Page 19 of Sweet Deception

She cants her head to the side and gives me the cutest frown. "That's all?" She gestures toward the other men in the room. "You don't have to date a woman to have her. Come on, I know most men prefer not to have the entanglement," she says with air quotes. "But it doesn't mean you have to," she leans in to whisper, "pay for it." Sitting back, she darts her eyes around the room again. She’s so fucking cute.

Grinning, I run a finger down her cheek. She whips her gaze to mine and stills—back to being cautious again. Good. She should be.

I slide my finger back to snatch a piece of hair and pull it forward to play with before explaining further. "Fucking someone for a night is not an entanglement, but no matter how much you set things straight from the beginning, telling a woman you only want to have a casual affair always ends with the woman wanting more. I won't be arrogant and say they all fall in love. It's more that they fall inlove with the idea of falling in love. Going this route fixes the misunderstanding. You can't claim things have changed if I'm paying you."

I hate how harsh it sounds, but I'll only ever give her the truth. When the time is right, I'll set her free.

I sigh, not liking the disapproval on her face. She already has me wanting to smooth those frown lines.

Fuck me.

Chapter nine

Kylie

"That's lazy." I cringe, wanting to take it back. I'm pretty sure Ms. Wesley and Talia would not approve.

His head jerks back and his brows lower as he searches my face. I threw him off guard, but I'm not sure if it's from what I said or the fact I had the balls to say it. Honestly, I can't even believe I said it. The fact I'm now one of those women means I don't have a leg to stand on. But I can't back down now.

Squaring my shoulders, I free my face of emotion. I don't want him to think I'm mad. Because I'm not.

Irritated maybe.

Disappointed, definitely.

He tilts his head, raising his eyebrow at me. "I'm sorry?" His voice comes out slow and smooth with a touch of … humor?

Thank goodness he's not pissed at me. Although, it's making me more bold.

"It's lazy. You want a girlfriend without having to be a boyfriend. Right? You want a woman to behave like a girlfriend would, but you're free from the obligation. You throw money at her to keep her from wanting more from you, while expecting her to be everything a girlfriend should be." I pause, but decide what the hell. "I just think it's lazy."

He studies me and I have to stifle the urge to fidget under his scrutiny. He's not exactly mad, but he isn't pleased either. I have to work at keeping my face free of emotion. I already messed up by asking why he's doing this and now I keep putting my foot in my mouth. Talia’s going to kill me. I don't even want to think what Ms. Wesley will do.

He finally puts me out of my misery. "Isn't it better than stringing a woman along only to scratch an itch? Sweet Connections has provided a service that takes emotion out of the equation, saving both parties from the pitfalls of casual dating." He shrugs unapologetically. "It's cruel to give a woman hope for more when you know your feelings won't change. I'm not sure I'm capable of caring for a woman like that. Should I be celibate for the rest of my life because of it?"

He's made a good point, and a pang of disappointment hits me.

I want to argue he should try, but at what expense? To the woman? Thanks to my own parents' love story, I've always believed in that spark from the beginning. If he hasn't felt it, then who am I to judge? I ignore the fact that my heart aches at his admission when I felt something the moment our eyes connected. Could it turn into love? I don't know. But what I do know is I've never felt it before with any other man. Not even Danny, who I've crushed on for years.

How cruel would life be if he's the one for me, but I'm not the one for him?

And what in the hell am I even thinking right now? I literally just met the man.

I internally roll my eyes at myself before plastering a smile on my face. "You're right. I didn't think of it that way. If it was me, I wouldn't want you to string me along. Being in this contract is better for all involved." I wave my hand around dismissively.

Needing the extra courage, I take his drink and slam it back only to have scorching fire sear my throat, seizing me in a coughing fit so strong I have trouble catching my breath.

"Jesus, woman!"

He yanks the glass out of my hand, sloshing what's left in the glass. He pulls me to his chest and rubs my back as he lifts his other hand to signal someone out of sight, asking them to bring water.

Well, that backfired.

When a glass of water appears in front of me, I latch onto it like it could save my life.

Once the urge to cough diminishes, the embarrassment creeps in. Not caring that my face is now beet red, I look up at him and realize at the same time that I don't even know his name. "What's your name?"

His eyes widen right before he bursts out laughing. I frown at his reaction, not sure why he thought that was so funny.

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