Chapter Two
Beth didn’t know if she should tell Rome she was a virgin. Her hands shook as she stepped toward the door. She had about two minutes to make it downstairs without a stitch of clothing on.
She never went anywhere naked. And now, she was walking through a strange man’s house wearing nothing. Although, she was wearing a pair of socks. She’d not removed them from his previous instruction, and now she was wondering if she should have taken them off.
She wasn’t going to risk angering him. She didn’t know what kind of man Rome was, and she wasn’t interested in finding out the hard way, so she made sure her body was completely naked. She had found his en-suite bathroom, where she took a second to admire the cleanliness of it. Being a cleaner, she couldn’t help but enjoy things that sparkled.
Ben had never been interested when she went down the aisle with cleaning supplies at the supermarket, although they were constantly coming out with new products. She still loved the good old reliable favorite—water and a cloth. She stuck to that rather than risk items that didn’t react well to chemicals. Some of the people that worked at the cleaning company had been fired for their carelessness. She never had a complaint for her bowl of water and a cloth. It worked every single time.
She also liked to change her water regularly. She couldn’t believe she was thinking about her bowl of cleaning water while walking naked down to the dining room to eat dinner with Rome Hayes.
It was fine.
It was all fine.
Nope, nothing was fine about any of this, but she wasn’t going to complain, not a bit.
She stepped down the long staircase and came to a stop at the bottom.
Beth didn’t know where she was supposed to go or what she was supposed to do. Pursing her lips, she looked left, then right. She decided to go left. There were no guards around, which she was thankful for. She came to a room but the door was closed.
Beth knocked on it and waited, but she was thankful as Rome suddenly called for her to enter.
Stepping into the dining room, she found Rome sitting at the table, sipping a glass of what appeared to be wine, waiting for her.
“Right on time,” he said. “I thought I was going to have to send out a search party.”
She walked toward him, a little nervous. Being naked around a guy was hard for her and she couldn’t believe it was happening right now. She was very much naked, and Rome was very much a guy.
He got to his feet and pulled out a chair. There was a single towel on the seat, and she felt her cheeks start to get hot once again. Did he do this on purpose to make her feel nervous?
She thanked him as she sat down. There was nothing wrong with being polite, at least that was what her mother always told her, but now she was starting to have doubts about that.
They were alone, and she couldn’t stop thinking about the fact she was naked at the dinner table, with a man she barely knew. Even to herself she was staring to feel like a broken record.
She sat at the table but Rome didn’t sit back down. He left the room and this made her nerves go through the roof. She tried to keep telling herself it was all good. Of course it was all good.
Only, it didn’t feel good.
Nibbling on her lip, she waited, feeling a little panicked, but she held her breath. He came back through the door, and she turned her head to see him carrying two plates.
All too soon, she breathed a sigh of relief.
Plates of food were a good thing. She didn’t know what she expected him to have in his hands, but it wasn’t food. Beth didn’t know how she was going to be able to stomach some food, but she would force it down. She didn’t want to be rude.
She had no idea how this night was going to play out. He’d already touched her, and much to her surprise she had responded to his touch. No one had ever put his hands on her, and yet, one touch from Rome and it was like she didn’t even know her own body. Nothing seemed to make sense to her now. She couldn’t help but hate her brother a little for putting her in this position.
She didn’t know what she was supposed to do. Should she tell Rome she was a virgin? Would he even believe her, or just assume she was trying to get out of having sex with him? Everything was so messed up right now. So confusing.
So … so … so … everything.
She wanted to scream.
Instead, she smiled and thanked Rome, hoping she didn’t show him her internal conflict, as that was the last thing she wanted to do.
“This looks delicious,” she said.
“I didn’t know if you were a vegan or had any special dietary requirements.”
He certainly didn’t cater to any, as the steak and potatoes with broccoli looked delicious. Her mouth watered for a taste.
“Nope, I’m fine. I can eat steak and potatoes. I also love broccoli.”
She picked up her knife and fork, and then looked toward him, trying not to think about the fact she was so very naked. It didn’t matter.
“Eat,” Rome said.
He took a sip of his wine, and then reached for the bottle. The moment he tried to pour her a glass, she covered the top with her hand.
“I don’t drink.”
“You don’t?”
She shook her head.
“Do you want to tell me why?”
There was no point in lying. “I’ve seen what alcohol does to a person, and once you spend a lot of time attempting to clean up other people’s messes, well, it doesn’t exactly hold any appeal.”
“Have you ever had a drink?” he asked.
“No, I’ve not needed to.”
Again, she had picked her parents up off the floor from one too many beers. She had to scrub sick out of carpets, and hold their heads above the toilet as they nearly choked on their own vomit.
Not a good advertisement for drinking. At least, this conversation distracted her from the other dilemma she was having, the one where he was fully dressed and she was still naked.
Also … they were going to have sex. She was a virgin and didn’t have a clue what she was doing. None of this was going to end well for her.
Slicing into the steak, she couldn’t help but marvel at how beautiful it was, and how it sliced through like butter. The taste was sensational—juicy, sweet, succulent pieces of tender meat.
And, her mouth watered for more. The potatoes were full of flavor, nothing bland about them at all. She hated unseasoned potatoes. There was nothing worse to her.
She couldn’t help but glance at Rome, only to find him watching her. He was eating his food, but now his gaze was intent on her, and she didn’t know what to do. She felt her cheeks heating, and as she did, she wished she’d taken the time many years ago to learn how to put makeup on. She’d be able to hide all the times she blushed.
“This is really good.” She didn’t like to be nervous. With him staring at her, it was making her so. She tried to ignore it, which only seemed to make everything worse.
“I have a good chef.”
“Ah, so you didn’t cook this yourself?” she asked.
“I don’t cook.”
She pressed her lips together and offered him a smile.
“Do you?” he asked.
“Ugh, yes, I cook. I don’t like ordering takeout, and I can’t afford a chef.” It was supposed to be a joke, but it kind of fell flat.
“Why do you live with your brother?” he asked.
She put a bite of potato in her mouth and turned to look at him. “He’s my brother.”
“He’s trouble, Beth, and not one you should be dealing with.”
There was no arguing with that, seeing as she was naked in this man’s dining room through no fault of her own, other than the brother she had. This didn’t feel good to her. “He’s still my brother and although he has messed up, I know he wouldn’t do anything to harm me.”
Rome burst out laughing and he threw his head back. “Oh, Beth, you are seriously deluded.”
****
“I do not appreciate being called that,” Beth said.
She looked even more sexy when she was insulted. Rome loved that wild look in her eyes, like she was trying to keep her anger at bay. He’d opened the door in time to see her attacking her brother in the car. He’d been impressed to see she had some fire.
The previous night, he didn’t know if he’d just agreed to bed a doormat. There was nothing sexy about a woman who allowed anyone to walk all over her.
There was a fire inside Beth. He intended to stoke it, and reap the rewards for himself.
“Do you think this is the first time your brother has messed up?” Rome asked.
She tensed up. He saw that she attempted to hide it by suddenly reaching for her water. It was subtle, almost undetectable, but he saw it.
“Your brother has built himself a reputation, Beth, for being a two-bit crook.”
“What?”
“While you’re out all day, scrubbing floors and getting everything sparkling clean, he is out there … destroying things. I hope you don’t tell him about any of the homes you’ve cleaned. It would just be too easy for you to be seen as an accessory to burglary.”
“What? No, Ben wouldn’t do that.”
He took a bite of his steak and watched her.
She looked sick and angry at the same time.
“Have you?” he asked.
“What?”
“Talked about the places you clean?”
“No, I wouldn’t do that. Ben has been different, and, well, he’s not interested in my lame cleaning job, so, no, he wouldn’t, you know, do anything like that.” She rubbed at her temple. “How do you know this?”
“This is not my first time meeting Ben Hunter. It isn’t even my second time. The first time, he was trying to rig a fight with his friend. I let that one slide, as I had already placed my bets. Another time, he’d been talking about hitting some kind of pawn shop which I happened to own, so I advised him against that. I was rather amused, and now, he attempted to steal from one of my casinos, while also trying to cheat. That is when I took offense.”
“A casino?” Beth’s hand slapped down on the table and he watched as she clenched it into a fist.
“Your brother, Beth, is an opportunist. He doesn’t want to work hard for a living. He wants everything handed to him on a plate.”
She shook her head. “He wasn’t like this back home. He was reliable, dependable, hardworking.”
He sat back and watched the conflict in her eyes. Rome hadn’t intended to cause a rift between brother and sister; however, he couldn’t help but tell her the truth. It was only a matter of time before Ben messed up and Beth was dealing with the consequences. That was what pissed him off more.
He was going to reap the benefits this time, and enjoy Beth’s beautiful body. He knew men like Ben, and he would consider it an out, using his sister. Rome didn’t like that. Even though he’d used this hand himself.
Ben was not going to hurt his sister again. Men like Ben eventually snapped, and it would get them both killed or thrown in jail.
“Or maybe your brother seemed like a peach compared to your parents?”
She took a deep breath. “Oh, wow,” she said. “You’re right.” She pressed her lips together. “I don’t know what to do.”
“You’ve been surviving without him. I suggest when this is over, you change the locks or move out.”
She rubbed her temple.
“However, I am more than finished with my dinner, and now I would like to move onto dessert.”
He pushed out his seat and reached for Beth’s hand.
She didn’t fight him as he pulled her to her feet and then drew her naked body flush against his. He didn’t know if she felt this way too. Like they had this connection that didn’t make a lot of sense and yet at the same time did.
He’d never felt this compelled by a woman, and he certainly wouldn’t bargain a man’s life for the pleasure of a woman. Rome made people suffer. He made them pay for their actions.
Beth didn’t deserve any of that.
Reaching out, he thrust his hand across the table and sent the contents flying across the room and to the floor. Pushing her toward the table, he ran his hands down her back and gripped her ass. He squeezed the tender flesh, and he heard her gasp.
He lifted her onto the table, and then sunk one hand into the back of her hair, with the other, he cupped her cheek. Tilting her head back, he did something else he wasn’t known for—he kissed her.
Rome had a rule. His lips never touched a woman’s. He would fuck them, lick their pussies, but he never kissed them. It was his one solid rule, one he refused to break, until now.
Women always thought they had a hold over him with a kiss. It was too intimate. He could do whatever he wanted to their bodies, but when it came to kissing, he refused to give anyone his lips.
Beth didn’t know about his rules, and he wasn’t about to let her in on his little secret.
Her lips felt so soft beneath his. Sliding his tongue across her bottom lip, he felt her moan, and he took full advantage as he glided his tongue into her mouth. She moaned his named, and he swallowed it down. Another whimper escaped her.
Letting go of her head, he caressed down, taking one of her breasts within his palm, feeling the weight of it. He stroked across her tight nipple and heard her subtle moans. She was so responsive, and he loved that she didn’t hold anything back.
Moving down, he went straight to her pussy and stroked over her clit, finding her soaking wet. There would be time to explore her body, but for now he needed to be inside her.
He pulled her off the table, spun her around, and bent her over the edge. His impatience didn’t get the better of him, and he didn’t just slam his cock balls-deep inside her. He couldn’t help running his fingers over the curves of her ass, stroking the full flesh. He gripped her rounded buttocks and then spread the cheeks apart. Staring at her anus, he knew before the month was over, he was going to feel her tight little asshole wrapped around his length.
He let go of her body, slid the zipper over his erect flesh, and then reached inside, pulling out his large, stiff cock.
The temptation to plunge balls-deep inside her was so strong, but he held himself back, and instead grabbed for a condom he kept on himself at all times. There was no way he was going to have any kids, or risk thinking a woman had power over him. He would never be at the mercy of another human being—man or woman.
With the condom on, he stepped in closer, and taking the tip of his cock, he lined it up with her entrance. Then, he fed her his cock, slamming deep inside her, only to tense up as he heard her scream.
She didn’t have all of his cock, and she was trying to pull away from him. Her saw her hand clench, and then it suddenly dawned on him. The tightness of her pussy, the pain she had just experienced, and as he glanced down at his condom-covered cock, he saw the evidence of her virginity. Beth Hunter had been a virgin, and he was completely in shock.
“What the fuck!” He was so angry and … infuriated, and … angry. He didn’t want to comprehend what had just happened.
“I’m sorry,” Beth said.
Rome had not signed up for a virgin. He wanted an experienced woman who knew the score, and now as he stepped back, he took another step back, then another, until he left the dining room.