “Not yet. I realise we can’t keep this a secret forever, but if word gets out that we’re involved on a personal level, who the fuck knows how Mark Antony will react? I want him out of the way before we go public.”

And I wanted to keep our relationship quiet forever. We didn’t need some stupid couple nickname and the extra scrutiny that came with it. Ryder was my first real boyfriend. The media would be relentless. Then there was his career, and I wanted to protect that at all costs. I could live without getting on a stage again, but I wasn’t certain Ryder would cope without saving the world on a regular basis.

“Then I’ll leave the big reveal up to you.”

“You’re not going to the office this morning?”

Ryder rolled onto his back, taking me with him. “Sunday is a day of rest.”

“Actually, Monday is my day of rest.”

He settled his hands lightly on my hips, and I traced a finger down his bare chest. For years, I’d been terrified of sharing a bed with a man. The thought had actually made me nauseous. But the reality was so far from my nightmares that I wished I’d done it sooner. Although I hadn’t met Ryder until this year, and I couldn’t imagine wanting any man the way I wanted him, so that wouldn’t have worked, would it?

“Do you want another driving lesson tomorrow? Shani offered to take care of Rocky at the office.”

“You think we’ll be able to sneak away again?”

“I’ll make sure we can.”

“Then yes, a driving lesson sounds great. I swear I’ll repay the favour when we get to Richmond.”

“You’re going to teach me to drive?”

“No, I’m going to make sure you enjoy your days off. If you’re staying here this morning, does that mean we have more time to fool around?”

Ryder gave a playful smile. “What did you have in mind?”

I took a deep breath and forced my fear back into the dark box where it belonged.

“So I was reading Imagine magazine while you were out yesterday, and it turns out there are things I can do with my mouth besides singing.” Ryder’s dick twitched against my ass. “That’s a part of my anatomy I have excellent control over.”

He groaned. “Fuck, I need to take the dog out first.”

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