Mr. Dirty Page 12

  “In that case, I won’t take no for an answer. We can even just go out as friends. See if you like me, and I think you will. See if it’s worth complicating your life with your, uh, complication.”

  “I’m not sure. You know, I —I’d better — ”

  “Say yes. Just meet me at the bar that we met at. Give me your number. We’ll set up a drink. A drink between friends even and we’ll see.”

  He took out his mobile and waited expectantly for her to rattle off her number. When she did, he gave her a grin. And then her phone buzzed in her hand.

  Unknown Number: You have my number now.

  She smirked. “I guess I have your number now too.”

  “That you do. Best program my name in. I will definitely be calling you, Sophie.”

  She smiled up at him. He really was very good-looking. Just not the one she wanted. Which is why you still need to go out with him. “Well, I look forward to hearing from you, Adam.”

  When she slid back onto her stool, Nathan gave her a once-over. “All right?”

  “Yep, perfect. Some guy just asked me out.”

  Immediately, she could see his eyes go blank, even though he gave her a wide smile. “See, confidence shows through. Where’s the lucky bloke taking you?”

  “Just for a drink or whatever. We’ll see if he calls. I get the impression he’s just trying to see how many he can pull tonight.”

  Nathan took a long swig of his drink. “Oh, I promise you. He’ll call. He sees what I do.”

  She didn’t know what she was waiting for: a streak of jealousy —something. Either way, it didn’t come. And that hurt. It meant when Adam did call, she absolutely needed to take it and go on that date because the thing she had with Nathan was only going to get them hurt —her especially.

  22

  Sophie

  As it turned out, Adam did call. Well, texted. Sophie had even shown the text message to her coach. “What does this even mean?”

  She’d been in the middle of an event when she’d gotten the text. One she’d invited Nathan to because well, he was Nathan Windsor, and he could go to any event he wanted, so she might as well have him close since they were friends. And as it was, she now needed him. “It just says, ‘How about that drink?’”

  Nathan slid his gaze over her. “Well, Sophie, it means how about that drink?”

  She narrowed her gaze at him. “You are being deliberately obtuse. And because I’m working, I can’t smack you for it.”

  He chuckled. “No, you can’t. You have to be the picture of decorum, whereas I can be a complete letch.”

  She giggled. “Seriously, you’re like six months older than I am.”

  “That’s exactly right. You are the younger woman here. I want to teach you all the things.”

  She laughed even as she slid her gaze around, making sure that no one could hear them. “You want to teach me all the naked things.”

  “I teach you these things out of love.”

  Right at that moment, her boss, Allison, came up and Sophie had to pretend that her body wasn’t flooded with heat. “Sophie, oh my God, the client is so happy. You’ve outdone yourself this time. Even with a minimal budget, look at what you’ve been able to pull off. The Dawstons are so happy with what you did for their friend and they decided to match the entire charitable contribution.”

  Sophie beamed. “Oh my God, that’s amazing.” Even though this event technically wasn’t with Glass Slipper Events, she’d still had Allison. She wanted her feedback.

  “You keep up this kind of work and I might have to open a charity arm to the events business. Seriously, you did a great job.” She nodded a greeting to Nathan and then floated off to the crowd.

  Sophie beamed at Nathan who gave her a wide smile. “You did a great job. She’s right. Now, since the client is happy, and since they got extra money, I say it’s time to be naughty.”

  “Nathan, the event is not over. I can’t just leave.”

  “Everything is under control, and you’re not leaving. I know you’ll stay ’til the end to make sure everyone’s cleaning up, but I have been wanting to celebrate. Come with me.”

  He led her through the crowd, out the barroom and headed to the left. Then they took a side-winding staircase up a floor. “Nathan, I don’t think we’re supposed to be up here.”

  His gaze was hot, intent. “You’ve always done what you’re supposed to do?”

  Simple answer: yes. Always. Maybe he was right. Maybe it was time to be naughty. “Yes, always. Maybe it’s time I change that.”

  “Now that is what I’m talking about, Sophie.”

  Nathan tugged her into a room. The lights were low and it looked like a sitting room for one of the many functions thrown here. “Nathan, what are we doing here?”

  “Be quiet so I can show you.” The scorching kiss he slanted over her mouth sizzled her synapses.

  Sophie dragged him to her by his velvet suit jacket. She slid her arms inside to the shoulders, dropping it off him smoothly.

  Nathan spun them both around and flattened her against a wall, wholly devouring her lips. He licked inside her mouth as his hips ground into her. Through his pants, his cock burned hot against her belly. Impatient, she quickly unbuttoned his shirt, dragged it out of his pants, and placed her hand on his abs.

  His muscles contracted with every flutter of her fingertips and he murmured hot, dirty words against her lips, driving her crazy with his need, his urgency. This was the Nathan she craved. The raw and hungry Nathan. The one who always seemed to want her. In moments like this, she could believe he was falling for her. And right about now, she needed the fantasy.

  Sophie traced a path from his chest to the light trail of hair just above his pants. She went for the button, and his hand snapped to hers to stay it. He didn’t so much stop her as guide her. Unsure what to do, she stayed perfectly still for several seconds as he continued to kiss her. This whole thing was so bloody fucked up, but she needed him.

  When he didn’t move her hand, Sophie tucked her palm under his and guided them into his pants. As she closed her fingers around the rigid length of him, his hand closed over hers. In tandem, they stroked him from base to tip. He showed her how to tease the tip, how to hold the base steady and allow more blood to flow into his cock. He even guided her hand down to his balls and taught her how to pay homage to them. She used the tip of her finger to tease his perineum, and he swore savagely.

  “Jesus, Sophie.”

  She pressed gently again, and his knees buckled.

  His voice was low and strained against her ear. “I don’t want to come until I’m buried deep inside you. But you keep that up, I’m not going to make it another second.”

  Reluctantly, she withdrew her hand, and he followed suit. Nuzzling her neck, he then whispered, “Turn around.”

  She met his gaze and searched it. Not sure where this was going to go, she complied.

  “Good. Now place your hands against the door.”

  Her hands shaking, she did as he told her. Uncertain, she looked over her shoulder. He was examining the fabric of her dress. Quickly, he grabbed fistfuls of it and dragged it upward, exposing her bare arse to the cool draft.

  “Fuck, Sophie, why aren’t you wearing knickers?”

  Her voice shook as she spoke. “Well, I figured it was just one more layer that you’d rip off anyway.”

  “And you would be right about that.” His voice was a growl against her ear. He gave her a brief swat on her arse and she moaned. It surprised more than it hurt.

  “I’m not feeling particularly patient right now with you, so good thinking.”

  “Nathan, I need you.”

  Nathan placed an open-mouthed kiss in the crook between her neck and shoulder. He nipped her skin then soothed the nips with tiny licks. His hands reached up to her breasts, and circled her nipples with his thumbs, his forefinger and thumb tugging lightly. Sophie moaned. Eventually, as he kissed the nape of her neck, he abandoned that idea and t
ugged down the top of the dress, exposing her fully.

  “Do you have any fucking idea how beautiful you are? So gorgeous. It’s been work trying to keep my hands to myself all night.”

  As one hand caressed her arse, the other slipped around her waist, then down between her thighs. Teasing her slick lips for just a moment, he then slid two fingers into her wet center. Sophie gritted her teeth against the onslaught of need. Only Nathan could give her what she craved. Only Nathan could give her what she wanted. He sank his finger deep, and then stroked her inside and out gently. Teasing her, bringing her almost to the heights of pleasure, then bringing her back from the brink. Then back again.

  Through a fog of lust, Sophie heard the rip of foil. In another second, the thick, hard length of him pressed inside her slick entrance.

  “Brace your arms, Sophie. Spread your legs, baby. Wider. Yeah, like that.”

  When he slid in to the hilt, Sophie cried out. Nathan bit her shoulder as he clamped one hand on her hip. All the while he used the thumb from his free hand to tease that forbidden place. He’d taken to doing that more and more when they had sex.

  She knew what was coming. What he was preparing her for. And it excited her. It also terrified her because he was so big. “You like this Sophie, don’t you?”

  She groaned as he claimed her. “Y—yes, Nathan.”

  He gave her a frustrated growl. “You think anyone else can make you feel like this?”

  “No, God, no. Nathan, please. I need to—”

  “You think your ex boyfriend can make you feel like this?”

  “N—no. Oh God.”

  He set a bruising pace, but she met him thrust for thrust. She needed his brand on her, all over her. She could pretend she was his. Pretend that he wanted more from her. Pretend that the way he was tonight, desperate and barely restrained, was fueled by jealousy and need.

  As he sank into her over and over again, Sophie called out his name again and again. “Nathan, Nathan, Nathan.”

  The tingle in her toes started just before he brought a hand around to dip between her thighs and stroke her clit. Sophie’s body shook as she came apart in his hands. He followed her quickly with one more thrust before he stiffened behind her. He whispered her name and kissed the column of her neck. “So beautiful.”

  He carefully slid out of her and cleaned up. Sophie leaned against the wall, panting. In all her years dating, had she felt anything like this? God, no. And when she finally found something like this, it was with a man she shouldn’t want.

  After he’d rearranged his clothes, he helped her adjust hers. Her hair was ravaged, so she let it tumble down around her shoulders. No point in trying to pretend the fancy updo was going to hold.

  Before he could lead her out the door, she tugged him back. “Nathan?”

  “Yeah, beautiful?”

  “What are we doing?”

  His smile was easy and quick, but something about it didn’t quite reach his eyes. “We’re having fun. Being spontaneous, right?”

  She nodded slowly before she let him take her back to the party. Before she could feel put out about his response, he held on to her hand tightly, making it difficult for anyone watching not to have an idea of what they’d been up to.

  “You finish up. Then when we get back, I’ll show you a few more dirty things I want to do to you.”

  Oh shit. She should be terrified, but she wasn’t.

  For the first time in her life, she felt comfortable, like she belonged where she was. But for how long?

  23

  Sophie

  Sophie smiled down at the text.

  Nathan: Come to Ivy and Thorn. It’s lonely drinking without you. Besides, you need practice.

  The word practice. God, she hated that word. She didn't want any more practice. She wanted to be with him. Easy does it. You guys are not a thing. It's casual.

  Yes, it was casual. She knew that. It was just fun being with him and she liked having fun. Not having to be so serious all the time. It was exhausting. With Nathan she felt light, freer. Wanting to be a glutton for punishment, she immediately ran into her bedroom, swung open her closet doors and tried to find something that was sexy, sleek, and sophisticated but also like she wasn't trying too hard. She finally settled on a pair of leather skinny pants. Honestly, the effort required to tug these things on might not be worth it, but Nathan would see her in them and probably decide that she needed another lesson on orgasms, which she was totally okay with. She tugged them on and then sent him a quick message back.

  "Okay, on my way. Have good news too."

  That was as much as she let herself divulge. That was cool. That was casual, right? You are setting yourself up for pain. No, she wasn't. This was casual. And honestly, she hadn't quite had her fill of casual and fun. She could have more casual and fun. At least until she met the next guy, the real Mr. Right. Nathan made her feel good. That was all. She was not developing soft love for him. Especially not after the other night when he rubbed her feet, gave her a hot water bottle and then covered her with a blanket when she fell asleep. And he hadn't even gotten anything out of the deal except to watch movies.

  In under thirty minutes, she was dressed, had a light dusting of makeup on, her good bra that made her boobs actually look like they were the same size, and perfumed in secret hidden spots, that he would hopefully find later. Not that she was getting dressed up for him. She was getting dressed up for herself. Not necessarily Nathan.

  For a guy who spent a lot of time training her on how to talk to men, and how to be the hottest woman in the room, he spent a lot of time cock blocking her too. Maybe he just wanted to see his lessons in practice. The flare of hope was swift and immediate and she shut it down with such force and immediacy that she staggered. No, not him. He was fun. Besides she knew what it was like to be with men like that. It would be nothing but heartbreak. She took one last glance at the mirror. Perfect. And she tried like hell to not be excited that she was going to see him.

  It took less than ten minutes to arrive at the Ivy and Vine. She gave her name and was immediately able to bypass the long queue that had started to form at the door.

  Her blood rushed, thumping in time to the beat. It was nice to be out for once and not be working. She was excited, her good news brimming over. Stop kidding yourself. You're just excited to see him.

  Yes, she was. God, she hoped it wasn't obvious.

  When she saw him, she froze in her tracks. There was a gorgeous blonde wrapped around him. Standing in front of him and then eventually straddling his thighs. Nathan, for his part, leaned back for a moment. But then she said something and he leaned forward and gave her that look. Sophie had seen that look before. That had been the same one he'd given to her when he wanted to fuck her.

  Shit. She'd gotten this all wrong. How the hell had that happened? Because you allowed yourself to believe that you could be with a guy like that. That for once, somebody like that would choose you. Well, she'd been wrong about that.

  The problem was, she turned away a moment too late. The blond woman moved her head to the side and Sophie and Nathan made eye contact for the barest hint of a moment. But in the next second, Sophie was leaving out the door, quick as a flash. She'd let her imagination take over and she could almost pretend she heard him calling after her to stop, to wait for him. But she knew that was a lie.

  Nathan

  The statuesque blonde leaned into Nathan’s side. Instinct had him recoiling away from her a step. Somewhere along the line, other women had become repelling magnets to him.

  She frowned as she studied him closely. "You’re jumpy tonight. I swear Nathan, we haven't had one of our usual sessions in weeks. It's like you've lost my number or something. Now you’re acting like you’re not happy to see me."

  Ilsa. Beautiful. Accomplished even. Mouth like a hoover. Problem was, in the last few weeks or so he hadn't been really particularly interested in seeing her. What they had wasn’t even casual. If he needed a date and felt l
ike it, he called her. And usually, he felt like it at least a couple of times a month but not since Sophie. Not since he'd seen her get her heart twisted up. Since then, he had been all Sophie, all the time. He hadn't even thought of Ilsa once. "Ilsa, you look well."

  She tsked and wound her arms like two boa constrictors around his neck. "Don't give me the ‘you-look-well.’ Where have you been? I thought you and I had a good thing going?"

  With practiced ease he extricated himself from her hold. She’d been drinking. And she was prone to scenes when she was drinking. And there it was. What he was constantly trying to avoid: Attachment. Connection.

  Connection isn’t a problem if it came from Sophie. Fuck, he had it so bad. "You know how it is. I've been busy." Was he supposed to have officially called it off with Ilsa? Hell he’d never been in this position before. What the hell was the damn protocol?

  "I can see that. But you haven't even called me for any of the charity functions you've attended this month. I saw your photo in the society pages."

  Fuck him. That was how this whole thing had even started. She had been the perfect date. Someone who presented well amongst investors, would fit in that part of society, but then would also understand that just because he shagged her didn't mean that they were together.

  Hell, she'd suggested they be each other’s casual-consistent plus ones in the first place. It had been a win-win with the occasional night together thrown in. There was no permanence to it. She’d just come to expect the occasional call for a charity function or two.

  He wasn’t looking for anyone, and she was looking for an older rich husband to spoil her. What they had was less than casual. But now, that noose felt too tight. "I'm sorry, Ilsa. Maybe we can meet another time for tea or something."

  She narrowed her gaze on him. "Tea? Nathan, that positively sounds like a brush off." Bugger. He was going to have to do the whole sit down break it off thing, wasn’t he? Even though they’d never been anything.

  And that's because it was a brush off. Over Ilsa's shoulder, he could see Garrett chuckling into his drink. "Ilsa, look we’ll talk about this another time. I’m waiting for someone. And you’ve been drinking."