Page 83 of The First Spark

A woman I can’t get out of my damn brain.

I force a smile, shrugging off her statement. “Come on, Raven, you know me. It’s just a little fun. Nothing more to it than that. She’s just a friend.”

The second the words leave my mouth, I realize I’m trying harder to convince myself than her.

And neither of us is buying it.

“A beautiful friend,” Raven adds.

“Sheisbeautiful.” Along with sexy, smart, and absolutely incredible in bed.

Raven grabs her purse and releases a noisy sigh. “Three is a fun number, too, although something tells me you don’t plan on sharing Ori with anyone.”

She’s right, on all counts. Threesomes are a ton of fun, and I’ve no doubt Raven’s libido would wear both Ori and me out, but this time, I’m not game for the game.

Ori is everything I want. For tonight, at least.

Must keep reminding myself of that, before I do somethingreallystupid, like fall for her.

“Never was big on sharing.”

“At least not where Ori is concerned. Am I right?”Raven doesn’t wait for me to answer. “Oh well, looks like I’ll have to find someone else to adore me tonight.”

I motion toward the exit with a smile. “You won’t have any trouble. There’s always a line of men desperate for you.”

“But I wantedyou, and you had to ruin it by developing a crush. Bastard.” She pivots in front of the door, her red lips once again curved in a teasing grin. “Let’s make a deal. I’ll be back in Sparkwood next month for my follow-up session, and then you are taking me to dinner. I deserve a fair shot, too, and knowing your storied history, you’ll have moved on to the next woman by then.”

No doubt about it, Raven is the female version of me. She works hard and plays harder, but her heart never gets involved. She gets my motives and respects my boundaries.

On paper, she’s perfect for me. No strings, no entanglements. Just good, dirty fun.

But life doesn’t exist on paper and my current reality orbits around a different woman. Although Raven is likely correct that I’ll be past any lingering feelings for Ori within the next few weeks.

Crush or no crush.

But until that happens, I need to maintain my distance from other women.

“See you next month,” I answer with a smile.

“Goodnight, gorgeous man. Have fun tonight.” She presses a kiss to my mouth before exiting the building, her hips swaying as she walks to her sports car.

I lock the door behind her, my foot tapping out an erratic rhythm as she drives away.

“Interesting decision,” I mutter under my breath. “I need a drink.”

But that’s not true. What I need is to see Ori and pick up where our earlier tryst in the closet left off. Except maybe this time, we’ll play around inherstore.

After a last glance around my shop, I cross the connecting hallway to One More Page, noting the darkened interior.

At least all the customers are gone, which means there’s nothing holding Ori and me back from playtime, a fact which makes my dick harden in anticipation.

Fuck, what she does to me.

With a quick adjustment and a grunt, I knock on the door.

Mina appears a moment later, her face sullen when she sees me on the other side of the etched glass. She pulls the door open, her fingers drumming the doorjamb. “What’s up?”

“I’m here for Ori. She around?”

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