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I stare at the deceptively filthy-mouthed man sitting across from me.

“I also find it to be quite beautiful. It’s a form of art that I eventually get to fuck,” he adds with a shrug.

Wow. All this time, this is what he’s been into? And here I thought this man was more on the submissive side of the kinky spectrum. He certainly didn’t show me this side of him the night we spent together.

“What’s wrong? Was it something I said?” he teases, and I realize my mouth’s still gaping open.

“Nope.” I shake my head and look around for the AC controls, desperately trying to fight off the images my mind is enthusiastically supplying.

“I take it Augustus isn’t very adventurous in the bedroom then?” he asks, and I don’t miss the look he gives me out of the corner of his eye.

I bet he’s been waiting all night for a chance to bring that up.

“You could say that,” I say, my mood nosediving with the shift in conversation. I blow out a sigh. “No one is supposed to know this, but…we’re getting divorced.”

His posture straightens, his hands tightening on the steering wheel.

“Yeah?” he asks, a hitch in his tone. “Wanna talk about it?”

I let out a heavy sigh as my conflicting emotions wrestle for control. “Not really.”

What the hell is wrong with me?

To my surprise, he doesn’t say another word as the rest of the drive passes in silence.

When we pull into the driveway, neither one of us rushes to get out. That heavy tension still lingers in the air as we sit there, knowing we crossed a line tonight, but neither of us ready for it to end.

Roman clears his throat. “Well…here we are.”

“Home sweet home,” I say awkwardly.

He turns to face me, and his eyes drop to my lips. Then, as if catching himself, he looks away. “Thanks again for helping tonight. I know that’s probably the last thing you wanted to do.”

“Oh, it was no big deal. Honestly, it was fun.” My eyes fall to my lap, where my fidgeting fingers pick at a hangnail. “I haven’t had free rein to play around with improv since I was a kid. I forgot how much I enjoyed it.” For some reason that confession surprises me. Not only because I didn’t know I was going to say it, but because I can’t remember the last time I actually enjoyed acting.

When I look back up, I notice he’s staring at my hands, his jaw a little more tense than it was before.

“Do you want to come inside for a drink or—?” I gesture over my shoulder, feeling my cheeks flame with heat.

I don’t know when I suddenly got bashful, but there’s something about Roman that makes me feel so vulnerable. When I’m near him, I feel like all my emotions are heightened. It’s like I’m a teenager again, unsure of what I’m feeling. Is it excitement or terror? I can’t be sure. All I know is I haven’t felt this alive in a very long time, and right now the risk feels like part of the fun.

Roman narrows his eyes, his lips curling into a flirty grin. “Or what? I need to know what I’m agreeing to before I decide.”

And there go the butterflies, fluttering through my stomach again. What is this man doing to me? All it takes is a little teasing and a flash of those stupid dimples to turn me into a blubbering, giggly mess.

I blow out a huff and roll my eyes, my cheeks aching as I try to fight off my smile. “You’re such an ass.” I swat him in the chest, but he catches my hand and pulls me closer.

His eyes drop to my lips, but this time he doesn’t look away. “I don’t know. I’d say most people find me charming.”

“You know what. Never mind. Let’s just call this a momentary lapse of judgment.” I try to tug my hand away, but he holds me there, his eyes locked on mine.

Beside him, his phone lights up with a text from Leo, but before I can read it, he grabs it and tucks it into his pocket.

“Trust me, I want to,” he says, his gaze growing darker. “But I also know I won’t have the willpower to walk away a second time. So why don’t we both do ourselves a favor before things get any more complicated?”

He pinches the tip of my nose, then tucks a strand of hair behind my ear, politely dismissing me like the gentleman he is.

It takes a moment for his rejection to register in my brain. I blink at him.