Page 25 of Salacious Desires

My smile falls, and I blink several times, not understanding. “You never kissed your ex-husband?”

“No. Affection wasn’t a part of marriage. It’s considered dirty. Sex is only for the purpose of having kids. Honestly, I’m glad. I wouldn’t have wanted to do any of that with him.”

My entire body vibrates with the urge to punch someone. Particularly the people who hurt Lily.

“Baby, your whole world is about to change because I’m going to give you affection every chance I get.”

Her eyes glitter. “I think I’d like that.”

“Me too, baby. Come on. We don’t want to be late for your appointment.”

CHAPTER 11

LILY

I can’t stop giggling. There’s a woman scrubbing the bottom of my feet, and I’m practically wiggling out of this glorious massage chair while Drake grins at me.

“I’m sorry. I’ve never had a pedicure.”

The woman working her magic on my feet smiles kindly. She’s been a gem since we walked into the spa. It felt like an alternate universe, and I didn’t know what to do or how to act. Thankfully, Drake took the lead as usual and made everything less awkward.

“What color polish would you like?” she asks.

My giggles come to an abrupt stop. I hadn’t thought about colors.

Drake reaches over from his massage chair next to mine and takes my hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. “Do you want to try a pink, baby?”

I send a smile his way, feeling warm all over. I’ve had a man make decisions for me for years, and I hated it, but this feels completely different. And the thought of having Drake pick out the polish color for me to wear turns me on.

“Will you choose it?” I keep my voice quiet, not wanting to bring attention to us. I’m not sure if it’s strange to ask him to pick a color for me.

“Of course. I’ll be right back.”

He’s gone for less than a minute, and when he returns, he holds up a soft pink polish. It’s not too bright, but it’s also not too muted. It’s perfect.

“I love it,” I whisper. “Thank you.”

“Of course. You can do that on your fingernails, too, if you’d like.”

Something flutters in my tummy. I want to throw myself at this man right now. And I might do it if I didn’t have one foot in a tub of water while the pedicurist works on the other .

“You must be Lily?”

I glance up as a young woman with bright blue hair approaches. She’s stunning and dressed in a full rainbow of colors.

“Um, yes?”

She grins and holds out her hand. “I’m Jillian. I’ll be doing your hair after you’re done with your nails. I wanted to introduce myself and chat about what ideas you might have for your hair? It’s beautiful, by the way.”

It takes me a second to catch up, and when I do, I turn toward Drake. “I didn’t expect all of this.”

He leans over so his face is near mine. The memory of our kiss flashes through my mind as his lips part. That was the hottest experience of my life. Whew. It feels warm in here suddenly.

“I know you didn’t, but you deserve it, Lily. So tell Jillian what you’ve always wanted to do to your hair because today is about making you feel like the woman you’ve always wanted to. Whatever you want, baby. Do it. This is your life to grab hold of.”

The corners of my mouth twitch. “What if I want blue hair like hers?”

Drake grins and gently grabs my chin before giving me a gentle kiss and whispering, “Then you get blue hair, baby.”