Ashton
I can’t fucking stop looking at her. From the minute Hadley appeared tonight, through the tension with her brother and on the drive to the restaurant, my eyes have been glued to the girl beside me. She’s fucking stunning, and the shade of red she's wearing only displays that fact even more.
I'm glad I opted to have Ryan and Carlos accompany us to dinner. I don't want to be distracted with having to kill another man for looking. My guys will do it for me. I pay them enough to ignore her beauty, but even I question whether they’ll be able to or not.
As we enter the fine Italian café, filled to the brim with customers, I’m not surprised that every man in the room has their eyes on Hadley. Slipping my arm around her waist, my fingers dance down the edge of her shorts. She melts into my side and chews on that damn lip again, bruising it with her teeth.
“You keep doing that, and I’m going to fuck you right here,” I growl in her ear, wishing that her top would gape a little so I could see her nipples. I bet they’re a lovely peach color.
“Do–” Interrupted, she stops talking.
“Good evening, Mr. DeMarco. Your regular table is ready.” I frown at the host. I come here often enough because I enjoy the food, but I’ve only sat at the same table twice, and that’s because I didn’t make a reservation. “Would you like the usual for you and your companion?”
“No,” I snap at her. I can already feel Hadley drawing conclusions and distancing herself from me. Pulling a chair out for her, I take the closest seat, caging her with my body so I’m the only thing she sees.
“Your regular table?” she asks.
“Never sat here before, though I did request this one.” Because it has the most privacy, and I plan to get a taste of Hadley’s pussy before dinner is served.
“You have a usual drink?” I’m glad she’s grilling me instead of acting like the host matters to me.
“I think coffee, but I’m sure there’s been some whiskey and bourbon tossed in the mix from time to time.” I can feel the host’s eyes glued to our interaction.
By Hadley’s next comment, I can tell she does too. “You know what bourbon tastes wonderful with?” She doesn’t wait for me to answer. Her comment is all shock value. “My pussy.” That I aim to discover.
My mouth hangs open as the host huffs and walks off. I’m off-kilter, and my girl plucks up the menu and acts like she didn’t just stir some shit.
“Evening, folks.” A server pops up. “Can I get you some drinks?”
“Bourbon,” I immediately bark out.
“Water, please.” Hadley glares at my lack of manners.
Lucky for the waiter, he leaves without trying to look down Hadley's top. “How old are you?” she asks me out of the blue.
It takes my brain a moment to catch up. “Thirty-two.” Her shocked gaze meets mine. I know the age difference. I just don’t give a fuck.
“That’s…” She starts and stops. “You know I’m eighteen, right? Just graduated high school. Have no idea if I’m going to college in the fall or taking a year off.”
“Yes.”
“How many clubs do you own?” Q and A time, I guess. This is what I wanted out of tonight, so I can’t complain.
“Ten, including Peaches & Cream. That one was my mother’s idea, actually.” Her eyes light up. Family is important to her.
“Are they all here or in the area?”
“Four are in the panhandle, with three here in Pensacola. Two in Miami, two in Tampa, one in Georgia, another in Louisiana. I plan to expand further throughout Florida too.”
“Impressive. Do you travel a lot?” She’s gauging what my absences will be like. Likely wondering if I have girls in other cities too.
“I have monthly manager meetings here. Traveling normally only happens when I’m opening a new club or there’s an emergency. Depending on the situation, I can be gone from two days to two months.” I won’t lie to her; she’s a big girl.
“When was your last serious relationship?” Diving right in.
“About two years ago.” Denise was a closet psycho.
“Did you love her?” Hadley’s eyes turn downcast now; she doesn’t want to know the answer to this question.
“I thought I did. I was fond of her.”
“How long were you together?”
“On and off for about two years.”
“But mostly on.” I nod. “Did you plan to marry her?” She does meet my stare this time.
“I don’t know how to answer that, Hadley.” She nods and takes a sip of her water. “I was married once. It was a mistake. She’s happily in California now with a husband and two kids.”
“I was in love once,” she says, and I know she’s not doing it to get a rise out of me. She appears genuinely hurt.
“What happened?” I soften my voice so she knows she can confide in me.
“He tried to burn my best friend alive.”
“Shit,” I mutter as the server places our glasses on the table. I down my bourbon in one gulp and wave for another. This woman is going to keep me on my toes. “I don’t even know what to say.” And suddenly, everything clicks into place about her distress this afternoon and why she’s so torn up about her friends being hurt.
“You think you should have been in Aria’s place, don’t you?” I don’t need her to say anything when she flicks her guilty stare up at me.
“I never told anyone I liked him. He was always chasing after Aria, and at first, she liked him too. But then he changed, and everything fell apart so quickly.”
The waiter’s back with my second drink, and I wave him off before he can ask about our order. Dipping a finger into the warm amber liquid, I push Hadley’s legs apart, making the shorts of her outfit ride precariously close to her pussy. I can see the outline of her lips before I pull the material back with one finger and slip the soaked digit in between her folds.
“Ashton.” She husks my name, and my balls pulse between my legs. Pushing my finger in to the first knuckle, her tightness is nearly my undoing. I massage her for a second before pulling out and placing my soaked finger in my mouth.
My dick fills with blood as my ears ring, and my heart is about to beat out of my chest. “Spend the night with me,” I demand as I finally release my finger. “We won’t do more than you’re ready for, but Hads, sweet lamb, I need a taste of that pussy without any interference.” My desperation leaks from my pores.
She nods, and I feel like a king. After our order is taken, she texts her mom that she’s spending the night with me and not to worry.
Dinner goes by quickly until we finish our meal and the anticipation becomes unbearable.