Chapter 5
Wes
This was too freaking good to be true. I loved messing with Juliette, but usually I had to be creative.
This situation? It had been handed to me on a silver platter.
This job was tough, so if I could have a little fun with it, that made it somewhat tolerable.
And tonight? I planned to have some fun, despite remaining on high alert.
I made my way into the living room, where Juliette had set up the food.
I could get used to this. Not only was it going to be awesome making Juliette blush, but the snacks here?
Top notch. I’d been missing out on the book club game all these years.
Cheese and crackers. Shrimp cocktail. Cured meats—my favorite.
The last time I’d seen a spread this good was the buffet on the Carnival cruise I took with my family when I was fourteen.
While I wouldn’t be taking advantage of the alcohol tonight, since I had to be at the top of my game, I would most definitely be stuffing my face full of prosciutto.
The seats were arranged in a circle. Seemed so…formal.
Taking my full plate over to the chair next to Juliette, I bumped her arm with mine. “You should eat.”
She crossed her arms. “I’m not hungry in the least.”
I narrowed my eyes. “Why not?”
“I lost my appetite the moment you decided to stay.”
I looked around, then leaned in to whisper in her ear, “Ready for the circle jerk?”
She rolled her eyes.
I chuckled. “I mean, what the fuck is this? Who sits in a circle like this?” When her serious expression wouldn’t budge, I popped an olive into my mouth. “Oh, come on. Lighten up. You’re apparently the only one who doesn’t want me here.”
She spoke under her breath. “They’re a bunch of horned-up women. They only want you here because you’re cute. You should have more self-respect than to allow them to objectify you.”
I licked some salt off my finger. “Being objectified is better than somebody who acts like my shirtless chest is the anti-Christ. We’re going from one extreme to the other.”
While Juliette remained stoic, I did my best to enjoy myself, continuing to devour my food while everyone gathered around. It was a little strange being the only dude here. But hey, I’d take one for the team anyway. I supposed I was here…repping bodyguards.
Just as I shoved a piece of spanakopita into my mouth, I heard someone say, “Mine was the part where he pretended to be an intruder, tied her up, and blindfolded her. Then she realized it was him. And they ended up having butt sex. They roleplayed the very thing he was supposed to be protecting her from. Ohhh, that was so hot.”
Say what?
Roleplay?
Butt sex?
This was a bit different than the book I’d imagined.
I whispered to Juliette again. “Can you imagine if I pretended to be an intruder? Pretty sure I’d be in for a swift kick in the balls, or worse, instead of what the guy in the book got for pulling the same shit.”
Juliette laughed a little that time, which pleased me. Figures she’d laugh at a visual of me getting kicked in the balls, though.
“Juliette?” Pam said. “It’s your turn.”
Juliette straightened in her seat. “What’s that?”
“It’s your turn to tell us your favorite scene. You told me earlier you’d highlighted one. Might you want to read it for us?”
“I listened to the audiobook mostly,” she said. “But I highlighted a particular scene I liked on my Kindle.” She swallowed.
Juliette hadn’t planned for me to be here and didn’t look enthused in the least about having to participate in this part of the evening.
She opened her Kindle and pulled something up but stared down at it for several seconds without saying anything.
Finally, she looked up. “I think I’m gonna pass, though, on sharing it. ”
“Oh, come on,” I said with my mouth full. “That’s no fun.”
She gritted her teeth. “Neither is you being here, Wes.”
“You seriously want me to leave?” I put my plate on the floor. “I will, if that’ll make you happy.”
“Please don’t leave,” some random woman begged.
“Jesus Christ.” I snatched the Kindle from Juliette. “I’ll read the scene, if you want.”
Juliette’s mouth dropped open, her face turning crimson. She held her hand out. “Give that back to me.”
I kept it firmly in my hands. A quick glance down at the highlighted scene told me exactly why she was blushing. Holy fuck.
My eyes widened as I looked over at her. She gulped.
My mom read romance novels, too. I cringed at the thought that she might be reading something like this.
“You should read the scene for us, Wes,” someone said.
Now I was the one feeling embarrassed—and I was normally a pretty bold motherfucker. It was hard to make me blush. But this? Reading it aloud in front of these thirsty women? I don’t know.
Ultimately, I decided it would be worth it just to get a rise out of Juliette. Although, she might not forgive me for this one. I wiped my mouth with a napkin and cleared my throat. “Okay then.” I flashed Juliette a wicked grin.
She turned her gaze away, while every other set of eyes in the room remained firmly on me as I began to read aloud.
“Jonah wrapped his hands around Brooke’s arms, both of them clearly spooked by the crashing sound, which turned out to be a false alarm.
But there was nothing false about the need erupting between them as they held each other.
Brooke could feel Jonah’s heart beating against her chest. That wasn’t all she could feel.
” I paused, trying to keep a straight face.
“He was throbbing against her, causing her panties to slowly melt with each second that passed. Once they realized they were safe, a desperate need for each other took over…”
For the next several minutes, I recited what could only be described as straight-up porn, which included (among other things) three C-words I never imagined uttering aloud among a group of mostly older women: cock, cum, and cunt. Excuse me: beautiful cunt.
When I finished and looked up at my audience, I was a little freaked out.
Every woman in the room remained entirely focused on me.
One was licking something and sort of looked like she was imagining it could be me.
Some of them seemed to be drooling or foaming at the mouth.
Everyone stared—except Juliette. She still looked away, sinking into her chair as if she were trying to disappear into the cushion.
Pam fanned herself with a napkin. “That was…wow. That was something, Wes.”
“You have an open invitation to be our official live reader,” someone else said.
Another woman chimed in. “You should consider audio narration. You have the perfect deep voice for it.”
I laughed awkwardly. “Not sure Juliette agrees.”
But whether she agreed or not was irrelevant because she wasn’t saying a damn word. She’d gone mute since my live reading.
And the walk home later was no different. Juliette remained quiet.
The silent treatment continued until the moment the door to her house closed behind us. Then she turned to me. Finally, she’d come alive, but not in a good way. She looked ready to spew venom.
“Did you really have to insert yourself into my book club like that?”
“You need to lighten up. It was all in good fun. And I mean, come on…the subject matter of that book? I was meant to be at this one. It was written in the stars. What were the chances?”
“The chances were very good, actually. Bodyguard and client is a popular romance trope.”
My eyes went wide. “It is? I thought we just got lucky.”
“It’s a stupid trope, if you ask me. But yeah.”
I squinted. “Stupid? Why?”
I found that a little insulting. Like, she thought it was so far-fetched that someone could find their bodyguard attractive? Pfft.
“You wanna know why it’s stupid?” She arched a brow. “Because that doesn’t happen in real life. A client falling for her bodyguard is a contrived situation—convenient. In reality, the situation would be inappropriate, messy at best, and unlikely to happen.”
“But couldn’t you argue that’s why it’s a fantasy? That could be why it’s so fucking hot to them because it is inappropriate and not something you see every day in real life.” I’d raised my voice a little louder than intended. Damn, was I butthurt over this or something? I needed to get a grip.
She shook her head. “Yeah, well, it’s not my thing.”
“You seemed to like that scene you highlighted, though,” I cracked.
“There were probably a ton of other scenes that were better, more emotional. But these ladies always eat up the dirty parts. It was a lazy choice, though I knew they’d like it. I had to pick something, so I didn’t show up empty-handed.”
“Actually, that was more of a one-handed scene, if you know what I mean.” I wriggled my brows. “You sure you didn’t practice with it before you picked?”
Her cheeks turned pinker. “Yes, I’m sure.”
I smirked. “You’re turning red, so I have my doubts.” When she didn’t respond, I tried another question. “Okay…if bodyguard romance isn’t your thing, what is your thing? What gets you off?”
“I like dark romance.”
Hmm… “Like, horror shit? The kind of stuff you write screenplays for?”
She bit her bottom lip. “Not quite.”
I plopped down on the couch and kicked my feet up. “Is it kinkier than what I read tonight?”
She went silent for a few moments. “Yes, it can be kinkier and also just…” She hesitated. “Never mind.”
I pulled out my phone and started googling dark romance. Some of the things I found included morally gray hero, serial killers, kink, and BDSM.
“Damn.” I looked up from my phone. “Little does Vince know what his daughter likes.”
“Vince will never know what I read.”
“It’s nothing to be ashamed of. We all have fantasies.”
“I didn’t say I was ashamed.” She turned away suddenly. “Goodnight, Wes.”
Damn. That’s it? I wasn’t ready for the night to be over.