Page 156 of By His Rule

“Temptress?” My voice is deep and raspy—not that she needed any more evidence about how I’m feeling right now.

“It’s time to go, Kian,” she says, sounding much more stable than me.

“Right. Yeah. Sure.” Once she’s walked around me, I sink my hand into my sweats to rearrange myself, but not before I squeeze my length, eliciting a groan to spill from my lips.

“I don’t think dinner is a good idea,” she says.

When I spin around, I find her standing at the door with her bag in hand.

“But I won. You owe me.”

Snatching my t-shirt from the floor where I abandoned it, I stalk closer to her.

“But—”

“No, buts, Temptress. Me and you. Dinner.”

“Lunch now?” she asks, hoping for an easy way out.

“Absolutely not. A deal is a deal. You owe me dinner, and I’m collecting my winnings tonight.”

Reaching above her, I push the door open and give her little choice but to walk through it.

“Nothing fancy,” she concedes. “Not after last night.”

“It’s my choice. We’ll go wherever I see fit.”

She falls silent and I step up beside her, leading her to the stairs—not the elevator—that will take us to the garage for my car that Jamie dropped off at her apartment last night, along with a bagful of clothes.

The journey back to her apartment is quiet. I’m unsure if it’s because she’s regretting taking that bet. She really should have known better if she thought she stood a chance at winning.

She was right. I don’t lose.

Ever.

I pull the car to a stop outside her apartment and kill the engine.

“I guess I’ll see you later then,” she says, unclicking her seat belt and hooking her fingers over the door handle, ready to escape.

“You don’t have to sound so excited about it.”

“Hmm,” she mumbles.

“We’re going to have fun. You know we will.”

“Kian, I?—”

Reaching out, I press my fingers to her lips.

“We’ll talk later,” I promise her.

She sighs as I feel the weight of it right down to my toes.

“This is fake,” she says the second my fingers slip away. “Don’t get carried away.”

“I know,” I say confidently, but I can’t help wondering just how much of a lie it is.

That kiss earlier felt anything but fake, and nothing at all like a lie.

---