Page 35 of Loyalties & Longings

“Keep making faces and noises like that. and you’ll only begetting one thing, and it won’t be coffee,” he says, pressing his growing erection into my stomach. He’s absolutely insatiable. Letting go of my ass, he spins me around to face his bedroom, and it takes me a moment to remember there is an en suite off his room.

“Go shower, sexy,” he says, slapping my ass as I take a step forward. Feeling his eyes singeing my ass through my jeans, I emphasize the sway of my hips with each step as I walk to his bedroom door.

I shuck my clothes as soon as I’m in the bathroom, leaving them at the door. Blaze’s shower is amazing. The water is hot, and the pressure is perfect. It is so close to being a high-pressure hose, but it is oh so good, giving my body a rinse and massage at the same time.

Standing under the water, letting it run over my body, I wonder how I became this comfortable so quickly with Blaze. The way he touches me brings all these feelings to the surface I never knew were there. He makes me feel as giddy as a schoolgirl like he did back when I was anactualschoolgirl. Then, a thought crosses my mind.

What will Dad do to Blaze if he finds out what is going on with us? He’d probably torture him, castrate him even. That thought makes me feel uneasy and lightheaded. Dad probably wouldn’t mind under different circumstances—he wants me to ‘find the one.’ But the fact that one of the two men he trusts so much to help him watch and protect me is doing such devilish things to me, his daughter? I imagine it will have him seeing red. Maybe it’ll even have him turning murderous, a job usually left to someone under Dad, left toBlaze.

Anger rises in me a little because that’s just crap. At least all the things Blaze does to me I actually want.

Crave.

Dad’s best friend, though, his consigliere, the one whomhe relies on the most, is the most disgusting, vile person in the world. Although I’m an adult now, and anything between consenting adults is fine, I don’t consent to anything Massimo does to me.

Even looking at me.

I wish he wouldn’t.

I scrub my body a little more vigorously at the thought until my skin is pink and raw.

Deciding it’s best to keep our relationship under wraps for now, I make a mental note to discuss it with Blaze later. I shut the water off, step out of the shower, still dripping wet, and reach for the towel. I look over and notice the clothes that I was previously wearing are gone. Blaze must have been super quiet when he came and got them, or maybe my thoughts were too loud because I hadn’t even noticed.

So many thoughts race through my mind as I dry off. For now, though, I think I’ll cook dinner for us tonight. Reaching for the clothes Blaze left out for me, I find an oversized sweater, well, oversized for me anyway, and a pair of sweatpants. No underwear, cheeky devil. This brings a smirk to my mouth, though, and I shake my head as I pull the sweatpants on.

I half expect to see Blaze lying on his bed, ready and waiting for me when I walk out of the bathroom. But his room is empty, and I take the chance to sit on the end of his bed and call the cell phone company to book an appointment. The little mysterious light is still on, and it is really bugging me.

After being on hold for what feels like half an hour, I finally get a person who tells me that the earliest appointment is two weeks away. This particular clinic is always busy, unlike others, but I always go there—their customer service is second to none—so I accept that I have to wait for the appointment. Whatever. I guess it’s not urgent, just annoying. As I’m hanging up, Blaze pokes his head into the room.

“I thought you might have slipped and fallen,” he jokes.

“No, I had to book my cell in to get looked at while I remembered is all. I’ve been meaning to do it for a couple of weeks now, and I just kept forgetting.” I shrug it off.

“Your coffee got cold. Come out, and I’ll make you another.” He gestures his head to the kitchen.

***

We don’t do much for the rest of the day other than sit, talk, flirt, and kiss.

Everything with Blaze just feels comfortable. It almost feels like we have known each other for years—which technically we have—and that he hasn’t been a stranger locked up in prison for the past six years. It all comes so easily. There are never any awkward silences, although there is never a chance for one. When we aren’t talking, we are making out. He can’t keep his hands or mouth off me, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

We talk and kiss until it grows dark, losing all sense of time. We hadn’t even realized how late it was becoming.

Breaking our kiss, I lean back and suggest, “We should give Dad a call. He has probably drunk himself into a stupor. I’d feel much better once we check up on him.”

Conceding, Blaze hands me the cell that has been sitting on the side table closest to him. Dialing Dad’s number, I put the call on speaker when it starts to ring.

“Lakey.” The voice on the other end of the phone isnotmy dad’s. It’s huskier. Massimo, I register after a moment. My eyes dart to Blaze, and his fists clench at his sides, fire burning behind his eyes. He truly doesn’t like Massimo, or maybe he’s annoyed because he called me that childish nickname again.

“Where’s Dad? Is he okay?” I start questioning. Why wouldn’t he have answered his phone? That’s totally out of character for him.

“He’s okay, just drank a little too much.” Massimo chuckles to himself.

I don’t find it amusing. Massimo sounds as sober as he’d sounded earlier today, which makes me even more suspicious.

“I’ve put him to bed. He’ll be nursing a sore head tomorrow, though. I’ve never seen him drink so much. Maybe you should come home and look after him,” he says, almost framing it as a question.

“All right, I’ll be there as soon as I can.” I stand, starting to gather my things. Blaze doesn’t move. His eyes are alight and nostrils flaring, those beautiful lips pressed together in a tight line.

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