Page 105 of One Life to Loathe

He laughed. “I guess maybe I am.” He stopped feeling me up and wrapped his arms around my waist to hug me from behind. “Are Bethany and Sylvia still out there?” he asked in a low voice.

“Yes, and they’re still fighting about Ed.”

“I just don’t get it.”

“Oh, don’t ask me to explain it. I would rather die than let that guy touch me. Although, do you know what he said to me?” I contorted so I could look at Leo over my shoulder.

“I’m almost afraid to know,” he replied. “Did he touch you?” His eyes were dark.

“No.” I shook my head. “He merely suggested that I might want to trade up—his words, not mine—and join his harem.”

“Did he really use that word?”

“Harem? Yup.”

“What a tool.” Leo moved his hands to my pants. They were painted on but since they weren’t a heavy fabric I could breathe in them. “These are nice.”

“I thought you liked the outfit from the love scene better.”

“The ridiculous lingerie they put you in? That was an interesting visual.”

“Are you not a lingerie guy?”

“Actually, I’m not. I prefer full-fledged nudity whenever possible.”

“I hadn’t noticed.”

He gave my ear a light bite, causing shivers to go down my spine. “Where do you want to eat dinner tonight?” he asked, changing the subject. “I was thinking Finz.”

“You just want one of those pickle martinis.”

“Those are strangely delicious, but I was thinking maybe—I don’t know—I could try the stuffed lobster tonight.”

I was surprised despite myself. “You chickened out last night.”

“I just don’t like weird food.”

“Lobster is not weird, though.”

“It was in my house. We were a meat and potatoes family. I still want to try it.”

“Because I love it so much?”

“Because you sound like you’re having an orgasm when you’re eating it, and I’m naturally intrigued.”

“Ah.” That made perfect sense. I was a vocal eater. “I’m willing to try again. You’re putting too much pressure on yourself, though. You need to order something you know you will eat and then sample my stuffed lobster.”

“My head just went to a really dirty place.”

“That’s normal for you.”

His thumb brushed my rib cage as he considered it. “I kind of want to commit to trying it for an entire meal. Like … it would be a big leap for me.”

There was something he wasn’t saying bubbling under the surface. For days we’d been dancing around what had happened when I’d hit my head. His panic had been real. He wasn’t acting like a guy who was going to pick up and take off in a few weeks. He was acting like a guy who was settling in.

I had questions but was afraid to ask them. I wanted him to stay. I couldn’t ask him to give up everything for me, though. It wasn’t fair. Plus, if I was reading the situation wrong and he hadn’t changed his mind, it would crush me. If I was about to be crushed, I wanted to put it off as long as possible.

“Can I ask you something?”

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