Page 6

Anxiety ripples through me as I slip my dress over my head. To say last night and into this morning was incredible would be an understatement, but now as I tug my dress over my hips, I slip back into my previous self, no longer a combination of wanton and submissive and back to being demure and sensible. The struggle is creeping in, weighing me down, and while I’m with Rocco, I feel nothing but alive, free.

“You’re overthinking it.” His voice slices through my thoughts. I know it was a one-night stand, but why does the thought of me only being that to him cause so much pain. I turn to face him, something I’ve avoided since sliding out of bed, hoping to leave with no exchange. After all, this was all new to me. I’d never considered having a one-night stand in my entire life.

“I’m sorry.” Insecurity and embarrassment creep over me, but I pull my shoulders back, determined for him not to see the hurt I feel. “I’ve never done this before.”

His eyebrows furrow as he searches my face, then he shocks the hell out of me by throwing the sheet off his naked body and striding toward me. My mouth falls slack at his cock standing tall and proud. The tattoos painting his body cry out for me to touch them, and I whimper at the thought of never being able to explore them, to explore him, again. His touch on my chin burns into my skin, and when his eyes hold mine hostage, my heart skips a beat. “I know. It’s one of the things I like about you. But mark my words, Little Red, this isn’t the end of us, this is only the beginning.”

I try to make sense of his words, but the heat radiating from him clouds my mind. I open my mouth to ask him what he means, but my phone cuts through the sexual haze.

He steps back, and I wince, feeling the disappointment in my bones.

I glance at the screen and grimace. “I’m sorry. I really have to leave.”

Then he takes my head in the palms of his hands and tilts me to deliver a kiss to my forehead. The touch of his soft lips seeps through my skin, warming me like never before. Which is odd, considering I’ve only just met the man, and when he turns his back to me, I sag, then mentally kick myself for feeling so ridiculously needy.

“I have a car waiting for you downstairs. My driver, Silas, will take you wherever you need to go.” His words come out choked, as if feeling just as disappointed as I am, but that can’t be, right?

I clear my throat. “Thank you.” My gaze lands on his toned ass as he heads toward the bathroom, and he appears younger today than last night. When my phone vibrates again, I jump into action and grab my purse from the dresser, then head toward the door, taking with me a night I’ll never forget with a man I can never have.