The laughter escapes around her fingers, and when she finally calms down, she whispers, “Dex, you’re gonna get yourself in trouble, blurting out something like that in public.”
My mouth twitches with amusement, but inside, I’m scared shitless.
She doesn’t think I’m telling the truth.
She cuts off a piece of her beef wellington and hums in approval as she chews it, her eyes closing in delight.
“That good, huh?”
She opens her eyes and nods happily. “It’s amazing. Here, want to try some?” She holds out a piece on her fork, so I lean forward, slowly wrapping my mouth around it as I hold her eye contact. She licks her lips as she stares at my mouth.
“Delicious,” I agree. I try a piece of my steak, then offer her some. When she leans forward to bite it off my fork, the same way I did to her, my dick twitches in approval. Suddenly, the urge to feed her everything is all I can think about.
We continue eating our meal, talking about different foods, and my dick starts to strain against my pants. I need to think about something else before we have to leave, and she notices my soldier standing at attention.
Leaning forward a little, I whisper, “What I said before, it’s true. I killed him.”
She finishes chewing as she watches me, waiting for me to elaborate.
I sigh, shoving another piece of steak in my mouth as I think about how to explain. “When I was a kid, my dad would beat my mother.” She lets out a soft gasp, but I don’t lift my eyes, wanting to get this out before I see her reaction. “When I was twelve, he beat her so bad that she… she didn’t make it.”
“Oh, Dex, I’m so sorry.”
“I wasn’t even there. I was at school, and I came home and found her dead on the kitchen floor. I just stared down at her body, knowing that I wasn’t there when she needed me. I knew my dad kept a gun in his bedroom closet, so I went and got it, made sure it was loaded, then sat at the kitchen table and waited. When he came home, I shot him in the head, then placed the gun in his hand.”
I finally look up at her as I admit, “Imade it look like suicide, but it was me. I killed him.” Her eyes shine with tears, and my hands clench tightly around my cutlery. “Do you think I’m a monster now that you know the truth? I know I should have told you in one of my letters, but—” I stop talking as she pushes her chair back and stands.
Is this where she leaves me? Where she tells me she wants nothing to do with a murderer like me?
But instead of leaving, she walks around the table toward me, then wraps her arms around my neck and hugs me. My wide eyes meet Pete’s. He grins, then mimics hugging her back.
Right. Hug the girl back.
My cutlery clatters when I drop it on my plate, and I push my chair back so I can pull her into my lap and hug her properly. We sit there for a minute until someone clears their throat. I look over at Sly, and his eyes drop to Wren’s thigh. I realize her adorable, ridiculously sexy short plaid skirt is exposing a lot of thigh. I grab my napkin and cover her lap. He gives me a nod of approval, and I roll my eyes as I hug her again.
When Sly opened the hotel door to reveal her dressed like that, I almost came in my pants right then and there. Black socks that came up past her knees, a tight short black tee that teased a bit of her cleavage, and that damned choker she’s been wearing all day. She was like every wet dream I’d ever had rolled into one adorably sexy black-haired, blue-eyed package.
“Why don’t we get out of here and go to the next part of our date?” I ask her as she pulls back to look up at me.
She nods, and we stand together. I throw enough cash on the table to cover the bill and hopefully the waiter’s discretion, then place myself beside Wren, blocking the guys fromher view as we pass. They all shove their faces into the menus, and I whisper, “Real smooth,” as we pass.
“Where are we going?”
“Dancing,” I tell her proudly. I’d read all about how to court a woman properly. Dinner and dancing. That’s what they liked. And I already knew Wren wanted to dance, so it was perfect.
Her eyebrows raise in surprise as I lead her down the hall toward the loud music. “There’s a bar in the hotel, just here,” I tell her, gesturing toward the doors. When I pull one open, the loud music assaults my ears, but it doesn't matter; I’d do anything to make Wren happy.
I find the dance floor, which is empty, and dramatically turn her into me, holding one of her hands with mine, and my other splayed across her back. She raises hers to my shoulder as I start to sway us back and forth.
“It’s quiet in here. I mean, apart from the music,” she yells loud enough to be heard.
I nod. “It’s still early.” She rests her head on my chest, and we dance through a couple more songs as the sound of people around us starts to grow a little louder. The next song is a much faster tempo, and Wren pulls back to look around at the few people who have wandered onto the dance floor with us.
I swallow nervously, watching them sway and grind against each other. I might have made a colossal mistake. I have no idea how to dance like that.
Just as I’m about to suggest we leave, Wren looks up at me, biting her lip as she asks, “Is that how we’re supposed to dance to this music?” I look at the couple she’s referring to, where the woman is grinding against the man, rolling herwhole body as his hands explore her, and he sways his own hips.
“Do you want to dance like that?” I ask, hoping she does so I can touch her like that, but also scared because I have no idea how to move like he is.
