“Yep. As of tomorrow, you’re officially my sous chef.”
She squeals before throwing herself at me, her arms wrapping around my neck. “Thank you so much. I won’t let you down.” I drink in the scent of her perfume, letting my hands rest on her waist. When she pulls back, my pulse is racing at her proximity. One move and my lips would find hers.
Aspen doesn’t move, frozen in place as her eyes find mine. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be,” I whisper, searching her eyes for confirmation that the feeling is mutual, even though we can’t act on it.
“I should get back to the kitchen.” Her voice is barely above a whisper as tension crackles between us. I’m reluctant to relinquish my hold.
“Probably.” I watch, enraptured as she bites her bottom lip. Fuck, I want to kiss her.
“Okay.” She hesitates for a moment before releasing my neck from her hold, and I’m left bereft as my hands slip from the small of her back.
“Meet me at Venom tomorrow at noon.”
“I’ll be there.” She looks up at me through hooded lashes, a sudden shyness in her demeanor. “Thank you, Ryder.”
“You’re welcome, Aspen.”
She disappears out the door, and I heave a sigh. What the fuck was that? I should have shut that down immediately, but feeling her soft curves pressed against me—fucking hell. My dick is straining in my pants as I drop into my chair, dragging my hands through my hair.
There’s no going back now. I’ve committed to Aspen being my sous chef at Venom, and all of a sudden, the club takes on a different vibe. I go there to unwind. It’s where I play. Tomorrow, it becomes my own personal torture as I get up close and personal with Aspen in the kitchen—all work and no play.
I avoid the kitchen for the rest of the night, opting to busy myself with paperwork and another Scotch or two before closing. I won’t be driving Aspen home tonight, but I still won’t let her go alone. The Dom in me is protective of her, even though I have no business imposing rules.
Aspen appears at the door to my office at the end of her shift like a good girl.Fuck. “Are you ready to go?”
“Yeah. Are you okay if we walk tonight? I’ve had a few drinks.”
“Sure,” she says with a soft smile.
I grab my jacket and keys to lock up before I walk her home. When we get outside, there’s a bite in the air.
“So, are you ready to start tomorrow? Do you need time to say goodbye to the staff at Dulip? Sorry, I didn’t even think of that.”
“I’m fine. I see Rick all the time. He’s the only person I’m really close with.” My brow knits at the thought of her seeing some guy ‘all the time.’ It must show on my face, because she quickly clarifies. “You’re more his type than me.”
“Oh, cool.” We’re getting into murky waters here, and I know I need to shut it down.
“Wow, it’s cold out here tonight.” Aspen is wearing a short leather jacket and visibly starts to shiver, so I shrug out of mine and wrap it around her shoulders.
“You need to be wearing heavier clothes. Winter weather has arrived in Manhattan.”
She smiles up at me as she drowns in my jacket. “Thank you. I thought we’d be in your car, so I opted for style over function.” I guess she finally decided not to fight me on taking her home anymore—such a good little sub.
“Well, it looked really cute, but I’d rather you don’t freeze to death on my watch.”
I shove my hands in my pockets as the crisp night air sends a chill right through me.
“What about you? You must be freezing.” She moves to give me back my jacket, but I shake my head.
“I’m fine. I’ll just carry the jacket if you don’t want to wear it,” I joke. Her tinkle of laughter is music to my ears, so melodic it makes me grin ear to ear. She wraps it tight around herself and casts her eyes to the ground as we fall into companionable silence for a few blocks.
When we round the corner to Aspen’s building, she keeps her eyes on the ground as she speaks. “So, do you have a girlfriend?” I try not to smile, but my attempt is woeful at best.
“Not right now. My last relationship didn’t end well.” I don’t know why I just blurted that out.
“What happened?” she probes.
