Page 40 of My Masked Shadow
“Barbara,” I warn. “You can’t leave me hanging like that.”
She pulls the blanket over her head.
“Drive,” she mutters. “I’m going home.”
“Not if I don’t want you to,” I mutter. She either doesn’t hear me or pretends not to.
When we pull up to her apartment, she lowers the blanket and peeks at me through her lashes, but doesn’t say anything. Neither of us moves.
“Invite me up?” I try, wiggling my eyebrows.
That breaks the stalemate—Barbara scoffs, lightly punching my shoulder.
“I need a moment to breathe,” she says, and it hits me just how tired she sounds.
Fine. A moment. I can do that. Especially since I’ll be watching her through the cameras I installed every moment when I’m not asleep.
“Alright, firecracker,” I concede. “Dinner tomorrow?”
When she scowls, I think she’s going to object. But then she closes her eyes for a second.
“Fine, dinner,” she sighs. “Call me.”
I give her my best grin. “You bet your sweet ass I will.”
Barbara rolls her eyes and grabs the door handle. But then she stops and does something that nearly stops my heart. She leans over and kisses my jaw. Soft. Hesitant. Intimate.
“Goodnight, Ethan,” she whispers, and slips out of the car.
I watch her go until her door shuts behind her, then press my forehead to the steering wheel.
“Oh, fuck,” I breathe.
Because she has absolutely no idea how much she’s getting under my skin.
17
BARBARA
Iwake up feeling groggy, almost hungover. Sex intoxication? I definitely felt like Ethan’s cock drugged me yesterday. I alsohurt.
My lower back aches.
My thighs ache.
My ass aches.
My soul aches a little too.
I groan into my pillow. “Oh my God. What the hell was that?”
I’m so thankful I took an extra day off work.
My phone buzzes on the nightstand, and for a moment, I think it’s Seb. Then I remember Seb is actually Ethan, and I roll my eyes.
I reach for the phone, patting around the nightstand like a granny without her glasses, and notice it’s Basia who’s texting.
She actually has perfect timing. Emily is on her honeymoon. Morgan is busy at work because her boss got caught embezzling, and she’s taking over his clients. And Ineedto talk to someone about… this… sexcapade.
