Page 17 of Platinum Love: A BWWM Romance

“Ask.”

“Jo, please stay the night with me.”

HUNTER

Everything, but my mouth, is screaming yes. My skin tingles with each kiss, and the sensation is traveling through my body.

Ben turns me to him. “Are you free to stay the night with me?”

“What about Zoe?”

“She’ll sleep through the night. The doctor gave her medicine, and I’ll check on her in a few hours.” His fingers are hooked around my belt loops.

“Where’s your girlfriend?”

“I don’t have one…yet.” His crooked smile is making me want him more.

“Where’s your wife?”

“You know I’m not married.”

“But I didn’t know you have a daughter.”

“Is me having Zoe a problem?” He steps back.

The grit in his tone makes my knees wobble, but I’m not backing down. I’m not a home wrecker. And I won’t share Ben. The thought of potentially having him only to lose him isn’t something I’m adult enough to handle. So if he wants me to stay the night, I have to know the truth.

“No, me not knowing about Zoe is the problem. What else do I not know?”

“Everything. You know nothing about me, Hunter. In your world, I’m the hot bartender you love to flirt with and toss big tips on the counter.” He shrugs. “Let’s keep it one hundred. I want you. You want me. Tonight, we are satisfying our mutual curiosity.”

“And then?”

“I’ll help you get your million dollars from Daddy and we’ll part, as friends.” Nothing about his face looked friendly. The words didn’t match the tension I feel coming from his body.

“You make it sound like a transaction. I’m not a hoe.” I step back, noticing his white t-shirt stretched across the mass of his chest. I scold myself for still wanting him. The low slung jeans are resting on his hips, and his feet are bare. Ben is oozing sex, and I just turned him down. I’m down to have a good time, but for some reason, I want more. “Is that how you see me, Ben? A quick fuck?”

“You know that’s not my style. And we’ve known each other long enough for you to know that.” He glances back over at me, and I believe him. “My life is complicated Jo. I’m raising Zoe, and I’m going to school, and nothing about this life fits in your plush platinum lifestyle.”

And it hits me. “Are you asking me to stay because of the $50,000?”

“You know what, maybe you should go.” Ben moves back, his hands flexing as if he’s fighting to keep his hands off of me.

“Don’t act like I’m wrong for asking.” He wouldn’t be the first or the last. Most men hear my name, and they stumble over their words, bit their tongues, swallow their manhood, and gladly go along for the Preston Hunter ride. “You’ve ignored my flirting for almost a year. And now, I get invited to your house, and you ask me to stay the night.”

“Jo, tell me how you really feel.” He closes the space between us with the challenge lingering in the air.

“I want you.” I hear his sharp intake, and I continue. “I’ve wanted you from the moment I saw you. I don’t give a damn about your job or you having a daughter, although she’s a doll. I want you. Plain and simple.”

“And your man?” He steps closer, and nothing is separating us but cotton and silk.

“I don’t have a man, yet.” His eyes turn darker.

“Jo, I ain’t playing games with you.”

“Yes, you are Ben. It’s just that I’m on to you. But no more pc pleasantries and no more teasing.” I drape my arms around his neck. “And I’m tired of talking.”

His mouth covers mine. I tremble finding another inch to occupy closer to him as my breasts squish into his hard chest. His hands cup my ass, massaging in circles, stroking the fire to life in my core. The heat is moving through my body, and I lean into his strong embrace.

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