CHAPTER 29
AN ITCH
JAHLANI
Jahlani’s mouth dries, and a weak laugh tumbles out. “What?”
Roman leans back, shuffling the cards again before dividing them.
“Take your pants off,” he repeats, sending her a look that makes her body tighten. “And spread your legs for me,” he adds in a low murmur.
Jahlani wets her lips, her body thrumming in anticipation.
She hesitates before she rises to her feet, her gaze locked on his as she hooks her hands into the shorts he gave her and slides them down her thighs. Folding it neatly, she sets it on the other end of the kitchen table before gliding back into the chair. The shirt he gave her is oversized, but it’s not big enough to hide her completely when she opens her legs, anchoring both feet behind the chair legs. She shudders as the cold air meets her center.
“Good enough?” she asks, slightly winded, even though he hasn’t done anything.
Hooded eyes drag to hers. “Fucking perfect.”
She starts the round with shaky hands, distracted when his eyes dip to the lace covering her, the dampness spreading, but with more determination than ever to win.
“I win,” she says, smiling triumphantly.
Roman leans back, spreading his palms out. “Your wish is my command,” he states, and the filthiest thoughts run rampant, but she pushes them to the side, resolved to see this ‘talk’ through.
“What happened between you and Audrey?”
“She wasn’t you,” he says immediately with a shrug.
“That’s not an answer,” she whispers, shaking her head.
He scratches behind his ear, bracing his elbows on his knees as he stares at her, contemplating his response.
“She didn’t excite me. She didn’t make my blood boil or my mind race. She didn’t challenge me. She didn’t make me want to do better or be better. She didn’t make me want to drop everything at any given moment to be with her. She didn’t make me crave her scent or her smile or her touch. She didn’t make me want to carve out space for her. She didn’t make me feel weak and strong at the same time. She didn’t make me curious. She wasn’t you.”
He leans back in his chair, spreading his legs. “Better?” he asks, her voice thinner now.
She nods, her heart starting to beat at an unhealthily fast pace. “Better,” she croaks.
Roman wins round four and determines that he wants her to take her hair down, which she finds odd, but does anyway, letting her braids tumble down her shoulders in waves. When she asks if that’s all he wants, he hesitates.
“That’s all,” he finally gets out, his voice sounding husky.
Jahlani wins round five, determining that it’s only fair he loses a piece of clothing since she had to. Reaching behind him, he drags the shirt over his back, folding it neatly and depositing it on top of the shorts she’d removed earlier. Jahlani wonders if she should feel embarrassed at how much wetter she gets but decides to embrace it instead. After all, he wants her like this.
“Last round?” she asks, voice hoarse. He nods, flipping over his cards. This one seems to go on forever. Jahlani’s body tingles as the air conditioning hums on, fanning over her bare legs. She rolls her neck, jittering her foot against the floor.
Reaching forward, she swaps a card she knows has a low number. He doesn’t make a sound as she smiles, feeling proud. When it’s her turn again, she flips the card over, her mouth falling open.
“What? How?” she sputters, tapping the card. “This should be a negative four.”
He shrugs, reaching to flip over his last card. Her eyes narrow.
“You shuffled the cards,” she says, tone disbelieving. “That’s not fair,” she finishes, brows knitting. “That’s cheating.”
He raises his palms up. “Hey, I never said you couldn’t.”
“Whatever cheater,” she sneers, earning a chuckle from him. “I lost.” Her eyes drop to his mouth before jumping back to his eyes. “What do you want?”
