Page 5 of Devil's Own: Roughneck

Somehow, I pull out a split second of bravery. I let out a breath, square my shoulders, and go for it. “If this isn’t something you want to do, please be kind when turning me down because it’s taking a lot for me to do this.”

“Do what?” he asks, smirking.

“I’m going to ask you if you’d like to… to… come back to my hotel with me.”Whew!I can’t believe that I actually asked a man to spend the night with me. He opens his mouth to answer, but I put my hand up to stop him from speaking because I owe him the truth. “Before you answer, you should know that I’ve never asked a man home with me before—”

His head jerks, and he narrows his eyes, reading my face. Then they go wide as if he read my truthfulness, accepts it, but can’t believe it.

I hurry to finish. “I haven’t been with a man in sixteen years.”

“Sixteen years?” he asks low. I nod.

“I was married at sixteen. Um, at seventeen, I found out that my husband already had a wife he was spending time with when he was supposed to be on business trips.”

“The fuck?” His arms drape around my waist, leaving room between us from the chest up, but our lower bodies pressed together.

“So I’m sure you understand that I have a hard time trusting men. I take it by your silence that you aren’t married?”

“Not married. Don’t got a woman at all.”

I let out a breath. One down. One to go.

“Okay, well, it’s been so long that I’m practically a virgin, and I don’t know that I’m any good in bed. You have a lot of experience and—”

Roughneck shuts me up by leaning down to crush his lips against mine. Heat and excitement score through me. This man kisses with purpose. At least I find him kissingmewith purpose, which is to prove to me without a shadow of a doubt that the universe blessed him with the ability to give the perfect kiss.

When he finally pulls back because Nutty yells something else vulgar at us, he smiles, looking me in the eyes. “Got a house on the other side of town. I want you to spend the night.”

He wants me to spend the night?

“My car—”

“I’ll bring you back here tomorrow to pick it up. Say you’ll come home with me.”

On a wing and a prayer, I nod. It’s stupid and wreckless even to consider going back to his home, especially without my car for a quick getaway, but at the same time, I can’t help but trust him. Maybe it’ll come back to haunt me, but I take a chance for the first time in sixteen years. “I’ll come home with you.”

3

Fuck, she’s beautiful. I take her hand, leading her out to the lot and my bike. I mount my ride and wait for her to climb on the back, but she just stands there staring at the thing like it’s a math equation she’s trying to figure out.

“Never been on a bike?” I ask.

She shakes her head.

“Step there.” I point to the runner. “Lift your leg over and sit. That’s all there is to it.”

Gia places one hand on my shoulder to steady herself as she steps up on the runner, lifts her leg over, then sits.

“Hold on to me, Gee,” I direct her, but she just grasps fistfuls of my cut, and that’s not nearly enough. Jesus, with that scent of lavender surrounding her—I don’t know if it’s soap, shampoo, or perfume, but it smells phenomenal, and I want it surroundingme, filling my senses, reminding me that it’s Gia sitting on the back of my bike. I reach down, loosening her fingers from the leather to wrap securely around my waist until she has no choice but to press her cheek against my back.

Damn, she feels good there.

She fits there.

I think I’m going to enjoy tonight.

“Oh my god,” she squeals as we drive, and I hear the smile in her voice. “This is amazing.”

It is. There’s nothing like being on a bike, and I’ve never had a woman on the back who’d never been on one before. I take a few out-of-the-way turns to give her more time riding.

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