Page 31 of Velvet Sin
My heart stopped for a second, and I turned around to gape at him.It didn’t look like he was kidding.“This is for me?”I squeaked.
“For both of us.I meant it when I told you you could only do what you did at the club with me.Don’t tell me it wasn’t mind-blowing because I know damn well it was.Unless you were faking it,” he added with a knowing smirk.
“You know I wasn’t.”My face went hot at the memory.No, I had faked it many times during my marriage, but I was not faking that night.I couldn’t have stopped myself from coming if I’d wanted to.
He slowly crossed the room, and the look in his eyes held me in place.“Don’t pretend you haven’t craved it since then.I know I have.Only this time,” he whispered when he reached me.“I won’t have to settle for jerking off after making you come.I can drive my cock inside you, I can have you suck me off.I can make you come again and again, filling your holes, making you feel things you didn’t know were possible.”
The backs of his fingers stroked their way down my cheek, running along the curve of my jaw and making me shiver.“I’ve spent years observing.I never let myself get pulled in too deep.I couldn’t afford to.This is my business.But you… you’re the one person I trust with this.Just like you know you can trust me like you said that night.”
Dammit.Why did my heart have to flutter?It wasn’t like he was praising me for some great accomplishment, but I felt strangely proud.
I looked from his dark, seductive eyes toward the bed, biting my lip and asking, “Where do you want to start?”
13
DANTE
“Imust admit, this is better than anything I imagined.”Sebastian clapped me on the shoulder as I poured drinks for him and his friends.“Well done.”
“Now, this is how money should be invested.”Grayson made himself comfortable, slouching on the sofa in my office, one long arm stretched out across the top.“Sink it into a surefire win like this and watch the dividends come pouring in.”
“So mercenary,” Aiden told him, snickering as he turned away from the monitors along the wall.“I mean, there’s beautiful lovemaking happening down there.All you can think about is money?”
That got all of us laughing, and it felt good.Lenny’s question about my business and personal life had run on repeat in the back of my mind all week, like a song I couldn’t get out of my head.I wouldn’t exactly consider these guys my friends, but we could get there.I liked them as people, which was a hell of a lot more than I could say for some of my investors.
Vaughn accepted his scotch, raising the crystal tumbler to his nose and smiling.“Fantastic.You are nothing if not an excellent host.”
“Speaking of which.”I took a seat behind my desk.“I was thinking about throwing a housewarming party in a couple of weeks or so.”
“I didn’t know you bought a house out here.”Grayson exchanged a surprised look with the rest of the group.“That’s great.Just name the date.”
“Make sure those smoke shows working downstairs are invited,” Aiden added, sipping his drink once his attention had fallen back on the feed from down there.“That blonde at the desk.Fuck me.Talk about an ass that won’t quit.”
He was talking about Chloe, and I had to laugh.“You have good taste, but your timing is shit.I think she’s got a boyfriend.”
He snorted, looking my way over his shoulder.“Like that matters.She’ll forget he ever existed after spending five minutes with me.”
“I didn’t know you were looking to settle down with anyone.”
“Who said anything about settling down?Let’s face it,” he continued, raising his voice over our laughter.“None of us are cut out for that shit.What, we’re supposed to run our businesses, keep our people employed, keep growing so we can meet our goals while keeping a woman happy?That is a full-time job on its own.”
“How would you know?”Sebastian challenged with a smirk.
“I don’t have to start a fire to know it would burn me,” Aiden retorted.“I’ve seen enough to know what I’m talking about.My mom would complain about having nothing to complain about.She drove my dad to an early grave.”He took a large swig of his drink, releasing a deep breath.I sensed his mood drop and felt the energy in the room shift as a result.
“Try being a sex club owner with a Bible thumper for a mother,” I joked.“The woman worked herself half to death to keep a roof over our heads, so I feel responsible for taking care of her now.The only problem is, she would rather starve to death in a gutter somewhere than take my money if she knew how I made it.”
Grayson winced from his club chair.“That sucks.You mean, she really doesn’t know what you do?”
“Believe me.I would know if she did.”The four of them chuckled while I stared into my tumbler.They could afford to laugh.“I’ve gone out of my way to keep myself as anonymous as possible, and not only for my own privacy or for my frequent guests’ sake.I don’t want her finding out.”
Just like I didn’t want my father to find out, though I had no idea where he ended up after he walked out.I only knew a man like him with an addiction like his would only need to hear his son was rich to start coming up with reasons to visit and rebuild our relationship.To milk me dry while supporting his gambling problem.No, thanks.
“In other words, Momma West won’t be coming to your housewarming party,” Sebastian concluded, and I could laugh at that.Shecertainlywould not.
“Tell you the truth.I don’t know if she knows I’ve come back to town.”I glanced up from my drink to find them staring at me.“Is that wrong?”I asked.I had said too much.This was why I didn’t bother making friends.Having to guard my words, knowing they wouldn’t understand.They didn’t know the history.
“No, there’s nothing wrong with it.”Vaughn lifted a shoulder.“It’s just… you seem devoted.Paying for her life and all that.”
