Page 83 of Taming a Menace
The nerves that cloaked me for the first hour of our drive seemed to evaporate the further we got away from home. I wanted to use the road trip as a way to truly gauge my feelings for Keywan. He was handsome of course, and as I already knew he was amazing in bed. That didn’t mean he was worth blowing up my life over.
Over the past few weeks, I had come to know how sweet and charming Keywan could be. He made me smile even when I was trying to deny my attraction to him. He easily saw through my disinterested act and kept pushing for me to own up to my desires.
Keywan wanted me to give in to my wants without worrying about the consequences that might follow. It was easy for him to say that because he wasn’t the one breaking the law. It felt silly to even consider dating someone who I was seeing as a client.
The old me would have never looked his way no matter how fine and charismatic he was. The old me would have sent him packing the first day he stepped in my office. This version of me was tired of playing it safe and still getting played.
I wanted something tangible and intense. I didn’t want safety or security. I thought I had that with Wyatt and look how that turned out. I wanted real, passionate love. I wanted Keywan. Fuck the rules. I wanted him, and I wanted to want him. As we got closer to our destination, my excitement grew. It had been too long since I’d gone to the beach.
“This is going to be fun,” I said, breaking the comfortable silence.
“You’re getting excited, huh?”
“Yes. Thank you for bringing me. I know you have to work, but I’ll try to help make this fun for you too.”
“You don’t have to worry about me. I love to cook. Plus, having you with me is the only thing I need.”
“You always know what to say,” I said, rolling my eyes playfully.
He chuckled. “It’s true, Iyla.”
I sat up in my seat to get a better view as the GPS guided us to our destination. Everything was so chill and serene. I could see myself living near the beach as long as it wasn’t some big tourist attraction. I wanted to live around locals with few distractions.
Navigation took us to a big, light blue house. As soon as we pulled into the driveway, I could see the beach. When Key put his truck in park, I jumped out and made a run for it. I didn’t go far, just far enough to verify that we were staying on the beach. I could hear Keywan laughing from behind me before I turned to look at him. His smile was big and comforting. Every day I grew more attracted to him.
“Damn, I should have brought you to the beach sooner,” he said, wrapping his arms around me and pulling me closer.
I smiled up at him, taking in the beauty of his dark skin and dark brown eyes as they sparkled under the afternoon sun.
“I’m so excited. I didn’t know we were staying right on the beach.”
“Yeah, I wanted to be close to my destination. She’s having the party near here.”
“This is so exciting.” I raved.
“Come on. I want to take you out there before it’s time for me to get ready for the shower,” he said, releasing his hold on me.
“You don’t have to tell me twice.”
“Go ahead and open the door while I get our bags. The code is 122784.”
Following his directions, I walked up the steps to the door. I hated coded doors. This one was no different. It took three tries for the lock to click and let me inside. Once I was in the house, I walked straight to the bay window that looked out over the beach. The view was beautiful.
They’d stuck to a theme in the house, making everything charming and beachy. It was decorated in shades of blue and white that drove the beach theme home. I went to check out the bedroom and found that there were two of them. We only needed one.
I didn’t ride four hours away from home with Keywan just to sleep in separate beds. Our whole purpose for coming was to explore our relationship without limits. The limits were off. After checking out both bedrooms, I chose my favorite and tossed my phone on the bed.
I walked out of the room just in time to see Key coming in rolling his trunk. I noticed that our bags were in the middle of the living room.
“That everything?” I asked him.
“Yeah. You like the house?”
“I love it. You did really good.”
He chuckled and shook his head. “Thank you.”
“What?” I frowned.
