Page 5 of The Tycoon (The Douglas Brothers #1)

Sutton

God, her thigh is so fucking soft.

I press my fingertips deeper, careful not to claw my manicured nails into her fair skin. Dolly takes a sharp breath thereafter, but I can’t tell if it’s due to the asshole that just cut in front of my truck, or my greedy touch. I’d like to think the latter.

We’re nearing her apartment and I’m not ready to say goodnight, though I know it’s a necessary evil.

The sooner I get my Princess safely inside her temporary home, the sooner I can deal with my livid Mama.

I swear my ears are already bleeding from the hollerin’ I’m about to hear.

I can handle her tongue lashing; it’ll all be worth it in the end.

Turning my head to take a quick glance at Dolly, I grin as she looks my way.

I know the poor thing is getting tired, she almost nodded off on me while on the High Five.

I told her multiple times to go ahead and fall asleep, but she politely declined each time.

I almost demanded her to but didn’t have the heart.

I’ve been enjoying her melodic hum alongside the songs on the radio.

I allowed her to pick whatever station she wanted; she chose the top forty.

You can take the girl out of California, but you can’t take California out of the girl. Much to my chagrin.

“I’ve had such a great night, Sir. I really hope I get to see you again,” she says.

It’s the fourth time she has said that, I think she wants to see me again.

“Oh, you will, Princess,” I reply, my navigation alerting me of her apartment complex ahead.

“Don’t you worry your pretty little head about that.

You’ll see me tomorrow. Well, I guess technically, you’ll see me today.

But I want you to get at least eight hours of sleep before that happens, can you do that for me? ”

“I’ll give it a go Sir, sleep is often elusive for me,” she replies.

“Is that right? How many hours of sleep do you average?” I ask curiously.

She shrugs her shoulders, “Five or six?”

Shaking my head, I clench my jaw in disapproval.

A healthy woman should have at least seven hours of sleep a night, preferably nine.

Once she moves in with me, I will have her on a strict sleeping schedule.

Well, maybe not that strict. I will have to make allowances for the nights when I make her cum six times in a row.

I can’t wait to hear her scream my name, I already know it will become my new favorite sound.

“I’ll train you how to sleep, Princess.”

“You will, Sir? And how will you do that?” she asks, her voice lifting.

Curling my lips into a smirk, my mind fills with all the different ways I will teach her how to allow her body to relax.

“If I told you now, you wouldn’t sleep tonight. You’d be wide awake, staring at the ceiling…wishing I was there, practicing what I preached. No, I’m sorry, Princess, you’ll just have to wait.”

Humming low, she takes my answer, but I know she’s not satisfied with it.

“Alright, Sir,” she finally replies.

Squeezing her thigh with silent praise, my hand stays firm right where it is. I have pushed the hem of her dress up to mid-thigh so I could feel her skin but haven’t dared to move my touch higher. Of course, the temptation is there, but I am ever the gentleman.

“You are being so good for me.”

She doesn’t reply, but I feel the air around her becoming lighter as she sits in her leather seat.

She’s a sucker for praise; we will fit together just fine.

I’m proud of myself for not going through with tonight, and I’m surprised that the beast hasn’t made itself known.

I don’t know what I would have done if the ravenous craving had crept in.

I’m honestly terrified of when it comes back, but I can’t think about that right now.

I suppose I will cross that bridge when I get there.

Goddammit. I’m not used to feeling anxiety like this, I’m not a fan of it.

My navigation pings, ripping me from my thoughts. Noticing my turn, my gaze memorizes the area around us. I don’t love the fact that she lives in Oak Cliff, but at least it’s not South Dallas. Still, I can’t wait to get her the hell out of this neighborhood.

Tensing as I pull into her modest apartment complex, a small sigh leaves her tempting lips. She goes to unbuckle her seatbelt, and I realize that she probably thinks I’m just going to drop her off in front of her building.

“Nu uh, don’t you dare, Princess. Do not unbuckle that seatbelt until I have parked my truck and have turned it off,” I warn.

Halting her movements, she stops her fingers before they press the lock free. Relaxing back in her seat, she patiently waits.

“Yes, Sir,” she replies.

Giving her a tiny glance, I thankfully spot an empty parking space. Maneuvering my Sierra EV Denali, I carefully back into what is probably the tightest parking spot I’ve ever seen. I suppose I should drive my Mercedes AMG GT Coupe next time.

Putting my truck into park, I make a show of turning off the ignition. Counting in my head, I get to eight before Dolly frees herself from her seatbelt. She lifts her hand for the door but hesitates before moving too far. She’s a quick learner.

“I’ll be right there to open that door for you,” I say.

“Thank you, Sir.”

Undoing my own seatbelt, I quickly exit my truck. Stepping around the rear, I make my way to her door. Even at night, the air is sticky during the summer. While I don’t want to part from her, I want to make sure she slips into the comfort of air conditioning sooner, rather than later.

“Here you go, Princess,” I say, holding my hand.

Taking it in hers, she carefully hops out.

I’m thankful I haven’t lifted this damn thing yet.

Now I probably won’t. There’s nothing that annoys me more than men taking out their women in their short little skirts and dresses and then making them climb into these tall monstrosities.

Why would you want your woman to show her unmentionables to every unworthy asshole?

Making sure she’s clear of the door, I shut it behind her and activate the lock. Holding out my arm, I wait for her to take it.

“Show me where you live, Princess,” I say, my tone gentle.

I wish I already knew where to lead her, but never in my wildest dreams did I think I would be here. I only studied her brief history to get through the date, but now I will learn every minute detail of her life.

Stepping forward, she leads me towards the largest building in the complex.

Three stories tall with a faux stone facade, it’s an older building that the owners have clearly tried to update.

They’ve failed miserably but at least an attempt was made.

That is as much grace as I will give them.

With the sounds of howling dogs piercing the night, and teenage delinquents milling about, something needs to be done about the rules that are clearly not being enforced.

“My apartment is in this building, it’s on the first floor so, you don’t have to worry about climbing up three flights,” she says.

My smirk immediately flatlines.

“You live on the first floor?” I reply, my annoyance taking root at the base of my spine.

“Well, yeah…I mean, uh, yes, Sir.”

“You live in a first-floor apartment in Oak Cliff, by yourself?”

“I’m not all alone, I do have a roommate,” she replies, tightening the grip on my arm.

Unable to hide the anger rising in my body, I clench my jaw in frustration.

No woman should ever be living in a first-floor apartment.

Especially one in a less than desirable complex such as this.

Now, I don’t know who her roommate is, but if she means anything to Dolly, I will make sure she moves at least to the second floor.

If she’s the roommate from hell well then, I suppose she deserves to have a man with my appetites break in.

Reaching the entrance, Dolly opens the main door to the building by simply opening the damn thing. No metal key or card key required. My anger spikes. She’s lucky I don’t throw her back into the damn truck and bring her home with me.

“What? What’s wrong, Sir?” she asks, letting me take the door as we cross the threshold.

“When is your lease up, Dolly?”

“I just signed it the other week so, in a year,” she says casually.

Bull fucking shit.

Biting my tongue, my brain sets ablaze. I take a deep breath as we walk to her apartment door.

I don’t want to ruin the last remaining minutes I have with her tonight, so I compartmentalize my rage and stuff it into the back of my mind.

This situation will be rectified quickly enough; there’s no need for me to do anything rash tonight.

“Well, here it is, Sir! Number one-o-four, home sweet home!” she says sweetly.

Nodding my head, I take a good look at her door.

It’s nothing but a hunk of old wood with a single, rusted deadbolt.

I’m sure I could force it open just by pressing my shoulder into it.

Clenching my jaw, I seethe for a moment before shoving the emotion away.

I don’t want my overprotectiveness to ruin the end of our evening.

“I love your wreath, it’s precious,” I say, giving a true compliment to the simple wreath made with faux olive branches and lemons.

Smiling wide, I know she’s clearly happy with my observation. This wreath must be her decoration, and not her roommate's.

“Thank you! Yeah, I uh, it reminds me of Italy,” she says.

“Reminds you? Have you been?” I ask, arching a brow.

Shuffling her high heeled feet, her smile drops. Her beautiful eyes move back and forth a split second before her head follows. Looking for a distraction, she opens her clutch to find her keys.

“Uh, no…no…I’ve never been. Someday, though!”

“You’ll love it, there’s nothing like the Amalfi Coast,” I reply, watching as she unlocks her door.

Pulling her key from the lock, she gives me a shaky smile. I’m not sure if she realizes the implications of my words, but she will very soon. I’ll call my family’s travel agent in the morning and see what can be arranged. She will look so fantastic lounging on the beach in an itty-bitty bikini.

“I’m sure I will. Someday,” she says wistfully.

Holding her open clutch tightly, Dolly tries to put her keys back inside. I interrupt with a quick clear of my throat before she’s able to.

“Princess, may I have those? I need to make sure you get your car back,” I remind.

“Oh! Yes! Duh, me, yeah, of course! Here you go, Sir!”

Holding out her keys, I ease them from her hand. Placing them carefully into the pocket of my slacks, my eyes take another fill of her. It will be just a few hours before I see her again, but this is my last first look at her. I want to make sure my memory locks onto this moment.

“I’ll have my driver deliver your car and keys back to you at ten. If you get into bed right after I leave, you’ll get that important night’s rest.”

“Well, I will most certainly try to, Sir. Thank you for having him bring my car back. And thank you for taking me home. I…I had a really great night,” she says, fiddling with the worn strap of her pink purse.

“It’s my pleasure, Princess. I had an amazing night as well. Thank you very much for letting me take you out. I’ll call you in the morning and take you out again tomorrow night. How does that sound? Would that work for you?” I ask with a genuine smile, taking a half step closer to her.

Blinking her eyes, her mouth falls open as a look of shock falls over her gorgeous face. I’m not sure what she was expecting me to say, I thought I had made myself perfectly clear that I would be seeing her tomorrow. Now I really want to pay her ex-boyfriends a little visit.

“Yeah! Yes! YES, I would like that very much, Sir!”

Pleased by her enthusiastic response, I move in dangerously close. Damn, she is literal perfection. I hate that I must leave her.

“Alright then, my pretty little Dolly, I guess this is goodnight,” I say, dropping my voice to a near whisper.

Traveling her gaze over my face, her pink tongue darts out to lick her lips.

A simmering tension builds as we drink each other in.

I want nothing more than to press her against the door and taste her, to feel her womanly body mold against mine once again.

I take a step forward to close the space between us, and she does something that surprises me again.

Leaning in, she places the softest kiss upon my cheek, then pulls quickly away.

A kiss. On my cheek.

Before I have a chance to bring her back to me and claim her lips properly, she opens the door of her apartment and moves out of my reach. I narrow my eyes at her, my expression full of confusion and desire. I don’t think this has ever happened to me before. No. This definitely has never happened.

“Goodnight, Sir. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Opening my mouth to respond, she does something else that blows me away.

Closing the door right in my face, she doesn’t bother to give me the decency to wish her sweet dreams. I stare at her wreath for a good thirty seconds, completely gob smacked at what has just happened.

Oh, this woman has just sealed her fate.

Dolly Lauren Dixon will never be able to escape me.