Page 42 of Filthy Sweet

I stick my tongue out at him. “If you have to know, yes, I met someone, and I will be seeing him again. It’s only casual, and no, I will not tell you anything else about it.”

Reggie snorts air out of his nose. “Only casual? Someone? That doesn’t tell me anything.”

“I know,” I answer, then smile widely. “That’s the point. Be right back!”

Under the hot water of the shower, I feel fairly satisfied with how I navigated that encounter. I’ll level with Reggie and have a real talk soon, once I get my head on straight. And I’m not really lying. I’m giving him as much of the truth as I’m comfortable sharing right now, and that is totally fine.

It’s totally, one hundred percent fine, I tell myself, and as I wash the dried cum from between my cheeks, I almost believe it.

Chapter Fourteen

Fox

It’s Wednesday,and I’m waiting for Owen to arrive at the condo with a glass of bourbon in my hand, fresh off a flight.

I’m exhausted. I spent the past few days in Miami, meeting up with Phoenix Sunset and fixing a minor shitstorm after their tour manager dropped the ball with production at their very first show. It’s good that my brain is fried, though, considering every time I get a minute of quiet, my thoughts immediately return to Owen.

He’s learning to insist on what he wants. I like the way he wears his confidence, and the fact that he asked for something casual impresses me. It’s a relief, too, because even if I did want to open up to him and consider something more, I wouldn’t know how to start.

The only person I ever talk to about this kind of thing is Reggie. Drunk in a Miami hotel, I almost considered humiliating myself and calling Mare for advice but thank god I pulled my sorry ass together first.

There’s no way in hell I can talk to Reggie. But I can’t deny Owen, either. He deserves some privacy, and frankly, Reggie should be relieved his little brother is with someone he can trust.

Assuming Reggie would trust me with his brother and that I haven’t already fucked the whole situation. The thought troubles me, sending a chill down my spine, and it’s at that moment the buzzer rings.

“Hi!” Owen greets me brightly when I open the door a minute later. He’s dressed in a pair of nicely fitted khaki pants and a baby-blue dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up, and he kicks his shoes off to give me a quick embrace. “I had to come straight from work.”

I drag my hands down his sides as I step away. “Long day?”

“Kind of.”

“Drink?”

“Please.”

I nod and turn toward the bar, which sits beneath a massive abstract painting, broad slashes of red and black. “What’s up at the museum?”

“Not much. I just had a weird conversation with my boss. I’ve been working my ass off, but apparently, I haven’t been working on the right things.”

“How’s that?” I glance at the bar. “Something sweet?”

“Yes, please. It’s just that I’ve been researching and filing reports, which is what I was hired to do, but apparently, I don’t contribute during the brainstorming sessions, which is also part of the job.” He adjusts his glasses. “Sorry. This isn’t a very sexy hookup conversation.”

“I asked.” I throw some cherries on top of a little bourbon, then add a splash of lime juice before I hand it to him. “Sounds like you just need to talk more, right?”

Owen laughs as he sits back on the lounge chair. “You make it sound so easy. Anyway, how’s your day? Everything is fixed in Miami?”

“Miami is fixed,” I tell him and splash a little more bourbon into my glass. “And my day is better now.”

Owen smiles. “Flirt.”

I unbutton the top button of my dress shirt as I eye him. “Always.”

Owen holds my gaze, and I see him resisting the urge to turn away.

It’s getting harder to fluster him, and I like the challenge.

“You know, I’ve been thinking about what I want to do with you,” I tell him, driving straight to the point.

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