We pull into the parking lot, and he puts the truck in park, turning off the engine. Unbuckling his seatbelt, he turns to face me, getting comfortable in his chair. “But there’s more.”
“Okay.” I also undo my seatbelt and turn to face him, propping my knee up on the center console.
He settles his hand on my knee, his fingers tracing the argyle print on my thigh-highs. How such a simple touch can send shivers up my thighs to coalesce in my pussy, I’m not sure. It might be the way Lucas holds his breath before stilling his fingers. Or the heat burning in his eyes every time he looks at me. Or the desire I’m fighting to climb him like a tree after the kiss we shared.
Something about Lucas is different. He’s sweet, despite his good looks and hard body that says he could be an arrogant asshole, and women will still swoon. Nothing about him seems false. This is the kind of man I could fall head over heels for with only a slight breeze propelling me forward.
Maybe I already have.
“I’ve dated a few of the women I’ve trained at the resort,” he finally says.
I quirk my brow. “Rich, older women like the one you were training yesterday?”
His hand clenches into a fist. “Not Babs, but women like her—yeah.”
“And they bought you things like this truck?”
He glances around the cab, as if looking at it through fresh eyes. “I pay for this truck, but Evelyn put down a hefty down payment for me when my piece of shit Sentra crapped out on my way to her place.”
“So—” I bite my lip, trying to find words that won’t offend him, but cut straight to the chase “—you’re a gigolo?”
“No.” His brow furrows. “I mean, that wasn’t my plan. In the beginning, I thought these women saw my potential and believed in my dreams. I dated one for a few months before she dumped me out of nowhere, but then her friend asked me to train her. Next thing I knew, we were dating. After a couple of months and a couple of vacations, she, too, called it quits.”
He shrugs. “The tips were so good, not just from the women I dated, but from the women who were waiting their turn. I made a real dent in my student loans after paying my mom’s mortgage and my sister’s room and board at her school. I guess I was slow to catch on to the game, but then the other trainers let me in on the secret, and I thought—who the hell am I to say no to such a sweet deal?”
Lucas pulls his hand from my knee, retreating into himself, but I won’t let him. I grab his hand and pull it back to me, placing our joined hands higher on my thigh. “It’s okay. You were using them.”
He shakes his head. “They were using me, but once I figured it out, I let them—for a price.”
I sigh, trying not to be jealous or curious as to exactly how many women he’s slept with that he still sees at the gym on a weekly basis. “Which one are you dating now?”
“I’m not. I haven’t been with a woman in months.”
“Why not?”
His gaze focuses on my fingers as I trace small circles over the back of his hand. “I grew tired of the games. Those women have years of experience and no heart left. I didn’t want to become jaded like them.”
I press my lips together, unsure of what to say. Do I tell him I don’t care about the women of his past, but it bothers me he still sees them daily? Not that I’m in a position to be jealous. This is only our first date.
Is this a double standard? Men have sugar babies all the time, paying for all kinds of things, to include their rent. Why can’t affluent women use their money to buy time and affection from younger men, too? I am a feminist, after all. I shouldn’t have a problem with this.
“I understand if you don’t want to get involved with me.” He sighs when I say nothing.
I bring my eyes up to meet his, realizing I’ve been staring at our joined hands for far too long. “I don’t care what you’ve done before you met me, but I won’t date a guy while he dates other women. I’m selfish that way.”
“That’s not selfish, and I haven’t been involved in months. Almost all of my current clients are men or women who want to achieve their fitness goals. Babs was one of the last ones hoping for more, and I turned her over to another trainer yesterday.”
“Yesterday?”
“Right after you refused to take my card.”
I bite my lip to hide my smile. “Why?”
“Because once I saw you, I had no patience for her shenanigans. The woman is pushy.”
“And possessive.”
“Very.”