Bryant Sommers was a flame, and I was a moth, mesmerized and captivated by him. I hated that he knew exactly what kind of effect he had on me.
“Bryant, I can’t get involved. I can pretend to be your significant other, but my life… It’s complicated. A man just isn’t in the cards. I have to finish my degree and focus on my daughter. Any other complications, I just can’t have.”
“I’m not asking for more time than you agreed to. I have never wanted a woman before. I’m thirty-four years old, and I’ve never even had a girlfriend.” His words hit me like a hammer. This man was telling me he didn’t do relationships.
“I get it. Why would a man like you commit? Doesn’t your type just basically move from woman to woman?” My voice was sharp. I was tired of his games. He needed to know I wasn’t going to be another notch on his bedpost.
He barked a laugh and walked over to the bar, pouring two fingers of scotch in a beautiful crystal glass. The glass and liquor looked expensive. They probably cost as much as two months’ rent. He passed me the glass and then poured himself another.
“Holly, I think you have me all wrong. I didn’t say I never commit. I said I never wanted a woman. I’m not the kind of man to randomly sleep with women. It has never been my style. You wouldn’t be another notch on my bedpost. You would be the only one. I’m too driven to be with women. I don’t allow myself to be distracted. I never have been…until you.”
“So, what are you suggesting?” I asked. My hands were shaking as I held the glass. Bryant stared at me like a cat wanting to pounce on a mouse. His smile came easily, and his dimples made my knees buckle.
He leaned against the ornate fireplace mantel, decorated like it belonged in a holiday film. He took a sip of his drink, his gaze taking me in. He didn’t answer right away, like he was playing some game letting the silence linger in the air. My words hovered between us, unanswered. After what seemed like an eternity, he finally spoke.
“That for the duration of this relationship, you stay open to all possibilities.”
“Open to what possibilities? Like sex?” I felt insulted…and a little shamed. A small part of me screamed to jump him right then and there. He walked over to me, grabbed my drink, and placed it on the oak coffee table. He then wrapped my hair in his hand, supporting my head, and used the other one to pull me closer to him.
“All possibilities. But first, how about you let me taste that pretty mouth of yours?” And just like that, he had his lips on mine. My whole world burst with color. His tongue tasted like scotch and peppermint, a combination I should have found repulsive, but all I wanted to do was drown in it.
Bryant
Kissing her had my cock so hard, it could cut glass. I wanted to take her right up against the wall. I wanted her legs wrapped around me and my cock buried so deep in her we wouldn’t know where I ended and she began. I grabbed a fistful of her hair and tugged, not enough to hurt her but enough to show her I was in control.
“I want you, but I told you nothing would happen until you begged for it. So instead of taking you here like an animal, something I think I’d really fucking enjoy, I’m going to take things slow and cook you dinner.”
Chapter Six
Bryant
I was fucked. The whole time we were in the kitchen, my cock was raging. She was a contradiction in so many ways. She was sweet yet fierce, and it was clear she was a great mother. You could tell by how protective she was of her little girl. I think she was trying to use the kid as a barrier between us, but the more Holly showed her love for her daughter, the more I fell for her. My mother was never really interested in me. She was more into my father’s money. She had me as a means to an end, a way to have steady cash flow until the day she died. My father, well, he was always too busy with his mergers and acquisitions. The only constant in my life was my sister, Rachel. She was the best thing in my life and a very well-kept secret. No one other than Trevor even knew she existed. I understood the need to protect those who were precious to you.
“This meal is amazing,” she said almost on a moan.
I laughed.
“Thank you. You seemed shocked that I knew how to cook.”
“It’s just that men with your means don’t ever need to learn.”