She wants to be a princess. He wants to save the world. His world, at least. And that’s fine. Why not? This may be complicated, but sex is simple.
This is just about sex. If they join me, sure we’ll soak in the hot tub and watch movies and drink booze in front of the fire, but I doubt we’ll sit around and just talk, not after last night.
I sure hope not, anyway. A sexual encounter, nothing less, and nothing more. As it should be. After all, that’s all I can allow it to be.
When that familiar little voice in the back of my mind pipes up, I hang my head.
Suck it up, Ryan. How dare you want more, imagine there can be more? Didn’t you put that behind you long ago? Didn’t you shut everyone out for years, to protect them from yourself?
A sexual encounter is all you get. Frankly, it’s all you deserve in this life.
So let me ask you…at this point, what do you have to lose?
***
The day passes too damn slowly, and the one after lasts a lifetime. Focusing on work is a lost cause.
The bandage on my palm and the pull and itch of the healing cut underneath is a constant reminder. My mind keeps drifting to that night, to every little detail—Brylee’s desperate moans, Riddick’s sexy grunts, their gleaming bodies, their warm skin, their hot mouths and hands and...
Damn, I really should concentrate. These financial statements won’t prepare themselves.
A phone call shatters my eggshell concentration just as I head back from my super quick lunch break—consisting basically of grabbing a sandwich at the company cafeteria and heading back up to eat it at my desk while working.
I almost drop the sandwich when I fish the cell out of my pocket and see the caller.
My father.
A vise wraps around my chest. My father never calls randomly during the week. He only calls if he has to cancel our weekly lunch, and never when I’m at work. He never breaks the pattern.
“Sir?” I lean against the wall, pressing the phone to my ear, listening to my heart tripping and banging in my chest. “Hello?”
The line chirps and twists—or maybe that’s the noise inside my head. Last time he called me out of the blue, it was…
“Sir…” What the hell’s going on? Sweat is trickling down my back, down my face. I think I dropped the sandwich somewhere down the hallway. “Are you all right? What happened?”
“Ryan!” His voice comes through loud and clear, so strong that a wave of relief swamps me. “The line went dead for a moment there.”
“Yeah,” I croak. “I’m here.”
“Good. I just wanted to check if we’re still on for Tuesday. After last time, I wasn’t sure you were up for it.”
I blink. “Yeah. Yeah, I’m up for it. Didn’t you get my text?”
“Yes. I just wanted to hear your voice.”
I tense again. Another deviation from the norm. “You never call.”
“Maybe it’s time I changed that.” He doesn’t offer anything more, and I’m reluctant to push. He doesn’t like me interrogating him.
“Good, then… See you Tuesday night.” Another thought strikes me. “Sir, I’m thinking of heading over to the lake house over the weekend, if that’s okay.”
“It’s all yours,” he says, and I swallow hard, relieved.
Nothing like your father showing up at the lake house and finding you in bed with a guy and a girl.
Yeah.
“Ryan…” Father pauses. “Is everything okay?”