Page 40 of Renascence

Her knee trembles in my hold. I wave down Sheila, motioning for her to bring the check. Once it’s taken care of, I lead Emily out of the diner.

“I feel weird.”

I halt outside the doors, turning to face her. “What’s wrong?”

“Are we… on a date?”

“Why do you feel weird?” I ask, avoiding the question.

“Because it’s been a long time since I’ve been on one. James and I were friends since high school and kinda transitioned to a relationship. He never really did the wine-and-dine thing.”

I take both her hands in mine, my thumbs making circles in her palms. She lets out a shaky breath, pride surging through me at how much I affect her. “Is that what you want?”

“I don’t know. I mean… I guess every woman does, but it’s not like I’m going to force you into doing something you don’t want to. I don’t even know what’s happening between us.”

“Stop thinking about it, Em. Just enjoy whateverthisis.”

“Okay.” She takes a deep breath, smiling up at me.

With one last squeeze of her fingers, we continue up the street and into Sweet Treats.

“Venom….”

She stops at the door, eyes darting around like a criminal surrounded by cops. I step behind her, gently pushing her forward. The girl behind the counter approaches with a seductive smile, attention centered on me.

“Hi, Venom.” She bats her lashes. “What can I get you?”

Usually, I’d be all over her. It’s a small town, and the pickings are slim when it comes to women. It’s hard finding one I haven’t fucked yet, and this chick falls in that category. However, there’s only one pussy on my mind tonight. I look to Emily, who seems to be eyeing the cannoli to her right.

“I’ll take four of those.” I point to them, paying after she hands me the box with the pastries.

“Enjoy!”

“Thanks.”

I take Emily’s hand, leading her out of the shop and back to my bike. While I stow the pastries, she gets her helmet strapped on. I climb on and offer her my hand. She takes it, fitting behind me and plastering her body to my back. The way her soft curves align with my hard edges is giving me a stiff dick. Twisting the throttle prompts her to tighten her arms around my waist, and I take off toward my place. I can’t wait to get her alone.

It’s the longest motherfucking ride of my life.

What is it about Emily that gets my blood pumping? It’s like I’m a goddamn teenager when I’m around her, only able to think about one thing—getting inside her. God, I hope tonight lives up to my expectations.

Back at the house, I try my best not to drag her straight to my bedroom. There are things we need to discuss first. I take her jacket, placing it and my cut on the back of the couch. Her eyes fly to my gun, so I remove the holster, laying it aside.

“Don’t worry about that. It’s for protection.”

“From anything specific?”

“It’s better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it, darlin’.”

“That’s true. It’s a dangerous world.”

“It is.”

“Speaking of danger, I just realized I haven’t seen your snake. Not that I want to, but where is it?” she asks, looking around the living room.

“I keep him locked up.” Again, I don’t correct her. There’s no way I can tell her the real number because she would probably run far and fast. “Can’t afford to have him escape.”

“Good. Wouldn’t want him strangling me in my sleep.”