Page 74 of Midnight Dissonance

God, this man.

Unexpected didn’t even begin to cover how much he had changed her world. They leaned in together, kissing each other as if the other’s lips were the very air they breathed, and without them, they would perish.

“Oh my god, Lexi!” Her sister’s voice broke them apart. She looked up to see Lisa, shock written in every line of her face. “What are you doing here, Lisa?”

“I came with a friend for dinner. You two are dating? This is who you’re dating?” She nodded toward Josh, her voice elevated in pitch over her shock.

She opened her mouth to respond. But Josh stepped in, his arm solidly around her. “Your sister and I are an item, yes. And no, we didn’t bring it to your attention or anyone else’s until we were certain our relationship was headed somewhere. We still don’t think it’s anyone else’s business.”

Lisa’s mouth dropped open for a moment. But she recovered quickly. “And she’s been staying with you all this time?”

Lexi took over. “Yes, I’ve been staying with Josh. What does it matter to you, Lisa? It’s not like I’ve heard from you in the last week.” Longer, really, but she wasn’t going to get into the semantics of it.

“I just hadn’t realized you two knew each other. How long has this been going on?”

“For a while now, before the dinner at your house,” Josh told her.

“And how did you meet?”

“Mutual friends,” Josh explained, his eyes cold as he stared at her sister. “And not to be an ass, but we were in the middle of an intimate dinner for two.”

“Um, yeah, sure. I guess I will see you, Lexi. Josh, see you at work on Monday.” Lisa walked away.

Lexi couldn’t help but feel like Lisa had betrayed her too. She must have read the trust. But she’d done nothing to stop their parents from trying to control her. Tears filled her eyes, lining her lashes. And she wanted to hate her sister. But all she felt was a deep-seated betrayal.

“Hey, look at me, lass.”

She did, hating that her sister had interrupted such an important milestone for them.

He cupped her face and wiped away the few stray tears that fell. “Don’t let her take anything away from us. Who cares if she knows? We’re together. Other people will find out about us. And that’s okay. I want the world to know you’re mine. I want you to wear your collar with pride.”

It wasn’t why she was upset. But she didn’t want her sister to spoil their night. Not when he was being this sweet and giving her a night to remember. She pressed a hand against the collar. “I’m just sorry she interrupted our date.”

“Up for dessert? I hear they have a fantastic tiramisu.”

“Could we get it to go for a late-night snack? I’d rather go home.” Because now she felt like her sister was watching, and it made her uncomfortable.

“Aye, we can do that. I’m dying to know what you have underneath that dress.” He signaled the waiter, putting in a to-go order for two pieces of tiramisu and requesting the check. The moment the waiter sped off to grab those, she leaned in.

“You want to know what’s underneath my dress? Just me, Sir, and only me. There’s not a strip of lace anywhere.”

He groaned. But the waiter came back with their check and dessert, and Josh couldn’t pay fast enough. And then he was pulling her from the booth, the bag with their to-go desserts in his other hand, and leading her outside to the valet stand.

They didn’t talk while they waited for his car. But an air of expectancy hung over them.

Josh was silent on the way home. When she glanced over at him, he looked like a man on a mission as he drove. She fidgeted in the seat, already hot for him and whatever carnal delights he had planned.

But she hated that Lisa saw them together. She wasn’t ashamed of her relationship with Josh, but she’d seen the judgment and indignation in Lisa’s eyes. Like her being with Josh was an affront to humanity.

Her sister really could be a bitch.

Maybe she needed to take Josh up on his offer and just move in with him. They were already basically living together anyway. But it hurt, even when she didn’t want it to. She would never understand why her family couldn’t just love her. Instead, they shamed her for following the path true to her heart.

During the ride home, they were both deep in thought. When they reached his place and headed inside, he led her inside and strode into the kitchen with their desserts, storing them in the fridge.

Then he closed the door and turned her way, undoing his tie. “I’m going to give you a sixty-second head start. If I catch you in the next ten minutes, I will fuck you raw and dirty. But if you evade me for ten minutes, then I will let you have your way with me.”

She shivered and opened her mouth to ask him a question. But he barreled right on past any questions or objections she might have.

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